LAW :Diary of a Diploma Student – Tears and Eggshells

Diary of a DIploma Student – Tears and Egg shells

I started of the week on a bit of a High with thoughts that in around two weeks time the course will be over. What a week this has been.

Monday 7th of March 2011 brought a bright spring morning and a fantastic lecture once again by David Thomson Advocate on Civil Appeals.

This was followed closely in class by discussions on ‘Leave to appeal’ and the criteria and legislation used to determine if “leave is required to be sought’
This subject is Advanced Civil litigation and is one of my electives this semester following on from Civil litigation last semester.

Due to the bad snow in january our exam for civil litigation was delayed and indeed the marks had not come out even as we began the Advanced course. I was of course ‘joyous’ this week to find out that not only had I passed civil litigation but I obtained a good mark too.

For many Diploma students the finishing post is now academic as more and more Diplomates have secured training contracts and ease their way past the post with the security of having a new firm to join at the end.

Sadly that is not the case for some of the students and tensions rise as successful diploma students walk on eggshells trying not to ‘gloat’ about having a training contract in front of others who do not.
I must say that There have been tears this week for some and emotions are running high with doubts and anxiety.

The release of the civil litigation results have also seen some students melt down as they realise that they now face re-sits as well as the end of term exams.

This week has also been an emotional rollercoaster outside of law for me with my eldest daughter taking ill and having to attend at A&E (thankfully all was resolved very quickly) and my youngest coming down with a sore throat.
Juggling University work , real work in the office and a family is always difficult as a single parent but mid-week I downed tools and attended to my girls (always my first priority).

The end of the week saw me playing catch up in furiously drafting a Note of Appeal as a last piece of course work for Advanced Civil Litigation Class.

Being immersed in a life of family and Law it is very easy to forget about the outside world to some extent but on Friday morning as the news broke of the Earthquake in Japan and the following aftermath , my studies fell to the bottom of my mind and I felt over whelmed by the enormity of the disaster and what the families over there are going through.

The couple of A’s I received this week seemed totally irrelevant in the bigger picture and I found myself giving my two little girls huge hugs and counting my blessings.

My journey through the Diploma in legal Practice at the University of Glasgow is nearly done.

It is now 13 days till end of teaching.( less than 2 weeks to go)

Thankyou for following my journey.

Michelle Hynes LL.B (Hons)
Legaleaglemhm

Top 10 Pitfalls of Being a Mature Student

Top Ten Pitfalls of Being a Mature Student

My first post on this subject (ten-reasons-why-you-can-go-back-to-uni-as-a-mature-student) received many views and RT’ s and it focussed on 10 reasons why you CAN go back to Uni as a mature student. In order to give you a balanced view of life as a mature student here are my TEN pit falls.

1.Can you teach an old dog ‘new tricks’

Mature students, unlike fresh young students come to further education with a set of pre-conditioned ideas. Your views are shaped and moulded by your experiences of life and in some ways this is a benefit for mature students however it can also be a hindrance. Just like the driving instructor who struggles to teach his pupil ‘how to drive’ after having 30 lessons with their dad. Mature students sometimes struggle to absorb new and fresh idea. Life can taint your view. There is an old Tao saying that ‘in order to fill your cup you must first empty it ‘and sadly some mature students do not grasp this.

2. No Energy

Gosh I wish I could have the energy I had in my twenties whilst I am in my 40’s. Sadly it is not there any more. Mature students have extra responsibilities and many work, raise families and indeed do a full shift before even leaving home in the morning. Taking care of yourself must be at the top of your list if you pan to embark on a life of study.

3.Families

Many mature students have families and children. The additional struggle that faces these mature students is broader than those of the younger student. Whilst young students focus is on themselves and handing in that piece of course work by the due date. Mature students have children, school, work, and all of the responsibilities that go with it. Making sure you have the packed lunches ready, new school shoes, parent’s nights, child care organised. Being a mature student requires excellent project management skills because you have to juggle many projects at the same time. Children don’t care if you have an essay due in , dinner needs to be bought, prepared and they deserve to be put first (in my case they always are).

