Solicitor
As a second year trainee approaching the NQ (newly qualified) recruitment process, it's a very exciting point in my career and even more so due to the recent merger. I had a fantastic time studying Law at Newcastle University before moving to York for the LPC. I then worked at an international financial conglomerate as a negotiator before starting my training contract with McGrigors in Belfast.
It was great to have the opportunity to train at home in Northern Ireland given the fact that I am going to be English qualified. McGrigors was one of the few firms in Northern Ireland capable of training LPC students and so I was very thankful to get my training contract with such a reputable firm and in my own home-town! Being an English-qualifying trainee meant that I was able to assist with a wide variety of work, for example in Real Estate where I could work on both Northern Irish and English transactions, and it also meant that I had the opportunity to be seconded to one of our English offices for my Litigation seat.
Being seconded to another office gave me the opportunity to see how our firm operates in another jurisdiction, to increase my breadth of experience by undertaking a wide variety of legal work and to build friendships and working relationships with colleagues from another city. Having had such high-quality training, with exposure to matters of both English and Northern Irish law, I hope to become qualified in both jurisdictions. This is a great opportunity extended by McGrigors and now by Pinsent Masons to graduates seeking to work in Northern Ireland.
[Since this profile was written Nicola has qualified at firm and is now working in the Corporate team in our Belfast office.]