Hill Dickinson Training Contract - April 2024

Note that the firm's training contracts have their own unique streams, for example a training contract focused on maritime law, health, or business services. I applied for the health training contract.

What was the full recruitment process?         

1. Application

2.  Virtual one minute video 

3. Assessment centre

4. Training contract 

Which aspect does this report cover?

Training contract assessment centre

Where did the assessment centre take place?            

The firm's London office

What did the assessment centre involve?      

1. Group task (30 minutes preparation, 5 minute presentation to two partners)

2. Legal debate (20 minutes in front of two partners)

3. Written task (1 hour)

4. Panel interview

Group task

This task involved creating a presentation for a given business and answering a legal question. I was in a group with three other candidates and we all had 30 minutes to prepare an argument which was then presented to two partners at the firm. This presentation focused on whether law firms should introduce a 4 day working week. We were instructed to include points for and against this statement.

Legal debate

This task involved debating on a given topic against one other candidate whilst observed by two partners. We could choose from a range of topics (e.g. philosophy, ethics, sports etc.) and the debate question then came from that topic. 

The other candidate and I had 20 minutes to engage in a conversation and practice our advocacy skills (with no preparation time). The debate question focused on whether animal testing should be made illegal. 

Written task

This task involved writing a legal and formal complaint based on a fictional scenario. I had the responsibility of writing up a complaint to the direct manager of a tour company on behalf of a group of friends who bought a travel package for a cycling trip and were disappointed in the service. 

The written task was completed in timed conditions (1 hour) and the letter of complaint was typed up on an iPad without there being a spelling/grammar check. I had to read a full summary from the group of friends who all addressed their issues and concerns from their cycling trip. I used all those complaints to write a formal complaint in a professional manner, addressing those concerns and asking for a form of compensation or remittance as a part of their tourism money back policy.  

Panel interview

This was an interview with two partners within the health team and graduate recruitment. 

Competency questions 

• If you were to do a pitch about Hill Dickinson, what would you say?
• Tell me about a time when you worked in a group and there was disagreement. How did you combat that?

Motivation questions 

• Why do you want to work at Hill Dickinson? 
• Why specifically the health sector? 

Legal and commercial awareness questions 

• Who are our competitors and how can we make ourselves stand out? 
• How are you using technology at the moment? 
• How would a trainee benefit from using technology at work? 
• How would you describe our other services (Marine and Business Service Group) to other people? 

Situational questions

• One of the trainee solicitors in your team missed an important deadline and they are currently on leave and the client is urgently requesting for that document. What do you do? 

What was the outcome?                                                  

The firm emailed me a few months after the assessment centre to say that I was unsuccessful. The firm provided candidates with a group call to discuss feedback. One thing that was mentioned during the panel interview was that I am strong at highlighting and reflecting on my journey. 

Do you have any specific advice on how to prepare?

When asked legal and business questions during the interview, try to avoid mentioning things that the firm is already doing; instead mention unique ideas you would want to implement if you were a trainee and how you would be well suited to it. 

The written task can be difficult as it is under time conditions. It is always a good idea to refresh your memory on the formatting of legal letters and remembering how to correctly sign off a letter too. 

Don’t be afraid to showcase your USPs!!!