4.No Money
This is a tough one. Get used to having no money. Get used to it very quickly and get used to having debt. It’s a fact. The good thing is you are not alone.

Ok, so I set out to write about the 10 pitfalls yet when I get as far as no 4 I think …..Wait there are no more. What are you waiting for? Life is for living and for learning. Never mind the pitfalls think of the adventure…….

I have really enjoyed life as a mature student and I returned to study in 2004 at the University of Glasgow. I graduated with LL.B (Hons) in 2009 and just coming to the end of the DipLP (Diploma in Legal Practice) and start my journey as a trainee solicitor very soon.
If I can do it you can – Pitfalls – Bah they are history. DO IT ANYWAY

Michelle L Hynes
LL.B (Hons)DipLP
Legaleaglemhm

Law : Legal Aid, Hostile Take-Over Bids and Gerard Butler

Diary of a Diploma in Legal Practice Student – 3 weeks to go

Spring has certainly sprung here in Glasgow. Week 8 of the second semester here at the Diploma in Legal Practice at The University of Glasgow has seen our wonderful city blossom with crocuses and snowdrops emerge peppering the landscape with colour and life. The Law Graduates on the Diploma course are gearing up for the end of teaching, the exam period and the beginning of a new life in Professional Practice.

It’s been a week where questions such as ‘what makes a great lawyer’ ‘When can we start our traineeships’ and ‘will Gerard Butler come to our Grad Ball’ have been bounced about. (The later brought a smile to my face, I must say.)

The week kicked off on 28th February 2011 with an assessment in Advanced Civil Litigation. This part of the course was assessed and each student was required to cross-examine a witness ( who was an actor) in a civil litigation proof.

Students paced the corridors prior to our ‘proof’ rehearsing our questions.

On Tuesday we focussed in Advanced Criminal litigation on the Appeals procedure in criminal cases and we were required to draft an application for a stated case and then present our Appeal in class.
On Thurs we moved to look at business organisation and Capital Gains Tax and Corporation tax in business structures. Gosh , I must admit this part of the course does not inspire me at all.
The major focus of the BEFPA , Business Ethics and Financial Practise course has been great so far but here is where that statement ends in my opinion.

As Law graduates ,Tax forms a compulsory core subject within the LL.B and everyone who is on the Diploma course has studied tax together with Business Law and Company Law as part of our undergraduate degrees.
The Tax element of the Diploma course puzzles me. Whilst the lecturer is great the subject matter leaves me with a big question , ‘why do we need to re-thrash Tax?’ As solicitors we will no doubt look to our Accountants to assist us in relation to Tax matters and as we have been reminded on several occasionsunless we become Tax Lawyers we will not be advising our clients on matters relating to Tax.

This part of the course fails to utilise time which could , in my opinion, be better spent focussing on more practical matters – i.e. actually completing Legal Aid forms ( we will probably be required to do this but it has not been covered on the course ).Again I must say that my tutorial group led by @Brianinkster is always great fun and we all join in but as I worked for HM Revenue and Customs for 12 years and completed Tax in my undergraduate degree I must admit that this part of the BEFPA course is turning out to be a disappointment.

Corporate, on the other hand never fails to delight me. A fantastic lecture by Allan Stewart Alan Stewart a Corporate partner at HBJ Gateley Wareing and discussions of ‘Hostile Take over bids’ ‘mergers and acquisitions’ and in class our tutorials led my corporate lawyer Kirsty Johnstone saw our group discuss ‘corporate warranties, indemnities, Due diligence and Gerard Butler’

A former Glasgow University Law Graduate Mr Butler , now actor was brought up in class with a discussion about him attending at our Graduation Ball.
Whilst I think that the likelihood of this happening is slim , I must admit that the discussion made me smile as I glanced around my group thinking ‘I wonder if any of these brilliant new lawyers will one day become famous judges, advocates and maybe even the Lord Advocate. Perhaps some of them may, as Gerard Butler did leave the world of Law and launch a career in Hollywood’

I am inspired by my peers and consider myself lucky to have had the privilege of sharing my journey through the Diploma in Legal Practice with them.

Thanks for sharing my journey.

