Chambers Student Gen Z Summit
About this webinar
We are thrilled to be hosting the inaugural Chambers Student Virtual Gen Z Summit with a programme that has been carefully curated by our experienced team, and the aims of this event are:Â
- To build students’ knowledge and understanding of the legal industry, familiarise them with the current trends affecting firms and demystify the world of law firms and the BarÂ
- To create an open and accessible environment where students can hear from and interact with qualified solicitors and barristersÂ
- To equip students with information and tools to begin making training contract and pupillage applications with confidence
Event Details:
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Annabel Hale, Graduate Recruitment & Development Manager - Wedlake Bell LLP
Annabel is the Graduate Recruitment and Development Manager at Wedlake Bell. In addition to managing the end-to-end recruitment processes, including the summer vacation scheme, Annabel is also responsible for the trainees whilst they are at the firm and supporting them throughout their training contract. At the moment, she is also working on the upcoming implementation of the Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE). She has a broad range of experience of graduate level recruitment in the legal sector having worked at several London-based Law firms during her career. Annabel is passionate about working with those at the start of their careers and seeing them develop during their training contracts.
Claire Livingstone, Senior Associate - Wiggin.
Claire provides commercial advice to clients in the media, technology, and gambling sectors, with a particular specialism in consumer law compliance. She also advises on music and digital media, with an emphasis on music synchronisation and the commissioning of original music for film and TV.
David Hopkins, Barrister - 39 Essex
David is a commercial, financial services, regulatory and public lawyer. David is frequently instructed to represent and advise clients in all types of commercial and construction matters, both during the initial phase of disputes and through to litigation and arbitration. His recent commercial practice includes High Court proceedings regarding: a land option contract; alleged breaches of a share purchase agreement; and a £6.5m claim brought against an insurer following the partial collapse of a cliff near to the claimants’ property. In construction, he has acted in and advised on matters involving all the standard forms of contract, including JCT, NEC, FIDIC, SIA and FMB contracts, as well as many ad hoc forms. He is a TECBAR accredited adjudicator and accepts appointments via the TECBAR adjudication scheme. A substantial proportion of David’s practice has an international element, particularly international arbitration, and he has acted in and advised on commercial and construction disputes subject to the ICC, LMAA and SIAC rules. Banking and financial services matters find a home across all of David’s wider practice areas, from commercial disputes, through regulatory actions and authorisations to judicial reviews. David brings practical experience of banking and financial services to his work, having previously worked for five years as a foreign exchange and interest rates derivatives structurer. He has acted in claims both for and against banks, in arbitrations involving private equity funds and banks, advised the FCA and Financial Ombudsman Service and acted for the Financial Ombudsman in judicial review claims. David’s regulatory and disciplinary practice spans across the legal, financial and healthcare professions. He acts for both regulators and regulated persons. His trial practice covers hearings at first instance before regulators’ disciplinary tribunals, appeals to the High Court and judicial reviews. He also frequently advises clients on compliance with the relevant regulatory frameworks, regulators’ practices and procedures and how best to respond to regulatory investigations. David’s administrative and public law practice is wide-ranging: he acts on behalf of claimants and defendants in judicial review claims, advises local authorities and other organisations on their public law duties and is instructed in the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. Building on his core commercial, financial services, regulatory and public practices, David also acts in disputes involving insolvency and restructuring issues and matters from the art and cultural property, energy, insurance and reinsurance, and sport sectors. He was one of seven Chambers members to be appointed by the IAAF to the panel providing legal advice and representation to athletes and officials in disputes arising out of the 2019 World Athletics Championships and is a member of Chambers’ team of advocates on Sport Resolutions (UK)’s Pro Bono Panel. David is the contributing editor of the chapter on determination clauses in Wilmot-Smith on Construction Contracts (4th edn, 2021) and the Auction and Bailment volumes of Atkin’s Court Forms (2018 issue). He has also written for a number of publications, including the IBA’s Dispute Resolution International, LawInSport and the Practical Law Arbitration and Dispute Resolution Blogs. He is recommended as a Leading Junior for Construction, Energy and Infrastructure in Legal 500 Asia Pacific’s 2019, 2020 and 2021 guides to outstanding juniors.
Rhia Lyon, Research Manager
I’m Rhia, one of the assistant editors at Chambers Student. I’ve been at the company for three years, working on three different teams (she gets restless.) In my two years on the Student team, I’ve interviewed innumerable trainees, pupils and senior lawyers about training contracts and pupillages at all manner of firms and sets. More recently I’ve been getting more involved in the team’s podcasts: I’ve looked into topics like construction law, using second languages and, most recently, the work that Human Rights Watch does. I also spearhead our outreach program, organizing our attendance at law fairs and producing webinars. We’ve delivered seminars on things like COVID-19 and the legal industry, the state of the recruitment market and preparing for interviews. This is probably my favourite part of my job, as I get to delve into what you, the student, need from us to make sure you have the tools you need to enter the legal industry with confidence.
