Our Firm

From the Head of Training

Head of Training - Julia MacDonald

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At WJM we are committed to training our lawyers at all levels and your traineeship is where it starts. Your on-the-job training is complemented with a structured Three-Track Training Programme for all fee earners (which expands to a Four-Track Programme if you are a trainee!). The elements of this are:-

  • Core Service Groups.
  • Lunchtime Seminars.
  • Management Seminars.
  • Trainee Seminars.

Briefly, the four areas are dealt with as follows:-

  • Core Service Groups - During your traineeship with us you will experience working in a variety of our Core Service Groups (CSGs). Each CSG is responsible for ensuring that the technical training needs of the lawyers in the group are met. This can be achieved by a variety of means including case reviews, group discussions and attendance at external seminars.
  • Lunchtime Seminars - Every month in the training calendar, one of the CSG’s hosts a Lunchtime Seminar. These Seminars give Groups the opportunity to let others in the firm know more about the Group and its activities.
  • Management Seminars - At WJM, we recognise that lawyers are also business people so we aim to develop not only your legal skills, but also your management skills. The Management Seminars are hosted by internal and external trainers, on topics that will help us with our business such as communication, creative thinking and marketing.
  • Trainee Seminars - Trainee Seminars are tailored specifically for our trainees to learn about the more technical aspects of their work and how to apply this knowledge to solving problems for our clients. These seminars are case study based and sometimes involve a little homework! Trainees find them a great opportunity to learn more about different areas of the law and appreciate the opportunity to discuss matters amongst fellow trainees.

I am very pleased with our Training Programme, which reflects the importance that we place on training our lawyers to be the best. We see trainees as our future lawyers therefore it is vital to us that we offer them the best traineeship - an aim which I believe we fulfil.