Yesterday was the last day of my secondment to Hugh James Solicitors, and I qualify as a solicitor tomorrow. The last 5 months at Hugh James have been immensely valuable. I have the confidence to go out there as a qualified solicitor and advise on employment law matters, including advocacy at Employment Tribunals. I can also advise on welfare benefit and housing matters, as well as immigration issues. Some of the highlights of working at Hugh James have included:

• Attended professional conduct and suitability hearings;
• Compiled ET1s, ET3s;
• Drafted lists of documents, letters of advice, notification of disciplinary hearings and suspensions, grievances, sex, disability and race questionnaires, instructions to counsel;
• Produced training materials; and
• Drafted policies, contracts of employment, procedures, guidance notes, and articles for publication;

You may wonder what I’m doing next. Basically, I will be returning to the Royal Association for Deaf People full-time, continuing my role as a Casework Supervisor, but also developing RAD’s Legal Services, and taking on fee-earning work.