Jeremy Coleman, Head of Innovation - Norton Rose Fulbright
Jeremy Coleman is the Head of Innovation at Norton Rose Fulbright and co-heads the Innovation, Design and Technology group in EMEA. His team works with lawyers to improve and enhance the way that legal services are delivered to clients. Jeremy is a qualified lawyer and has a law degree from the University of York. Prior to moving to the UK Jeremy got a business degree from St Francis Xavier University in Canada and worked for start-ups and venture funds focused on the emerging technology space.
Natalie Bertram, Research Manager
Natalie is a content and research manager for the Chambers Student/Associate guides, and has been working on the team for over five years. Natalie’s role has included overseeing the Chambers Student newsletter and social media channels; regularly interviewing lawyers, writing articles, and copy editing; and more recently, managing the research and scheduling for the next Chambers Student Guide. She has worked with a wide variety of law firms, barristers’ chambers, and law schools, and attended law fairs across the country to meet students and discuss their careers. Prior to joining Chambers, Natalie did a BA in English Literature at the University of Exeter from 2013 to 2016.
Sarah Cowlishaw, Graduate Recruitment Partner - Covington & Burling
Sarah is a co-chair of Covington’s multidisciplinary Digital Health Initiative, and is the Graduate Recruitment Partner for Covington’s London office. Sarah has particular expertise in advising on legal issues presented by digital health technologies, helping companies navigate regulatory frameworks while balancing challenges presented by the pace of technological change over legislative developments.
Bernadette Smith, Barrister - 1 MCB
Bernadette has a busy practice with a focus on immigration, asylum, and public law challenges and an interest in international law. She is committed to representing publicly funded and vulnerable clients and is experienced in doing so in all areas of her practice. She regularly delivers training on developments in asylum and case preparation and recently co-authored two working guides, one for representatives and one for unrepresented appellants, on the procedural changes that were introduced into the Immigration and Asylum Chamber due to the pandemic. Bernadette has advised a number of organisations on legal challenges and applications including the Equal Rights Trust, Reprieve and Lambeth Law Centre as well as working with the Jesuit Refugee Service UK, in their legal team. Before coming to the bar, Bernadette volunteered in immigration and housing for two and a half years at Lambeth Law Centre. For the final year she worked as a senior immigration caseworker as well as being involved in providing outreach immigration advice to a domestic violence charity. Prior to pupillage Bernadette developed an interest in restorative justice and mediation while volunteering on youth referral order panels for a couple of years as a panel chair, facilitating discussions with young people about reparation and minimising the risk of reoffending.
Conway Blake, International Counsel London - Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
Dr. Blake represents corporate clients, sovereigns and international organisations on a range of contentious matters, particularly in investor-state arbitration, public international law disputes and commercial arbitrations governed by various substantive laws and conducted under the major arbitral rules. He is actively involved in the public international law and arbitration communities (including the YIAG, YPILG and YICCA), and has been recognised as a Future Leader in international arbitration by Who’s Who Legal (2022). Dr. Blake is recommended by The Legal 500 UK (2022), where clients have praised his “outstanding judgement and extraordinary dedication whether on high profile commercial work or on pro bono human rights work.” His court work focuses on disputes raising complex issues of private international law, applications related to arbitral proceedings, and cases addressing issues of corporate social responsibility. He has acted on cases at all levels of the court system, including before the UK Supreme Court, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council and the courts in Commonwealth jurisdictions. He appears as advocate in both court and arbitral proceedings. Dr. Blake has an active pro bono practice, and has represented clients on matters before the European Court of Human Rights, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights. He currently serves as a trustee, and an advisor on strategic litigation, for the Human Dignity Trust. He was awarded the Law Society’s Junior Lawyers Pro Bono Award for his work in this area. He joined Debevoise in 2012 after completing his training in the London and Washington, D.C. offices of a leading international law firm. Prior to entering legal practice, he was a lecturer in public international law and served as a consultant on international law to several NGOs. He retains a keen interest in academia, and currently convenes the undergraduate seminar on international commercial arbitration at his alma mater. He graduated from the University of Cambridge with a PhD in public international law, having received his LLM (First Class) from the same institution. During his post-graduate studies he served as a Hauser Global Visiting Researcher at the NYU Law School. He holds a LLB (First Class) from the University of the West Indies. Dr. Blake is admitted as a Solicitor Advocate in England & Wales. He is also called to the bar of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court.
