The training contracts at a majority of firms involve you sitting in different practice areas (or “seats”). Many firms offer six-month seats, some offer three or four month seats and a few do not expect you to sit in defined seats at any stage. This means that during a training contract, you will typically move between 3 - 8 different legal teams.

You will likely only have the opportunity to qualify into one of these teams at the end of your training. For this reason (assuming you have some level of choice regarding which teams you sit in, which is usually the case), you should dedicate time to learning about your various options before your training contract, given that you may well be only a year or two away from choosing the practice area that could define the next 35+ years of your career!

With this in mind, to learn more about the role of different practice areas, check out our Law firm practice areas course, which offers comprehensive insider insights into the work carried out by 30+ law firm practice areas - as well as why each area can be interesting and fulfilling - from leading lawyers in their fields.

Choosing your seats

A majority of firms let you specify which departments you would like to sit in. Firms have a broad range of policies, so be sure to look into your firm’s approach. For instance, senior trainees may be given priority over certain departments or may be more likely to be given their first choices. Some firms make it mandatory to sit in certain teams (usually corporate, finance and/or dispute resolution), so take this into account when stating your preferences.

Where possible, I would recommend that you ask to sit with specific supervisor(s). Talking to other trainees that have previously sat in teams can give you a good insight into which supervisors are the best and, more importantly, which to avoid at all costs. Specifying a couple of supervisors can increase your chances of avoiding the less humane supervisors!

Make your order of seat preference clear when submitting your seat selection form and, if given the opportunity, take the time to explain your motivation for choosing that team (and in particular, why you want to join that team at the stage you are at in your training contract). If you are given the opportunity to meet with Human Resources to discuss your preferences, do so, as this will give you a chance to put forward your case. If there is a team that you really don’t want to join, it may be worth specifying this too, as if you are not given one of your preferences (and this does happen!), you may at least be spared your least favourite option.

Moving between different teams

Below is a check-list of considerations for when you move between different practice areas:

• Remember to take your belongings with you: headset, stationery, computer (+ charger/laptop case if applicable), personal or training folders/documents in your draws and on your shelves, note books (you should retain these throughout a training contract in case you later need to refer to something previously written), keyboard, mouse, mouse mat, pin board, document holder etc.
• Office/department location: check that your details (e.g. your office location, department name etc.) on your firm’s centralised internal address book have been updated, otherwise people may be unable to find you/you may not receive deliveries addressed to you (including those all-important Amazon.co.uk parcels!).
• Printer/scanner: install the nearest printer/scanner on your computer and delete the old one. Otherwise (as has happened on many occasion), you could end up accidentally printing private/confidential documents via printers elsewhere in the building. Try to install at least two printers, as if one stops working (or is dealing with a large print job) and you are under pressure to get something printed, you will have a back-up option.
• Holiday: consult with other trainees in your new team as early as possible (especially if the team is small) and your supervisor/the supervising partner about any holiday that you wish to take during the seat. Some teams have policies prohibiting too many trainees being away from the office at any one time, so this could affect last minute holiday plans.
• Workplace assessment: most firms offer some sort of professional assessment of your office set-up to ensure your set-up is ergonomic and therefore less likely to cause muscular issues. I highly recommend that you sign up for these! Many lawyers end up with back, shoulder, neck and/or wrist pain in addition to eye strain/headaches as a result of long hours spent sitting static at a desk in front of a screen. Ensuring your chair is set up correctly, your desk/screen(s) are at the right height and your keyboard and mouse are in the correct positions can help to avoid an adverse impact on your health. Similarly, ensuring that your screen brightness/resolution is correct can avoid damage to your eyes.