Michelle .L. Hynes LL.B (Hons)
legaleaglemhm

Looking back at the Diary of a Diploma Student – Is Legal Learning like Childbirth ?

Diary of a Diploma Student – The Countdown
The ‘Eagles’ Den

Its Week 7 on the Diploma in Legal Practice at the University of Glasgow and as this week began on 21st February 2011 change is in the air. Glasgow has become brighter again. Snowdrops are in bloom and tiny buds are flourishing, no I don’t mean flowers (I mean the newbie lawyers being moulded on the Diploma).
There is a definite rise in morale this week and confidence is blooming.

When I started on the course in September I looked around a room of 175 Law Graduates and saw young, shy and very worried law students yet now when I look around I see confident, focussed and sharp new lawyers.

Wow – the transformation has been amazing.

As I sat in my Advanced Criminal Litigation class watching my peers presenting I smiled and thought how proud I am at having travelled this path of learning with such a wonderful bunch of new lawyers. I also thought , Gosh these guys will be with me in court and some of them will be my legal adversaries – I better watch out.

For the legal profession I would just like to say that the Glasgow diploma students are ‘focussed’ ‘commercially aware’ and READY FOR ACTION.
The work load on the Diploma has been high so far and whilst we only have 4 weeks of teaching left there is no reduction in the amount of work require , in fact we have even more than before with course work and exams to complete before we finish. There is a final ‘push’ required by all.

The week kicked off in Civil litigation with a brilliant Lecture by Mark Ralston of Wright & Crawford on Conducting a proof. We discussed examination in chief in great detail looking at Structured questions, simple language, 1 question at a time and we looked at the structure of evidence and the cardinal rule ; If you don’t plead it you can lead evidence on it. Mark recommended we read ‘The Devil’s Advoate’ by Ian Morley (sweet & Maxwell)

In the tutorial group led by Michael Heaney I enjoyed practising examining my witness and taking him through my questions, I was first in the class to do this and I really enjoyed it. After I had led evidence my witness was cross-examined by a fellow student and we all had an opportunity to offer suggestions and tips for us all to learn. The practical exercises on the Diploma are great.

There are three ways people learn , audio by listening, visual by watching and kinesthetic by doing and these exercises help us to learn more effectively.

We have an assessed piece of work in Advanced Civil litigation due for next week and we are required to draft a note in the line of evidence and draft submissions. We will hand in written work and present our submissions orally.

In advanced Criminal litigation our focus has now moved to Appeals and Michael Meehan delivered a great lecture on the Appeals procedure on appeals on conviction and or sentence.

We looked very closely at the steps required and the time scales involved in Appeals and we focussed on the methods of Appealing and how to make sure we reply during the adjustments period. Michael led us through all of the steps from application , granting of leave to appeal and through to instructing Edinburgh agents and obtaining 4 copies of papers.

We looked at this subject even closer in tutorial groups as My tutor criminal defense lawyer Peter gilletley took us through an appeal and we considered a case and case papers relating to a drugs charge. It was an open discussion in class and Peter offered us fantastic tips and ideas for drafting our own stated case for next week.

I really enjoyed the Appeals procedure as I have attended at the High Court in justiciary with Andrew Brown QC and Claire Mitchell advocate for several Appeals whilst working at www.roadtrafficlaw.com. I and this part of our course helps me focus more on the procedure this weekend I am drafting a Stated case and formulating my arguments for my Appeal. I am really lucky to have seen these types of appeals argued out in the High court.

After a focus on litigation all week the BEFPA ( Business ethics and Finance) class switched our minds from court and advocacy skills to the detail of financial accounting and Solicitors Financial Activity.

Whilst I always work very hard to prepare for my classes I struggled to prepare for this one as the Diploma is in its first year and It appears part of the course is a bit undefined.

We were only given an outline of the class two days before and even then told to read over 130 pages of notes.

This was not only a problem for the Diplomates but for the tutors too.

