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An interviewer may well ask you to explain what a commercial lawyer does, or even what a trainee’s role might include in a certain context, yet “what is your understanding of the role for which you are applying?” isn’t a question that candidates necessarily give much thought to. 

However, how can you credibly claim that you want to carry out a role if you’re unable to explain what the role will involve. You should make sure you are able to deliver a solid answer to this question, as it’s designed to assess whether you have truly thought about the career, and test whether your motivations are credible. 

So what do trainees actually do? This is a question that trainees are frequently asked by students. The truth is, there is no definitive answer to this question. The reality is that being a trainee is probably rather less glamorous than you think/hope. 

Now don’t get me wrong, some of the work can be very interesting and depending on where you train, much of it high profile. However, a training contract is a learning process and nobody starts at the top! Trainees will typically be involved in a number of administrative/less interesting tasks, but these types of tasks can give you invaluable exposure to the types of documents/processes you will be handling as an associate. Below is a brief introduction to some of the more commonly delegated trainee tasks.

What do commercial lawyers do?

Commercial lawyers generally work in teams to advise clients on transactions and disputes, as well as advise clients on how to comply with legal and regulatory requirements and codes of conduct.

In a transactional context, this includes helping clients to identify and assess legal and commercial risks, then mitigate these risks through the use of contractual protections in contracts. It also includes precisely documenting clients' intentions and the outcome of negotiations. Depending on their practice area, lawyers may also work on financings, real estate transactions, competition law analysis, tax structuring, and so on.

In a disputes context, lawyers may advise clients on investigations, litigation proceedings (involving courts), alternative dispute resolution proceedings (e.g. arbitration and mediation), and settlement negotiations and agreements. This can involve reviewing thousands of documents that are potentially relevant to disputes, engaging and coordinating barristers and experts, drafting witness statements, producing court bundles, and helping clients to understand the prescribed legal processes that they must follow. 

In an advisory context, commercial lawyers may advise clients on a broad range of matters, for example matters relating to, cybersecurity, data protection, employment law and environmental law.

Typical trainee “fee earning” tasks

“Fee earning” (or “billable”/”chargeable”) tasks are tasks which relate directly to client matters and therefore tasks for which clients are paying. Examples/explanations of typical trainee fee earning tasks are set out below.

Prospectus: a legally required document that must precede bond or share issues. It advertises the issue to potential investors and contains information about the issuer’s business, the potential risks and the issuing firm’s financial circumstances, in addition to the terms and conditions of the issue.

Note that our Training Contract Handbook provides a more comprehensive insight into what trainees do on a day-to-day basis, including example trainee worklogs.

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