My seat in Public Family Law (Legal Aid) – Trainee Blog

Similar to my predecessors I accepted a Training Contract offer at Machins a year in advance of my start date. In what should have been a year full of anticipation, I spent the latter part of it frantically expecting a dreaded phone call or email to explain that my start date was due to be delayed, or worse, that the offer had been pulled altogether, as a result of Covid-19.

I was returning home from work from my previous job and had just got into my car when I noticed I had received an email from Machins. I recall the range of emotions like it was yesterday as I nervously opened the email expecting the worst, and to my surprise, almost in an instant, being filled with elation as the email confirmed that my Training Contract would be going ahead as planned. Anyone watching me screaming and shouting in the driver’s seat of my Renault Clio would’ve thought I’d just scored a 90^th minute winner away at Chelsea. What a relief!

The Training Supervisor called me a few weeks before I was due to start to discuss what department I would be working in for my first seat. If you have ever watched Harry Potter, it was much like the scene with the Sorting Hat, but instead of Harry Potter whispering under his breath ‘not Slytherin, not Slytherin’, there I was thinking in my head ‘not Conveyancing, not Family’. I had no real interest in Conveyancing and had never had any exposure to Family Law to ever really give it any thought. The Training Supervisor explained that, as a result of Covid-19, some departments were busier than others and that although I had indicated I had more of an interest in the commercial aspects of law, I would be working in the Public Family Department. Unlike Harry Potter I didn’t get what I was hoping for, but I was so relieved to be starting my Training Contract, it didn’t really bother me.

Without having read Family Law on the undergraduate or on the LPC, there was little I could do by way of preparation, and, other than reading the profiles of the team and what the department offers on the website, I had very few ideas about what the role would entail or who I would be working with. Starting a new job is never easy, but starting a new job during the height of a national pandemic definitely doesn’t help ease the nerves.

Despite the obvious first day apprehension, my mind was put to ease when my Supervisor had arranged to meet with me face to face to introduce herself and discuss the expectations of the role. Given that for the most part she had been working from home during the pandemic, it was nice to put a friendly face to the name. She explained that I would be working most closely with her, but that I would occasionally be asked to assist the others in the department.

Having come from a Private Client background, and while not for one second rubbishing Private Client, the two departments couldn’t be further apart. My experience in Private Client was generally plain sailing despite the odd occasional disgruntled beneficiary who struggled to get their head around the fact that there are legal hurdles that have to be overcome before they “get what they’re entitled to” in their distant cousin’s (who they’ve never met) estate.

Public Family Law on the other hand was full speed ahead from day one and I can honestly say that I can count on one hand the number of times I was short of work. As I didn’t have any particular interest in Family Law as a practice area prior to starting at Machins, this suited me down to the ground as I was kept extremely busy throughout and time flew by, sometimes too quickly.

Being extremely competitive and always wanting to achieve perfection overnight, admittedly I did find myself frustrated on occasion in first few weeks, as I struggled to navigate my way around the rather complex case management system. The induction I had been provided on how to use the IT systems on day one seemed a distant memory, but like everything persistence is key, and if you’re stuck, ask for help. Using a cocktail of calling the IT guys and my Supervisor for directions on ‘how prepopulate an attendance note’ or ‘how to time record’, I slowly, but surely, got to grips with it. I guess Rome wasn’t built in a day after all.

As I began to get more confident, my responsibilities and workload also increased. Within four weeks I had attended several Court hearings (albeit remotely) to shadow my supervisor and I was becoming familiar with the general structure of pre-hearing discussions and the hearings themselves. It was a great experience observing how my Supervisor and the other Advocates state their case and the way they layer their questions to discredit statements the parties had previously made. Despite the best efforts of Covid-19, I even managed to squeeze in two final hearings in person, which is an experience I will never forget.

One particular Judge stood out to me throughout my time in the Public Family Department: Her Honour Judge (HHJ) Hildyard QC. Whilst all the Judges, by nature of their responsibility, quite rightfully demand a certain level of respect, HHJ Hidlyard QC had a certain aura about her. I remember being in awe watching as she would pick apart a Threshold Document for not being “Re A” compliant. It was evident, even after one hearing, that she had a deep level of affection for children and genuinely had their best interests at heart, often reminding the legal professionals of their duties both to the Court and to the children who were the only real people who would be affected by any delays in the proceedings. Personally, I don’t think I want to become a Judge, but if I did, I would definitely aspire to be like HHJ Hildyard QC. If this is something you are interested in becoming later in your career, then Public Family Law (even for Solicitors) opens the door to this kind of opportunity.

My supervisor was very good at getting me involved at every stage of the proceedings. Not only did this help with my understanding, but I was able to build a rapport with some of our clients. The reality of Public Family Law means that you will come across clients from all walks of life, some of whom have addiction problems, mental health issues, learning difficulties and the list goes on. The high level of client contact I was given from day one helped me develop my approach to dealing with an array of clients who are not only going through one of the most traumatic experiences in potentially having their children removed from their care, but they also face their own difficulties in their own day to day lives. The significance of this meant it was occasionally very emotional, but on the flipside also very rewarding, especially when the children were reunited with their parents.

Unlike some other departments, I was quite lucky in that I only had to prepare a Court bundle on a few occasions as this was often dealt with by the Local Authority, who were in most cases the Claimant and so bore that responsibility. There was of course the odd administrative task that comes as part of being a Trainee Solicitor but these were few and far between. If I wasn’t perusing an expert’s report to provide a concise summary letter to our client or drafting a brief to Counsel, then I was making Section 38(6) application for a mother and child parenting assessment placement.

While there were times at the outset of the seat where I thought I was fighting a losing battle and that I would never get the hang of Public Family Law, by the time I was to move on I was comfortable (or at least I thought I was) with almost all tasks that my supervisor would ask of me, whether that was to file and serve documents with Court to comply with a Court order, contact our client to take instructions to draft a witness statement, or to run my own Public Law Outline case. Notwithstanding the fact that none of the files were in my name, as a consequence of the level of responsibility I was given, I felt as though the work I completed actually made a difference to our clients, which is something I take pride in.

The Public Family Law Team at Machins is often referred to as the “Care Department” as a result of a large part of the work involving Care Proceedings. However, in my experience calling the Public Family Law Team, the “Care Department” resonates for other reasons, that reason being that they genuinely do care. They care about the families that are the subjects of each new matter, they care about each other (I think it is safe to say that they are all very good friends, even outside of work) and even in my short time with them, I would also say that they cared about me, too. Each and every member of the department from the Partner to the Secretaries couldn’t do enough to help and the genuinely want to see you succeed. Whilst I came in with a somewhat preconceived idea that Public Family Law would not be my bag, I loved it and I have a great deal of respect for the important work that the team here at Machins do. My advice to anyone given the opportunity to work in this department is to come with an open mind and a fire in your belly because if you’re willing to work hard, there’s no way you won’t enjoy it.