Nine solicitors qualify through Wilkin Chapman training scheme
Nine successful candidates from the Wilkin Chapman training scheme have recently qualified as solicitors.
Our training programme places an emphasis on personal development, and training contracts are offered to aspiring legal professionals to help them become solicitors and potentially progress to become partners of the firm.
The two-year training programme is split into four six-month placements to allow trainees to gain experience in a wide variety of areas.
Adam Burton is now a commercial property solicitor at Wilkin Chapman.
He first became interested in law at Sixth Form and took part in a Wilkin Chapman mentoring scheme while studying at the University of Lincoln, and this is what inspired him to apply for our training scheme.
A keen distance runner, Adam can often be seen out running with his trusty head torch before work or taking part in a half marathon at weekends. Adam is now a solicitor based in our Lincoln office within the commercial property team. He said:
“I am really grateful to have carried out my training contract with Wilkin Chapman. Throughout the two years I worked closely with a wide variety of people, from legal executives, senior solicitors and partners. This provided a great opportunity to learn from experts within their own fields.”
Brittany Codling is a solicitor within the family department based in our Beverley office. Before joining Wilkin Chapman as a trainee solicitor, Brittany graduated from the University of York in 2018 before gaining an LPC from the University of Sunderland in 2019.
A keen sports fan, Brittany enjoys watching and participating in a number of sports, and her weekends are often spent traveling to Manchester to watch her football team. Speaking about her experience as a trainee, Brittany said:
“The training I received was exceptional and all of my supervisors were extremely approachable. I was very selective with the firms I applied for, as I wanted to work for a firm where I wouldn’t be just a number, where I would receive great training.”
Emily Hand is a newly qualified solicitor in the employment law department based in our Lincoln office.
Emily enjoys both working with colleagues and clients whether that’s in person or virtual meetings and telephone calls. Speaking about her time on the training programme, Emily said:
“The experience was great, the training at Wilkin Chapman allows you the possibility to experience work in a variety of areas of your choice and the opportunity to work in various office locations within amazing and supportive teams.”
Based in our Grimsby office, Holly is a solicitor within our corporate and commercial department.
Holly gained work experience at Wilkin Chapman so applying for the training scheme felt like a good fit. She enjoys achieving the right outcome for clients when they have completed a sale or purchase.
She now has ambitions of becoming a partner at the firm one day, but it wasn’t always her goal to become a solicitor:
“I never wanted to be a solicitor. When asked at primary school what I wanted to be when I grew up, I said I wanted to be a dragon. Not the fire breathing kind, but those people that sit next to piles of cash on Dragons Den! Sounds about right for a corporate lawyer!”
Jaye is a solicitor within the medical negligence department based in our Grimsby office.
Away from work, Jaye is a keen traveller who enjoys discovering new places. In work, she enjoys building relationships with clients and developing a rapport with them on both a professional and personal level. Speaking about what she hopes to achieve now that she has qualified, Jaye said:
“I hope to be able to help people who have suffered injuries caused by medical negligence. I feel that it is important that when things go wrong, they are addressed. It is also important for individuals and families to have answers when things go wrong.”
Keighan Lovett is a solicitor within the wills, estates, tax and trusts department based in our Grimsby office.
Keighan graduated with a First Class Honours from Northumbria University in Masters in Law in 2019. Having grown up in Grimsby, Keighan was keen to work for a local law firm. She said:
“I had a very positive experience as a trainee and thoroughly enjoyed all departments that I completed a seat in. The experience proved a little challenging when the pandemic hit and the firm had to adapt to agile working, this made training progression tricky and as a result an additional six months added on to the training contract. I saw this as a positive as this allowed me to spend a further six months in my department of choice, probate.”
Laura is a solicitor within the dispute resolution team based in our Grimsby office.
Having studied law at university, Laura was keen to qualify as a solicitor and has built up seven years of experience in the legal industry. She was attracted to the Wilkin Chapman training scheme thanks to the variety of work and focus on career development. She said:
“I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience I have gained working in both contentious and non-contentious departments across our offices over the last two years. Having already worked in the legal industry for seven years, with two of those being with Wilkin Chapman prior to my training contract, I benefited from getting out of my comfort zone and learning from different people with contrasting skill sets and unique approaches to problem solving. Everyone in the team plays to their individual strengths.”
Lily-Rose Darwood is a solicitor within our employment law department based in our Grimsby office.
She graduated with a First Class Honours Law Degree from the University of Leeds in 2018 and completed her Legal Practice Course (LPC) with Distinction in 2019. After completing her Wilkin Chapman training contract, Lily-Rose said:
“Most of my training contract took place throughout the pandemic, which meant more remote working than usual. Despite this I was well supported, given responsibility and had lots of opportunity to get involved in a wide-range of matters and legal issues. I enjoy working in employment law as it covers such a wide-range of issues – my favourite part is probably that I get to work on both contentious and non-contentious matters.”
Martha Baker is a solicitor within the medical negligence department based at our Lincoln office.
A keen hockey player, Martha represented England on a number of occasions at junior level and was also the captain of the University of Nottingham team, leading them to promotion and a National Cup Title. Martha said:
“I am pleased to have completed my training and I am really glad that I have been given the opportunity to further my knowledge in my favoured area of law. I find medical negligence an interesting mix between medicine and the law and working in this area allows me to help people with their problems during what is often a very challenging juncture in their lives.”
Applications for training contracts to commence in 2024 and 2025 are now open. The deadline for applications is 31st January 2023. Find out more.
Contact Andrew to discuss this further.
