Name: Clare Halliday
University attended: University of Edinburgh
Degree obtained: Law and Economics LLB
Age: 25

Clare Halliday graduated with a first-class honours degree in law and economics from the University of Edinburgh in 2004. She also has a Graduate Diploma in Law and undertook the Legal Practice Course at BPP Law School in London. She joined Slaughter and May in September 2006.

Introduction to the firm

My route to Slaughter and May was far from conventional. I wanted to work in an international and challenging environment, which put me in the direction of London. Work experience convinced me of some things that I did not want to do, but exactly what I did want to do was more difficult. My guiding principle was to gain as wide a range of experience as possible to rule out the negatives. One negative was a burdensome and bureaucratic recruitment procedure. I thought that if a firm's recruitment procedure was burdensome and bureaucratic, then their working practices may well follow suit.

I was attracted by Slaughter and May's reputation, but I was also attracted by their understated, yet effective method of recruitment. Seemingly negligible things made a difference too. I remember entering the building for the first time and being made to feel comfortable both by the receptionists and the general ambience. I met friendly, bright and open people, and while the interview was challenging, I enjoyed the experience.

Training and secondment

After an initial fortnight of induction, I sat for six months in each of our financing, litigation, corporate and competition groups. Frequent training sessions covered these and other legal subjects as well as skills, such as advocacy, foreign languages and technology.

Multispecialism is central to training in Slaughter and May, as is international work. In that regard my six month secondment to our corporate group in Hong Kong was invaluable. The different working cultures, the interaction between different legal systems and the collegiality of the office all made the experience one of the highlights of my training.

Training has not been solely focussed on professional development, however. I have also enjoyed a great work life balance. Even within the firm, it would take too long to explore the possibilities, but they go from participating in sporting events to our annual black tie event to simply having a coffee.

As for the future, I am left in a strong position to take the next step as an associate and my enthusiasm for the firm continues to grow.