Poppy Turnbull-Smailes has worked as a paralegal at both Norton Rose Fulbright and Kennedys, where she gained experience spanning civil tort litigation, banking/finance, corporate, disputes, real estate, and shipping/maritime law. She also gained 6 months of in-house paralegal experience at a marine insurer, before ultimately securing a training contract at A&O Shearman. 

She secured her first paralegal role after completing a law degree Newcastle University, having previously had no success during the usual vacation scheme / training contract recruitment cycles. However, her paralegal experience helped her to secure - and ultimately convert - a Winter vacation scheme at a Magic Circle firm. She is passionate about encouraging candidates who are struggling to secure training contractS to consider paralegal roles as a stepping stone.