Never the less my class with @Brianinkster was great as always as we cherry picked our way through the undefined territory and focussed on the tasks set looking at Income Tax , Tax planning , types of Finance.

presented with a scenarios My group offered a tax saving to our hypothetical client of over 2k more than the one offered as a model answer set on the course. (smarty pants are us)

My favourite elective and class this week was my Corporate class. The Corporate group is now looking at Private Equity and equity Finance and investment. Looking closely at Business Angels and Venture Capital investors in Private companies we considered in detail the steps involved in funding . We looked at confidentiality agreements, exclusivity agreements, warranties, good leavers and bad leavers Heads of terms, Exit provisions, Due diligence, business start-ups, Management Buy outs.

In class we set up a ‘Dragons’s Den type’ panel; and negotiated the terms of investment with our investors. Looking closely at the terms contained within the agreement we successfully negotiated amendments. It was great fun and I enjoyed playing the part of the investor and the company looking for investment. It was like a ‘Eagles Den’.

Every week after my corporate class I leave thinking ‘maybe I should become a Corporate lawyer’ .

It was a great week this week despite a bit of confusion around course work for BEFPA which I am sure will be sorted out for next year.

With only 4 weeks to go It feels a bit like ‘giving birth ‘ the long hard slog has past and now the intense pain begins hopefully it will be like child-birth a pain that is very quickly forgotten.Thankyou for following my Diary of a Diploma Student.
Please feel free to add a comment.

Michelle Hynes LL.B. (Hons)
legaleaglemhm

Diploma Week 17 – The Final Frontier

Diary of a Diploma student WEEK 17 – The Final Frontier

The Diploma in Legal Practice at the University of Glasgow keeps us ‘newbie lawyers’ on our toes.
The week beginning the 14th February 2011 kicked off on Valentines day with an assessed piece of course work for the advanced Civil litigation class.

We have been looking at Motions and Debates and this week we had each to present a Note of Argument and a Rule 22 Preliminary Plea and conduct a short debate on relevancy and specification.

It was fun preparing for it and each of us was given a time slot to appear before the judge.

I must admit I love doing this sort of thing as I really do feel at home being on my feet.
This week for us soon to be trainees, it’s ‘heads down’ and focussing on that finishing line as in 5 weeks time the classes will be over and all that will remain will be three exams.

Part of the Diploma in Legal practice is aimed at helping us enter the profession ‘thinking outside of the box’ and looking at the profession as a whole.

We are currently working on an essay on client Fees, letters of engagement and hourly rates.

We are also looking at the benefits of instructing counsel and how we explain those benefits to our clients.

With only just over a month to go , the excitement and hard work is rising. Students are tense and working hard.

Thank you for following my Diary of a Diploma student and I hope you will enjoy the next 5 weeks.

Michelle Hynes LL.B (Hons)
Legaleaglemhm

Ah Grasshopper – All Lawyers Need A Master Po

All Grasshopper Lawyers Need A master PO

Entering a legal office straight on completion of my LL.B (Hons) was a pretty scary experience. In September 2009 my journey of discovery began.

I had spent time during my undergraduate Bachelor Of Laws (Honours) degree in the offices of a few Glasgow solicitors and spent 4 years ‘mooting’ to extreme so when I graduated I decided I had to find the right ‘mentor’.

Was I looking for an easy option ?No.
Was I looking for a free pass to a traineeship ?NO
Did I think I would learn something more than just text-book law-YES
What I was looking for was a ‘mentor’ a real life Master Po to ‘Grasshopper’.
A well-respected and experienced Lawyer who could put me through my paces and learn me ‘the business’.

That business is LAW and that man is “Graham Walker LL.B,DipLP,NP’

As I journey through the Diploma in Legal practice at the University of Glasgow I find I am learning so much from legal practitioners around Scotland and for that I think the Glasgow Diploma is definitely helping to shape and mould the new batch of Scottish Lawyers but If I’m honest the ‘wax on wax off ‘ training I have received on a daily basis from my mentor Graham Walker is priceless.

Graham Walker is an Expert Niche Solicitor , Finalist in ‘Specialist Solicitor’ of the Year in the Law Awards 2010 and in 2009 he took me under his wing and introduced me to HIS business. This role was not as a trainee, office secretary or paralegal but as a key member of his team with a hands on approach to his Law firm.

As I had an extensive first career in Business and International marketing Graham saw something in me which allowed him to trust and value me with something he guards close to his own heart. His firm and his reputation.