James Shaw, Barrister - Gatehouse Chambers
James is a specialist commercial litigator. His work encompasses shareholder and company disputes, civil fraud, insolvency, and construction disputes. He has particular experience in shareholder and corporate disputes, including those involving allegations of fraud or other wrongdoing by directors and C-suite executives. James is regularly instructed as sole and led counsel across his specialisms. In addition to having spent time on secondment at a leading offshore firm, James’ work has become increasingly international in nature. He is also a member of the Government’s ‘Junior Junior’ panel and has been instructed in high-profile and sensitive government matters.
Jerry Gallagher, Director of HR & Diversity International - Sidley’s London office.
Sidley is a pioneer in workplace diversity and inclusion initiatives. We value diversity among our lawyers and clients and have long been actively involved in the diverse communities in which we live and work. Our mission is to continually attract, retain, and promote to partnership and leadership outstanding lawyers who reflect the global marketplace and those communities. The London office has a number of policies and initiatives to support this mission. Sidley has a number of European and global diversity networks that meet regularly. The firm holds celebrations worldwide to mark, among others, LGBTQ Pride Month, Black History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, and Transgender Awareness Month. Additionally, Diversity Dialogues is a series of events held across the year to encourage discussion and education internally on a wide variety of diversity-related topics.
Paul Rance, Research Manager
Paul has been a member of the Chambers Student team for over ten years and has specialised in the graduate recruitment market. He is especially interested in diversity and inclusion efforts in the legal industry across all key stages: recruitment, retention, and promotion. He has managed D&I content for our US sister guide, Chambers Associate, and is interested in how US approaches have influenced the UK legal market.
Arjun Dhar, Trainee Solicitor - Goodwin
Arjun Dhar is a first-seat trainee solicitor at Goodwin, currently in Technology & Life Sciences (Corporate). He graduated from Downing College, Cambridge, in 2020 with a B.A. (Hons) in Law.
Ben Perry, Co-head of the UK M&A Practice - Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
Ben is co-head of the UK M&A practice, and is also the graduate recruitment partner and training principal, at Sullivan & Cromwell (S&C). He is currently ranked as a leading individual for M&A by The Legal 500 United Kingdom and as highly regarded for M&A and private equity by IFLR 1000. Ben joined S&C in 2000, as one of the first English qualified lawyers to join the London office. Since making partner in 2008, he has overseen the introduction of S&C’s trainee solicitor programme, twice being named “Best Training Principal” by LawCareers.Net. Since 2018 Ben has been a member of the main committee of the City of London Law Society, which is the representative body for more than 15,000 solicitors working in the City of London. A keen advocate for social mobility, he is a member of the committee overseeing the City Solicitors Horizons social mobility initiative. A keen cyclist, Ben raises funds for charities including The Prince’s Trust, the British Heart Foundation and Diabetes UK.
Ester Toumpouris, Partner - Ince
Ester is a shipping and international trade lawyer at Ince specialising in dispute resolution. Having completed her studies, Ester joined the Ince London office to carry out her training contract, becoming a Solicitor in 2014. During her time with Ince, she has worked in the Shanghai office, completed a 4 month secondment with Gard P&I Club and has most recently moved to Cyprus following her promotion to Partner. Ester is instructed by clients across many locations globally and is regularly involved in matters with a cross-border element.
Leah Henderson – Global Head of Talent
As Global Talent Head of Research at Chambers & Partners, Leah Henderson oversees the publication and direction of the Chambers Student and Chambers Associate careers guides for aspiring lawyers. She has extensive knowledge of the graduate legal recruitment markets in the UK and US, and in 2019 played a key role in launching the Career Moves hub for lateral candidates in the US. She joined the company in 2017 and has a background in journalism.
Rebecca Bothamley, Partner, Corporate & Securities - Mayer Brown
Rebecca Bothamley is a partner in the Corporate & Securities practice of the London office focusing on M&A and equity capital markets transactions. Rebecca has particular experience acting for public and large private companies and their boards pursuing "buy and build" strategies across various industry sectors including energy, mining, insurance, industrials and TMT. Rebecca is the ‘go to’ trusted advisor to a number of corporates on day to day corporate, commercial and other matters. Rebecca joined Mayer Brown in 2005 and was made a Partner in 2018. In 2015, Rebecca spent a year on secondment to Mayer Brown’s New York office where she undertook a broad range of work advising clients on US focused mergers & acquisitions and advised on US securities laws.
