Matt Oliver
Matt is a former FTSE 100 lawyer and qualified career coach who founded Trainee Solicitor Surgery in 2009. He’s helped over 300 aspiring solicitors secure training contracts at top UK and US firms, drawing on 10 years of legal practice and 15+ years of coaching expertise.
Matt shares free, trusted advice in his articles and offers expert one-on-one coaching for those who want tailored support from someone who has been on both sides of the process.
Posts
Many people overlook the Government Legal Department (formerly the Government Legal Service) when they are deciding where to apply to for their training contracts. The third in our video series has lawyers working in various UK Government departments talking about their highlights of working for the GLD. For more information about this as a possible…
Article written by Guest Writer, Jack from All About Law According to the latest statistics from the Higher Education Statistics Agency there are just fewer than 90,000 law students in the UK. The majority of those will be studying English and Welsh Law. All About Law – The Law Careers Website recently took a sample…
Name – Jo (requested surname to be withheld) Current Occupation (and Title, if relevant) – Solicitor 1. Why did you decide you wanted to be a solicitor? I undertook an undergraduate law degree with a view to enrolling with the police within their accelerated graduate scheme, over the three years I considered training to be…
The subject for this latest interview is trainee solicitor Samuel Gill who is undertaking his training contract in a small firm in Manchester. Samuel reveals the very real issue of student debt and also illustrates the importance of legal work experience. He also offers some good advice to those seeking to follow in his footsteps.…
Here are some quick vacation scheme application tips around some the areas that will make the most impact with the recruiters. Build Your Vacation Scheme Applications on a Foundation of Research As with most things connected to the pursuit of a legal career, time spent at the researching stage will stand you in good stead…
The subject for this latest interview is solicitor Heather Grant who is a relatively newly qualified solicitor but has been working in the law for some time. Heather spent time as a paralegal before securing a training contract and therefore has some good advice about taking this route. 1. Why did you decide you wanted…
Name – Adele BishopCurrent Occupation (and Title, if relevant) – Solicitor/Partner 1. Why did you decide you wanted to be a solicitor? I initially went to university to study French, German and Italian then after a year, decided that I wanted more of a challenge so switched to a law degree as I figured it…
The subject of this week’s interview is law student, Ben Hughes. Ben is in the second year of his LLB degree and hopes to train with a medium or large corporate/commercial firm. He talks about the importance of work experience, amongst other things. 1. Why did you decide to study law? When did you make the decision? I’ve…
The subject of this week’s interview is trainee solicitor, Sarah Watts. Sarah did some extensive research into different firms before deciding to train at a medium-sized commercial firm in London. 1. Why did you decide you wanted to become a solicitor? When did you make the decision? I always liked the idea of entering a well established profession…