Working directly with Graham on a daily basis I mean literally across the desk from him: he has taught me every single job necessary for the running of a small firm from making the tea emptying the waste paper bins ,filing, recruiting, marketing, court work, preparing files, forecasting,planning,filming,instructing,dealing with clients,complaints,testimonials,liasing with Procurator Fiscal,Crown Office,Advocates,The High Courts,QC’s, taking precognition statements, dealing with insurance companies, instructing experts and many more.I have worked with clients every step of the way learning from Graham how an experienced solicitor deals with the many different clients that come through your office door.

He has sent me to attend at court from the District Court up to the High Court of justiciary with counsel, research case,deal with a full workload of paralegal duties.
He has sent me out to many Locus attendances armed with video camera and note-book and he has talked personally through every step of the criminal process.
I have learned first hand excellent negotiating skill, skills of client management and of course several difficult and technical areas of law many solicitors never look at.

The training I have received so far even before I begin my traineeship in Practical ethics and practice management is absolutely second to none and I am honoured to have been given this last 17 months of what seemed at times very hard work and at other times an absolute joy.

As many of my fellow Diploma students embark on life as a trainee soon , I think about how removed many of them will be from the senior partners in their firms and this brings home exactly how valuable my training has been already.

I will soon leave the offices of www.roadtrafficlaw.com to commence my traineeship at Graham Walker Criminal Defence solicitors and I am very excited to do so.

It kind of feels like the Karate Kid Film and I may even buy a lovely Bonsai tree for my new office just to remind me – Thanks Graham for preparing me for life as a trainee solicitor.

For expert Legal Advice in any Road Traffic Law case or prosecution in Scotland contact Graham Walker @roadtrafficlaw

Is Planting The Seed of Social Media Enough ?

Brian Inksters delivered a land mark academic lecture on Legal Marketing and IT to Diploma in Legal Practice students at University of Glasgow this week .(Click here to watch) . Is planting the seed enough ? what will make it grow?
Though Brian’s Lecture was sheer brilliant – I fear it is not enough.From a students perspective this lecture was awesome. Having studied at the University of Glasgow since 2005 I found the topic of legal marketing and IT to be inspiring and hopefully indicative of the Universities new forward thinking approach to the study of Law.

It was a bit of a shock to the system for many of the students though who have never encountered the real world of practice or even business and whilst I am aware of the technology from personal use and my many years in marketing and business many students can only imagine what a real practice is like.

It was an innovative approach to try to reach into the minds of impressionable young law students and try to plant to seed of technology. But what will make that seed grow?Questions that followed in the tutorials included ‘ When do you tweet, how long does it take you, how much time should be spent on twitter, should I update my Linked in or start a new one. How do I set up a blog, what do I say?

Students wanted to know ‘what one would do if the firm you go to work for dosent tweet?’

All of these and many more questions are valid for law students who recieved one hour of (brilliant) lecture material from a top tweeter like Brian but will receive no more.

Is one hour enough ? ( I suggest NOT)

I cannot even begin to quantify the number of hours I have spent on technology over the last 3 years alone, let alone my extensive Marketing background and I still class msyelf as dipping my toe in to social media. (marketing is another thing all together as I have over ten years experience in international marketing and business)

What is next for the next generation of law students ? If their curiosity is roused where can they go for help? who can they ask?

Who will give them more training. Who will answer their questions Who will show them how to actually go about buiding their brand. If students are being encouraged to build their personal brand whilst at University then surely the University ought to provide methods of mentoring, showing them how, correcting the mistakes and at very least offering a point of contact of some one who can answer their questions.

Will Law firms offer this training as part of the training contract ? I just don’t know.

I commend University of Glasgow and Brian Inkster for taking the plunge and embracing new forms of legal communications but I fear that it is just simply not enough. In my opinion this should be a broader subject and be incorporated within the LL.B at very least.

And If you are a law firm with a new intake of trainees this summer remember they may have a burning desire for training in Social media because they learned about how important it is at University.