Catherine Morgan, Employability Group Manager - The University of Law, Manchester
After initially qualifying and practising for over 5 years as a commercial property solicitor, Catherine moved in to a new career as a Legal Recruiter, specialising in recruitment for Partners, Solicitors and paralegals in International, National and leading North West firms before joining the then College of Law, Manchester, when it opened in 2009. Heading up the Careers provision for the Manchester campus for the past 12 years has given Catherine an intimate knowledge and understanding of the students needs and career aspirations coupled with an unrivalled awareness of the local, national and international legal market place. Catherine’s current role as Employability Group Manager has given her a National perspective on the delivery of Careers Services to an increasingly diverse national and international student body.
Harry Cerasale, Content and Research Manager
Harry is a content and research manager for the Chambers Student/Associate guide. Harry is particularly interested in the intersection of law and the world of business, politics, and current affairs. As well as curating the Chambers Student blog, The Memo, Harry has researched and written on topics ranging from the impact of Brexit on the legal sector to the role of lawyers in building the post-carbon economy. Prior to joining Chambers, Harry has worked as an English teacher and studied History at Nottingham University.
Helen McNally, Careers Adviser - Cardiff University
Helen McNally is a Careers Adviser with 25 years’ experience in a range of careers advice settings, including the higher education sector at institutions in Ireland and Wales. She is motivated by supporting and mentoring students and recent graduates to achieve their goals. In her role as Careers Manager for Cardiff University's Law School, Helen is focused on providing a student-centred approach to careers guidance in order to support and encourage law students in their early legal careers. She delivers regular careers workshops on all aspects of career planning, and throughout the academic year works with a range of legal employers to curate an extensive legal employability programme, which is focused on developing legal employability skills and encourages students to network with employers.
Imogen Hanson, Employer Relations and Development Adviser (Legal & Multilaterals) - King’s College London
Imogen currently works in the Employer Engagement team at King’s College London, focusing on engagement with employers in the legal sector. Her current work in Careers and Employability involves working closely with Graduate Recruitment teams to promote various opportunities and events, alongside collecting labour market intelligence to feed back to Careers Consultants and other colleagues in the Careers and Employability Team. Previous roles at DLA Piper, IBM and Group GTI have enabled Imogen to experience the Early Careers industry from a variety of perspectives, developing her passion for helping students realise the different career paths available to them, whilst providing opportunities to enhance their employability.
Kate Bassett, Head of Careers - BPP University
Kate Bassett is Head of Careers at BPP University Law School Leeds, with 14 years experience of leading the Leeds Law School Careers Service. Delivering specialist legal careers advice and guidance to undergraduate and post graduate law students, Kate enjoys building strong professional connections and relationships with legal employers to improve the student experience and generate future career opportunities. Kate is innovative in her approach and adapts the Employability Service offering, working with online recruitment platforms and a track record of successful partnerships with employers offering diversity access schemes, mentoring, coaching and recruitment events. Successfully partnering with Shortlist.Me video interviewing platform, Kate expanded the annual mentoring scheme online and was a Finalist at the 2021 AGCAS Excellence Awards for Sustainability & Impact. Outside of work Kate enjoys helping young people achieve their potential through volunteering in the community.
Megan Hulme, Trainee Solicitor - Trowers & Hamlins LLP
Hi! I am Megan Hulme, a third seat trainee at Trowers & Hamlins LLP with over three years paralegal experience. I graduated from a non-Russell Group university in 2017 and after a couple of years mentoring and tutoring a variety of aspiring lawyers, I decided to collate all my knowledge and experience by founding It's All Hearsay. It's All Hearsay is a platform designed to help, motivate and inspire all aspiring lawyers with their legal careers and finding their feet within the industry.
| Welcome by Chambers Student |
| Applications & Interviews: How to market yourself and stand out from the competition Annabel Hale, Graduate Recruitment & Development Manager - Wedlake Bell LLP Claire Livingstone, Senior Associate - Wiggin |
| Networking Break |
| Covid-19 and the legal profession: tech, culture and practices Sarah Cowlishaw, Graduate Recruitment Partner - Covington & Burling |
| Networking Break |
| Diversity & inclusion: where is the legal profession now? Conway Blake, International Counsel, London - Debevoise & Plimpton LLP Jerry Gallagher, Director of HR & Diversity – International |
| Lunch/ Networking Break |
| Becoming a lawyer at a global firm Rebecca Botthamley, Partner, Corporate & Securities - Mayer Brown Ben Parry, Co-head of the UK M&A Practice - Sullivan & Cromwell LLP Arjun Dhar, Trainee Solicitor - Goodwin |
| Networking Break |
| How to boost your employability as a 1st year student |
| Goodbye and Wrap Up by Chambers Student |
Chambers Events sponsorship opportunities
If you are interested in sponsoring one of our events, please contact Kevin Lloyd, Events Director via the button below
Contact us