Bertram Fairbanks take on first apprentice to join new trainees

Bertram Fairbanks, a niche commercial Exeter-based law firm is ‘flying the flag’ for the South West by actively recruiting new trainee solicitors, paralegals, and apprentices who have a personal or direct connection to the SW region, as part of its expansion and commitment to local regional plans. The dynamic firm of lawyers rebranded and moved to larger premises in Pynes Hill in 2022, recruiting three new trainee solicitors Kirstie Johnson, Joe Crispin, and Georgia O’Brien.  In line with its expansion plans, the firm announces its recent recruitment of Cherry Wong from Hong Kong who studied law at Exeter University, as a legal assistant, and Naomi Moyle, who lives in Exmouth, as their first apprentice.

Neal Bertram, Managing Partner says: “Bertram Fairbanks is a growing firm of commercial lawyers located in the city and we are committed to a recruitment drive to attract like-minded people to join our friendly team. What makes us different from other law firms is that we want to invest in the local community by engaging new recruits who are connected to the region. All our trainees are from the Southwest or have attended University in this region. We want our staff to have a rewarding career where each member directly contributes to our firm’s success and ongoing growth, taking great care to recruit people who share our values and ethos and understand the firm’s vision and we are delighted to welcome Cherry and Naomi to the firm.”

By providing valuable training and career development opportunities, Bertram Fairbanks is committed to recruiting and developing new talent.  The law firm’s policy is to support trainee solicitors through the new SQE route of qualification, which was set up by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).  This means each trainee undertakes 10 hours of self-study a week in addition to gaining experience in working on-the-job legal training in the office.  In addition, all their trainees receive valuable training in the office as well as monthly mentoring sessions.

The youngest member of the team aged just 19, Naomi joined  Bertram Fairbanks straight from Exmouth Community College and it has always been her dream to be a solicitor.  Naomi says: “I am initially working with the Litigation Department and finding the cases and the clients really interesting.  In my first week, I sat with Neal Bertram on a mediation case, and it was an amazing experience where I was fully included in the team who are giving me the best hands-on opportunity to learn on the job.”

She adds: “The apprenticeships available for school leavers in law are quite new and with such limited availability a lot of people my age are looking for the same things, so hardly any firms do this.  Bertram Fairbanks is a forward-thinking company and ahead of the game on recruiting trainees, so to be given this amazing opportunity is incredible, particularly as it’s so close to home and I don’t have to relocate to London.” 

Neal explains: “This way of working and training not only helps the trainee to feel they are a valued member of the team but also means they develop at a far greater rate and means they qualify as a more rounded lawyer having received a more holistic training programme.  

"This is a new way of entry into the legal profession, and we are very excited to support this approach.  How we do it is to encourage all our trainee solicitors to be actively engaged in all areas of the business, including direct client contact, attending client meetings, as well as business development, and regularly being out in the local marketplace at networking events.  

"Our trainees also help us write blogs for our newsletters as well as work on client files. 

"We encourage them from the start to be involved in financial management, so they gain an understanding of how the finances of a law firm work, and how that translates into running client files. 

"With this in mind, we are actively building on our brand as a leading employer in the SW region by recruiting further trainees and apprentices to join our growing team."

For further information on how to apply as a trainee/apprentice follow this link:https://bertramfairbanks.co.uk/careers-at-bertram-fairbanks/

https://bertramfairbanks.co.uk/