Legaleaglemhm
Michelle Hynes-McIlroy

Diary of a Diploma Student – Little Fish, Following BIG Fish

Diary of a Diploma Student Week 14
Little Fish need all the encouragement they can get – The legal profession is a BIG PONDWhat an interesting and very fast week for the students at Glasgow’s Diploma in Legal Practice.The weather has changed here in Glasgow and the wellies have been ditched.
The atmosphere has lightended a great deal as more and more students secure traineeships.It plays a big factor in the morale of Diploma students who spend a lot of time worrying that they might not secure a training contract.

The week began for me with a brilliant lecture by Advocate Michael Meehan who discussed with us the requirement of preparation in presentaion.

Michael Meehan is a respected Advocate and his class is in awe of his many years experience as counsel. You can hear a pin drop as we all try to take in the tips and experience he offers us as we embark on our journey ourt the world of Law.
In his lecture this week he touched on types of Identification from CCTV, Live Line ups and Visual identification and we discussed corobration in Scots Law.

During the Advanced criminal classes we have been preparing for mock trials being run in class. Each member of the class takes one part in the trial and during the first one I played the part of the defence agent cross examining the crown witness and leading evidence in chief with the accused.It is really strange but the moment you put on that gown the persona of each of the students morphed into ‘a lawyer’ as we stood and addressed the judge.

Advance Civil litigation was equally as good as David Thompson Advocate focussed his lecture on the remedy of interdict.We examined in detail the remedy of interim interdict and in class looked at case law to demonstrate the historical changes inj the law by focussing on the area of ‘keep open clauses’ . In class we each had to present on a specific case looking at the ratio and discussing how the descsion had effected the law itself.

In BEFPA class on Thursday we had an fantastic lecture by Brian Inkster.Brian’s lecture focussed on IT & Legal Marketing . As my first career was in marketing spanning over 15 years and I have been involved in Business Development at www.roadtrafficlaw.com I was looking forward to this lecture this week , hoping to perhaps learn a great tip that may help me in my future life as an advocate. I certainly did.

Brian opened his lecture with a clip from The Apprentice featuring a young man Stuart Baggs announcing boldly that he was a ‘brand’ – gosh I already felt very silly indeed. As I must admit to never watching an episode of the Appentice I had absoluetly no idea who he was.The film continued with a bold young whippersnapper claiming to be a big fish in a small pond.Brian’s lecture continued to explain why lawyers need to build a personal brand from as early as possible and the best place for them to start is whilst they are students.

I was honoured to be then included in Brian’s lecture as one of three students he has chosen as examples of students making waves and creating a personal brand by using Twitter,facebook,linkedin and Quora.
It certainly was the first time I found myself in the front row of a lecture theatre and saw myself as a shining example of what my peers should do. (Thanks Brian)
The other law students Alistar Sloan and Scots Law Student are indeed shinng examples of young pioneers of new forms of communication in fact I first met Alistair Sloan in May 2010 when we were both winners of the Law Society of Scotland’s Future Leaders competition and both of us were invited along to the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Glasgow to present to the Alternative Business Structure Conference.I presented on the use of twitter and Alistair presented on Facebook. Since then both Alistair and I have been Blogging, tweeting and I suppose any type of communivcation to re inforce the points we made at the conference that in the future ‘communication will be embedded in technology’
I was so impressed by Brian’s lecture that I will write a blog article just on his lecture and on the topics then discussed in class ( to follow in next bolg posting) they will of course be from a ‘students’ perspective.

Coming out of the lecture though it was surprising to see that many of the students decided to head over to a computer and set up a twitter account. Some though were not convinced and said they could not see the relevance of using the internet or buildiing a personal brand. I spent half an hour explaining to one girl exactly how to use linked in and why she should upload her CV and agreed to meet another student next week to help her learn more about twitter.

Personally the lecture was wonderful and a breath of fresh air .To be given an academic lecture in one of the world’s top 100 Universities on such a contemporary and topical subject was fantastic. I just wish that this could be taught not only to Diploma students but to Law students from day one of the LL.B

The Diploma is going really well , but just as life seems to throw obstacles at you just when you need to be performing at your best I found myself on Friday morning overcome by an incredible pain in my left foot.This is an ongoing problem I have had for a while and one which will me attending at a specialist in the next few weeks. I was grounded on Friday morning and sadly missed my Corporate class, still health comes first.

