Howard Kennedy Vacation Scheme and Training Contract Application...

Howard Kennedy Vacation Scheme and Training Contract Application Answers

1. Through the research you have done on us as a firm, what have you identified which has made you apply to us? 350 words max.

I have identified that over the last few years, Howard Kennedy had undergone two mergers and moved to its new prestigious offices in London Bridge. I feel this is an exciting time to join Howard Kennedy as a trainee solicitor because I will be able to become a part of this exciting growth.

I find Howard Kennedy’s non-hierarchical and meritocratic culture to be especially appealing because it will allow me to feel like a valued member of the team from day one. I find the firm’s relatively small trainee intake to be especially attractive because it will allow me to be an integral part of the team and give me a good level of involvement in the cases that I work on, including constant client contact, which I feel to be very important during my early career development. Such quality work will not only allow me to develop as a well-rounded solicitor but also make every single day exciting and interesting.

I like Howard Kennedy’s strong international reach and experience on cross-border matters. As a person with an international background, I would be keen to put my language skills and cultural empathy to use to add value to the cases that I work on as well as work in teams of international professionals. I feel that this will present me not only with interesting international work but will also allow me to understand how different jurisdictions interact, which I feel will help me to develop into a successful lawyer.

Howard Kennedy’s expertise also covers all aspects of the law relating to art and cultural property. This is of particular interest to me because in addition to my corporate finance and intellectual property modules at LSE, I have also chosen to take an art law module, which has encouraged me to pursue a second masters in Art, Law and Business at Christie’s. The breadth of expertise shows that Howard Kennedy offers comprehensive legal services to its clientele.

2. What recent news story has been of particular interest to you and what is the relevance to Howard Kennedy and any one or more of our core practice areas? 500 words max.

I am finding PSA’s (Peugeot owner) planned acquisition of GM’s Opel / Vauxhall brand for €2.2bn to be of particular interest. Peugeot owner PSA has announced a €2.2bn agreement to buy General Motors’ lossmaking Opel division in a deal that will see GM depart Europe after nearly a century of automaking in the region and reshape the continent’s car industry. This deal is significant because it will create the second-largest European carmaker after Volkswagen and one of Europe’s largest manufacturing groups. The combined company, which will employ about 220,000 people and have revenues of €75bn, will face a difficult market threatened by technology, new regulation and Brexit. But PSA hopes that the extra scale will help it confront these challenges. These challenges will present Howard Kennedy’s corporate and commercial, regulatory and banking and finance sectors with an opportunity to get involved in this landmark deal by helping the parties to navigate the aforesaid legal issues. Talk of large synergies, however, added to fears in government and unions of job cuts at the groups’ UK Vauxhall plants in Ellesmere Port and Luton, as well as in Germany, where two-thirds of Opel’s 38,000 employees are based. Unions and governments expressed concern about a potentially severe restructuring, although PSA has said it will respect all existing labour agreements — meaning no job cuts at most plants for several years. This presents an opportunity for Howard Kennedy’s employment and dispute resolution department to act for potential stakeholders, namely the plant employees. This deal presents an opportunity for Howard Kennedy to get involved in so many areas of law, which I feel would help Howard Kennedy to gain immense publicity and experience, which could lead to high-value work. This would effectively allow Howard Kennedy to consolidate its leadership in its respective practice areas.