Torell
Hector

Torell shares what his experience of working for Cartwright King Solicitors was like during his placement year as part of his course, Law (Sandwich) LLB (Hons). Additionally, he gives his advice to future NTU students who are looking to apply for work placements.

The reason I chose to do a placement was because I have always had a passion for criminal law and as such I'm aware of the competitive nature of the workforce. I thought doing a degree that allowed me to do a placement would give me a one-up on the competition post graduation.

My placement was run through my course and it was left much down to ourselves to obtain the placements, however the lectures offering guidance were helpful. The application process itself consisted of writing a cover letter explaining why I wanted the position and then an interview from a 3 person panel. Personally I found the formal application much harder than the interview as I prefer to talk openly.

During my time at Cartwright King I was a crown court litigator in the Crime department, this meant I would prepare cases by taking instructions from clients and I would complete paperwork to get the cases ready for trial in the Crown Court. This experience also offered me the opportunity to assist barristers at court during the course of trials.

During my placement I obtained qualifications which are very much similar to the modules I have picked during my final year. I am therefore going into this year having already got a base knowledge of the topics I am studying,

I enjoyed having the opportunity to work on two murder trials during my time with the firm. This experience allowed to work with a QC and vastly helped with networking which has opened up opportunities that I will be able to access post graduation. I also gained a police station accreditation qualification during my placement, this allows me to represent clients during interviews at the police station. This qualification has allowed me to stay working with the firm whilst having returned to university. This is usually a qualification that is gained by post-graduates on the LPC or trainee solicitors, so it makes me vastly more employable upon graduation.

The best advice I can give to students looking to apply for work placements is to ensure that you have confidence in your own ability, I did not think I would be in the situation I am in now when I first applied for my placement and it is sometimes just through putting yourself forward that the best opportunities arise.

My plans are to finish my degree and then return to work as a para-legal whilst completing my LPC part time. The end goal is to achieve higher rights of audience so that I can practice and represent clients in the Crown Court.