With only 8 weeks remaining on the Diploma in legal Practice the goal of leaping out of the goldfish bowl and into the big pond that is the world of Legal practice now seems closer and is a very exciting prospect.

My Diary of a Diploma student will continue until the 27th May when we celebrate our graduation ball.

I will launch My Diary of a trainee solicitor on 1st April 2011 as I join Graham Walker Criminal Defense Solicitors and I will be blogging throughout my training contract.

Thank you for following my personal journey through the Diploma in Legal practice at the University of Glasgow.

Michelle Hynes-Mcilroy
LL.B (hons)
@Legaleaglemhm

Top Tips from the Law Society of Scotland

Diary of A Diploma Student – Top Tips from The Law Society of ScotlandThe Law Society of Scotland Professional Responsbility Workshop and Panel Visit.

Tuesday the 18th January kicked off with a trip back in time to the Bute Hall where I graduated in 2009 and was bestowed my Bachelor of Laws with Honours by the Principal of the University.

The event ‘The Law Society of Scotland Professional Responsibility Workshop and Panel Visit was compulsory for all of the Diploma students and thus a full quota of 175 keen and eager ‘newbie lawyers’ was anticipated.

Being an ‘Extra-keen and some-what obsessed law geek ‘ I would have attended even had it not been compulsory as I hoped to gain an insight into information that would help me in practice.

Alas some of my fellow students didn’t agree with my sentiments and the attendance was lower than anticipated with only 94 out of the possible 175 being in attendance.

For many Diploma students funding the Diploma leaves us with tough decisions to make whether to attend work and earn money or comply with the compulsory element of the course.

It is a very difficult choice, I must say and as a single parent with two little mouths to feed one which gives me great perplexity.

I need to work every minute that I am not required at University in order to pay for the course itself and support my girls.

The disappointing turnout, whilst leaving our Director of Professional Practice Douglas Mill furious at the non-attending students, didn’t not spoil the day itself for me.

Having decided that I would benefit from the day I can honestly say I was not disappointed at all, in fact the Law Society event proved to be incredible useful and informative and helped to portray the ‘Law Society of Scotland’ as a bunch of friendly and approachable professionals who will be at the other end of the phone should I need them during my life as a solicitor.

The morning session was led by David Buchanan-Cook, a Compliant Investigations Manager at the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission who gave us an excellent over view of the organization and an indication of the numbers of complaints that find their way to them and how they are dealt with.

Complaints ? Gosh that is a frightening word for a new solicitor and of course no pressure then to make sure we get absolutely everything right in every case. David however did put my mind at ease that the sifting process aims to deal with complaints of a vexatious nature and some complaints with no merit at all. Having not really turned my mind to the nature of complaints I find this part of the session very useful and I know what I will be doing in every case I deal with – sending out Terms of engagement letters at the beginning of EVERY case and communicating with my clients even if it is just to explain the delay.

TOP TIP : Communication ,communication, communication.

Philip Yelland, Director of Regulation at the Law Society of Scotland discussed clients expectations in every case and how as solicitors we should again communicate clearly at the beginning to either confirm or clarify the expected result and cost of a case. He emphasized the need to know and understand and communicate with clients at their level of understanding and to always do what we say we will do. According to Philip , Not making promises that you just cannot deliver will avoid a complaint in many cases as the client will not have unrealistic expectations.

One further point Philip stressed was the need to tell clients to let you know when they change their mobile number and this is a point I found very helpful as the suggestion of including even one line in the terms of engagement could prompt them to update you with a new number and keep the channels of communication open thus lessening the chance of a complaint.

Bruce Ritchie, Director of Professional Practice at the Law Society of Scotland discussed the money Laundering Regulations and an engaging discussion about types of circumstances and transactions to which money laundering checks apply was very helpful especially for new solicitors.

Bruce discussed the core values of being a solicitor and defined them as Independence, Avoiding conflict of interest and confidentiality and placed Trust and personal integrity at the top of the list.

