Lessons I Learned in Law

In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law Scott Brown speaks to Jamie Pearson who is General Counsel at Genomics PLC and Sarah Marshall, VP & Head of Legal International & Japan, Alexion (AZ Rare Disease).

Jamie and Sarah met whilst working for a company that meant they shared a considerable commute! Now, together they run the High Five Project to support lawyers entering the life sciences sector, as well as in-house lawyers more broadly.

Sarah and Jamie share the lessons they’ve learned in law including:

• You should have ownership and agency over your career path.
• A change of role or environment can re-energise you – find an organisation with a culture in which you can thrive.

Sarah, Jamie and Scott share their perspectives on the differences between in-house roles compared to working for law firms, and how you can potentially make the transition between the two or between different sectors.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law Scott Brown speaks to Kaleem Khan. Kaleem is a Tax Associate at Travers Smith who advises on all tax aspects of private equity, M&A, corporate finance and banking transactions.

Kaleem has been registered as blind since childhood, and in this episode he discusses his experiences of being a disabled person working in law – from the firms that helped and supported him, to the roles where the accessibility adjustments made for him were somewhat inadequate.

Kaleem also shares the lessons he learned in law including:

• Don’t compare yourself to people who might have more experience or credentials than you – everyone has to start somewhere!
• Don’t underestimate the importance of mentors.
• Be aware and have an understanding of those you work with who have a disability. Bear in mind that accessibility adjustments in the workplace don’t eradicate the challenges being disabled causes in doing a job.  Putting adjustments in place for a disabled colleague is not a magic trick through which a disabled person can suddenly be treated as though they have no disability – everyday brings challenges to day to day work regardless of how effective adjustments are. 

Kaleem is launching a blog which will be available very soon, called The Legally Blind Guy.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law Scott Brown speaks to Jayne Bowie, General Counsel and Company Secretary at Amey PLC.  Jayne leads the Legal and Corporate Services team, advising the business on all legal and corporate governance matters. Jayne has led the team on complex litigation and key M&A opportunities. She has also facilitated a closer relationship between the commercial, risk and legal functions.

Jayne shares the lessons she learned in law including:

• Surround yourself with a great team - you’re only as strong as your collective team.
• Your legal skills are extremely transferrable – not just across the different areas of legal specialism but also across different disciplines within a business.
• It’s important to be flexible, and willing to adapt to change.

Jayne also reveals her fascinating ancestral connection to Japanese Samurais, and details her hobbies and passions outside of work.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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• Sometimes the law doesn't always deliver what clients are looking for. As a lawyer, try and identify a clients’ wider needs beyond simply the solution to a legal problem.
• Be honest about your mistakes. The earlier you try to rectify them, the better. Learn from them and move forward.
• Have the courage to move on. Be honest with yourself if your current role doesn’t feel right for you, and be open to opportunities to seek out a better fit.

Elizabeth also reveals how the support that people sought through LawCare was affected by the pandemic, and how workplaces are changing to better support and retain people.

LawCare is an independent charity offering emotional support, information and training to the legal community in the UK.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law Scott Brown speaks to Fraser Simpson.  Fraser is Associate General Counsel for Wellcome Trust, a charitable foundation focused on global public health, where he heads up the Ethics, Governance & Compliance Team. Fraser qualified at Magic Circle firm, Linklaters, but pursued a career in-house where he has worked across a range of impactful organisations. He has experience in designing and building teams.

Fraser shares the lessons he learned in law including:

• Try new things, and do not be afraid to take a chance.
• Kindness repays. Invest in nurturing relationships.
• Don't be constrained by precedents and templates. Be creative and focus on user experience.

Fraser also reflects on how valuable he found the shared parental leave that he was able to take around the birth of his children. Meanwhile his hatred of ties sees workplace dress codes confined to Room 101.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law Katy Beilin speaks to Janine Esbrand. Janine is Founder of Career Change Makers, where she coaches and teaches high-performing female professionals in Law and Finance how to take control of their careers and leverage their strengths to transition into more fulfilling roles, with confidence. Janine has a background as a lawyer, having practiced both in Law Firms and In-House, so is very well placed to advise Lawyers on these issues!

