Settling in: My first months as a trainee solicitor by Isobel Pryor

Isobel Pryor tells us her experience since starting as a trainee solicitor at Gordons.

After attending Gordons’ Insight Evening in 2022 and completing their 2023 Vacation Scheme, I received a training contract offer to commence in September 2025. In the interim, I completed the remainder of my LLB at the University of Leeds and obtained a distinction in the LPC. While a student, I had a pretty unconventional part-time job in event management; although this appeared to be an unrelated role, it taught me so many skills that have been transferable into my early legal career (e.g. organisation, flexibility, how to liaise directly with clients and work with a range of colleagues).

Trainee life so far

After eagerly waiting, I have now been working as a trainee for two months at Gordons and I have been exposed to a great range of work already!

At the start of September, my trainee cohort assisted the Interventions Team. This was an invaluable opportunity to communicate with many people from the outset and gain an insight into work that is only carried out by four firms who act as the SRA’s Intervening Agents. By sharing this experience, our cohort has quickly formed a close-knit and supportive group which has made my time as a trainee far less daunting! This sense of support also extends to the wider firm as there is a real emphasis on ensuring we are settling in well. For example, we have been encouraged to build-up our internal network and discuss our progress with HR, supervisors, buddies and senior mentors.

I am now working in the employment team at Gordons for the remainder of my first seat. In relation to contentious work, I have attended preliminary hearings and a disputes resolution appointment to gain firsthand insight into how the Employment Tribunal deal with matters. Prior to attending these, I read through legal documents to ensure I have a contextualised understanding of the issues. I have also assisted with drafting a conciliation agreement, as the parties had managed to settle the matter prior to reaching the final hearing.

I have also had insight into non-contentious work such as attending client meetings to review the terms of a settlement agreement and employment contract. This piece of work involved collaboration between the employment and corporate team, demonstrating how different areas of law naturally intersect.

Aside from client-related matters, I have completed research, attended weekly team meetings and a webinar about breakdowns and clashes in the workplace.

Other opportunities

Despite only being at Gordons a short time, my calendar has been full!

I have attended junior socials, participated in the Leeds JLD’s Netball Tournament and listened to an informative session about financial wellbeing. I recently returned to the University of Leeds for their careers fair which was a great opportunity to speak to students about Gordons and share tips about applying for our training contract and vacation scheme.