Kindly acknowledging my blog, which the Law Society of Scotland have circulated, he reminded the students of the Double edged sword that comes with using the internet and social media. Bruce reminded students of the need to ‘think’ very carefully before posting anything on-line which may tarnish their reputation as a solicitor. I could not agree more about the danger element of the internet though I think that the benefits of careful use of the new methods of communication will bring so many rewards.

In my opinion effective training in the use of social media will assist new lawyers in both alerting them to the dangers but also in allowing them to move with the times and communicate in a way that all future clients will.

Throwing a debate to the students as to whether a solicitor personal life should play a part in their reputation as a solicitor it led to an active discussion about ‘integrity’ which I must say was met with various different opinions from the students.

The afternoon session was led by Society’s Chief Executive Lorna Jack who joined us with Society’s Director (Education and Training) Liz Campbell and the Manager of the Registrar’s Department, Katie Meanley / Wood.

Lorna Jack acknowledged the Talented winners at Glasgow and congratulated Myself and Matthew Lennon and Simone and Katy for our wins of the Sheriff moot and the Client Counseling competition and it was great to have our trophies on display and acknowledged by the Society.

What a great panel these ladies were outlining the reported increases in traineeships figures in Scotland with a 26% jump from 427 in 2009 to 539 in 2010 and Katie Wood confirmed there are currently 620 Diploma students in Scotland and she really helped soon to be trainees by discussing How to register your traineeship and discussing the role the society plays in the day to day life of trainees.

As a supporter of ‘life long learning’ I was delighted to hear from Liz Campbell about the Societies active part in a manifesto for wider access to public legal education.

The panel had coffee and answered personal questions regarding traineeships at the end.

It was a super day and I am glad I attended.

Yet another example of Glasgow University’s Diploma Team giving our students exactly what we need to prepare us for life in law.
You can follow the law Society of Scotland at @LawScot
Thank you for following my journey through the Diploma in Legal practice.

Michelle Hynes-McIlroy LLB (Hons)
@legaleaglemhm

So what do Law students get up to during the holidays?

So what do Law students get up to during the holidays?

Partying ?
Drinking?
Celebrating?

Well, I do have to admit to being guilty of all of the above but also to admit to spending most of my time with my two girls aged 7 and 15.
The partying did not include hanging out in pubs and bars but mostly composed of singing carols and eating jelly and baking.

The drinking; well I am fond of a dry sherry , a nice whisky and the odd glass of Baileys, and the celebrating: that was easy once my family get together every day is a celebration.

As a mature student (over 21) the workload of studying law is somewhat different to that of my younger Law Student friends.Whilst many can enjoy hours upon hours in the Library I have to operate to a very tight schedule, in fact its like a military operation here in Partick.Study time is very precious and I generally have to fit in my reading and studying at night when the girls are asleep.Hence the bags under my eyes.
So when the holidays come around I jump for joy at all this time to just hang out at home , sort out my books and read, read, read.

Reading is one of my passions Its true.

I love to soak up the written word and I read a whole range of subjects.
Over this christmas and New Year Break I have read:

A History of The School of Law – David M Walker, Professor of Jurisprudence
Wheatleys’s Road Traffic law in Scotland – Andrew Brown QC
Road traffic Sentencing Referencer
Law,Practice and Conduct for solicitors Alan Paterson & Bruce Ritchie
Discourse on the origin of Inequality – Jean-Jacque Rousseau
In The Shadow of Gotham – Stefanie Pintoff
Tender is the Night F.Scott Fitzgerald
TonyBuzan – The speed Reading Book ( this is the third time I’ve read this book and quickly I might add)

I have entertained my family for Christmas dinner and New Years day dinner and had my parents staying over the two weeks as house guests.
I’ve spent some time on Twitter and some time on Facebook and had a look at the many legal blogs out there.

Its 2011 now and I find myself thinking ‘Do I really need to make a new year resolution?’ I thought about it for one second and then decided that I don’t.

My Plan, however is to continue to work hard and finish my Diploma in Legal Practice and start my traineeship as a trainee Solicitor at http://www.roadtrafficlaw.com in March.

A Happy New Year to everyone and thanks again for following my journey

Michelle Hynes-Mcilroy
@Legaleaglemhm