Guest host Katy is a Consultant at Heriot Brown and loves a chat! As someone keen to get involved in blogging and podcasting, we thought it made sense for her make her podcast debut in a discussion with Janine whose Coaching business supports strong working females. Katy and Janine sat down to have their conversation on International Women’s Day, which was very apt.

Janine shares the three lessons she has learned in law including:

• As a lawyer, you don’t need to know all the answers. Lean in to your ability to find out the answers!
• The power and importance of networking to build relationships.
• In your career, your destination becomes your starting line. Reassess your goals and ambitions regularly.

Janine also shares the advice that she would give her children, should they ever decide to embark on a career in the law.

Presented by Katy Beilin of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law Scott Brown speaks to Abigail Dean.  Abigail is legal counsel at Google as well as author of Sunday Times and New York Times best-selling novel Girl A, which was published in January 2021. 

Abigail has always loved reading and writing and discusses how her law career has helped shape her career as a successful author. She also shares three lessons she learned in law including:

• Consider the importance of words, and the impact that your choice of words and pronunciation can have on your writing.
• You will require a tolerance to boredom, as many jobs will include elements that you mind find uninteresting. All you can do is work on the ratio.
• Law is good for teaching you that you can do hard and difficult things, and they will rarely be as frightening as you imagine.

Abigail’s choice for Room 101 is the legal profession’s tendency to aggrandize certain members of staff; something she finds very unhelpful.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law Scott Brown speaks to Karen Shafrir-Vladeck. Karen was an Employment Lawyer in the US and has recently pivoted into a role in legal recruitment with Whistler Parters. Karen is the perfect modern-day example of a legal recruiter, with industry experience and a passion for building community.  You may also recognise Karen from her TikTok skits with one of our previous podcast guests, Alex Su!

Karen shares the three lessons she has learned in law including:

• Cast the widest net that you possibly can and see what comes back to you.
• Always be open to new opportunities, and not necessarily in jobs.
• Social media can be a really great connector for your working life.

Karen’s pet hate in the legal profession is imposter syndrome and she explains why she would banish it to Room 101.

Have a listen to Karen’s podcast called In Loco Parent(i)s where she and her law professor husband Steve, "discuss parenting and lawyering - in that order".

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law Scott Brown speaks to Alice England. Alice is General Counsel for a London and Toronto listed natural resources royalty and streaming company, Anglo Pacific Group PLC, where she heads up the legal team and also takes a lead role on the business' environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) agenda. Alice is also a Non-Executive Director at Be Confident Group, comprising of Cycle Confident and BikeRight. Alice shares the three lessons she has learned in law including: 

• Build a strong support network of like-minded people that can help and support you along the path of your career.
• As a lawyer, always try to be a facilitator rather than a blocker.
• Demonstrate your worth, show that you are a valuable asset to the company and make sure other people understand the value you bring.

Alice also reveals why she thinks time measuring stop clocks are counter productive in the legal profession and should be confined to Room 101.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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In this episode of Lessons I Learned in Law Scott Brown speaks to Richard Mabey, Co-Founder and CEO of Juro. Juro is an all-in-one contract automation platform that helps legal counsel and their teams agree to manage contracts in one unified workspace.  

Richard shares the three lessons she has learned in law including:

• Keep it simple and really understand the problem you are trying to solve.
• Love the details. Increasing the level of attention and craft put into a project will generate greater returns.
• Trust and deliver. Focus on results, but be flexible in how they are achieved.

Richard also reveals why he thinks Microsoft Word is hugely unhelpful in the legal profession and should be confined to the depths of Room 101.

Presented by Scott Brown of Heriot Brown Legal Recruitment.

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