Chopping and changing 

Bevan Brittan acts for 41% of all NHS trusts, 25% of local authorities, a range of the UK’s most prestigious universities and a selection of central government departments, including the Department for Culture Media and Sport. In fact, its public sector clients bought in over £23m of revenue in 2009/10. If any firm was going to be hit hard by the coalition government’s programme of public spending cuts, surely it would be this one?

The 2010/11 financial year saw its revenue slide 10%, from £37.7m to £34m, and it was forced to make a second round of redundancies. In such a stormy economic climate, you might expect Bevan Brittan to bail on its traditional public sector clients and run all guns blazing into the corporate and commercial jungle instead. In fact, that’s not the case at all. One trainee informed us: “Before I started, I hadn’t comprehended how much a firm can change its strategy in such a short space of time. When I applied it was roughly a 50-50 public-private split. Now it’s much more public-focused.” Bevan Brittan has opted to build on its existing skills and experience, powering forward with renewed dedication. There’s a clear strategy – the focus remains on the public sector, and private sector companies that provide services to the public sector. “Now more than ever, the public sector needs help and advice. We anticipate things down the line that other less specialised firms might not be able to see,” trainees pointed out. In short, Bevan Brittan works in that space where law and politics overlap.

This approach appears to be paying off. On the one hand, BB continues to work on those infrastructure development services that have survived the coalition’s axe, such as NHS LIFT. On the other, its lawyers are drafting documentation for shared services, and undertaking judicial reviews against central government on behalf of disgruntled local authorities in the wake of the cuts. “We’ve picked up a lot of work because of the cuts,” claimed one trainee. “It’s swings and roundabouts.”

Bristol usually takes about ten trainees. Seat options generally include corporate and commercial; property; commercial dispute resolution (CDR); employment; construction and engineering; commercial health; projects; and project finance. There is slightly less choice in the smaller Birmingham and London offices, which each take four or five trainees at a time. That said, we heard of a trainee whose keen interest in a seat unavailable in their home city worked on it long-distance, liaising with supervisors via phone, email and commute. While trainees are not always guaranteed their first two seats, they will generally be accommodated in their second year.

Project Brittan 

Bevan Brittan’s projects department deals with vast and complex arrangements cutting across both the public and private spheres. One trainee explained: “Basically, we liaise with local authorities and different private sector contractors to bring projects together.” The former Building Schools for the Future (BSF) scheme is the perfect example, and something that the firm was heavily involved with. Despite BSF being cut, trainees had still been exposed to the tail-end of this project, working on the few schools that are still going ahead. The department also has a strong record of advising NHS foundation trusts, social housing and waste authorities, and BB has made a name for itself as the largest supplier of legal services to local government and the NHS.

Projects is “a completely new experience” for most trainees. Everything is on a “giant scale.” Different aspects of a file are delegated to different staff members and departments, so it’s a rare occurrence when trainees get to experience one project as a whole. The seat is quite document-heavy, since “it’s about lots of big contracts being fitted together.” This can be rather daunting and “it is hard to get your head around, as the contracts are so massive. You can’t read and understand everything.” Other responsibilities generally include drafting general project agreements, circulating document lists and making sure that everyone, both internally and externally, knows what stage the project is at. Because trainees will be working closely with other departments, such as construction, healthcare and property, it is an excellent seat to get to grips with what Bevan Brittan is all about. The project finance side of things (a separate seat) is very busy and “really gets the adrenaline going.” However, with a “good team mentality,” an excellent range of projects to work on, a great deal of client exposure, and even the potential for some short-distance travel, it goes down a storm with trainees.

That’s why trainees go to Iceland 

Commercial dispute resolution (CDR) is extremely popular in all of BB’s offices; however, “the name of the seat is a bit of a misnomer. It is focused on professional regulation as well as commercial litigation, and there is a real mixture of work.” In addition to acting for a few big names from the private sector, including PwC, Motorola and Johnson & Johnson, it gets some juicy work on the public side. Remember the crash of Icelandic banks in 2008? How could you forget? BB’s CDR department has been picking up the pieces on behalf of over 123 local authorities who lost out on about £1bn-worth of funds. It has also been busy taking instructions in relation to the BSF scheme from councils who are challenging the government’s ability to impose cuts on the programme. The department has reportedly been recruiting in both Bristol and London, and “is a real growth area” for the firm in this time of public sector discontent.

In CDR, “a lot of work needed to be done at junior level, so I had my own caseload of about 20 files,” a trainee reported. “I absolutely loved it – you have loads of responsibility and they just let you get on with it.” Our sources had been responsible for drafting witness statements, advising clients and instructing counsel, with whom they liaise on a weekly basis. A highlight for one source involved rummaging around the House of Commons looking for a transcript, while we’re told another was packed off to Iceland for a few days to watch the Dutch local authorities take on the Icelandic banks in court.

Medical law and personal injury (MLPI) is another area of expertise, and the department is highly ranked by Chambers UK. About 95% of the department’s work is for the public sector, primarily representing the NHS and its clinical staff. “We are the biggest firm for medical law in the UK,” claimed one trainee. “Plus, we get to work with [partner] David Owens, who is a health guru. He’s the market leader on it and there’s nothing he doesn’t know about the area.” This seat is not just about personal injury litigation: the department also advises its clients on all sorts of matters relating to medical law (what to do with a body in a morgue that no one will claim, for example). Trainees here will find themselves considering everything from human rights and mental health issues to congenital screening/genetics.

Despite being a bit of an emotional rollercoaster and “gruesome at times,” seats in MLPI are considered “a fantastic experience.” Responsibilities include advising trusts on contractual and governance issues, and “getting involved in cerebral palsy cases.” There are also opportunities to watch barristers fight it out at settlement hearings. According to trainees, one partner does all her own advocacy, and “working with her at preparation of inquest is great for learning.” Like so many seats at Bevan Brittan, “they let you get on with it,” but trainees are always supervised and help is on hand whenever they need it.

Trainees “enjoy the bustle” of the property team. There is a great deal of immediate responsibility. Trainees may be juggling up to 60 files at once, and have masses of client contact. “At the start you send an initial email introducing yourself,” one explained, “but from then on all calls and emails have come straight to me.” The department acts on behalf of a great deal of local authorities, housing associations and NHS bodies, as well as a few prestigious international private sector clients.

Due to the wobbly economic conditions of the last few years, work at Bevan Brittan has tended to ebb and flow. While the vast majority of trainees have been kept on their toes, there have been moments in the projects and corporate seats where more experience would have been welcome. “They gave me the work they could and as much training as possible,” explained one, “but there just weren’t huge opportunities at the time.” Now that the firm appears to have weathered the storm, the workload seems to be picking up, and “trainees don’t just do photocopying: they are genuinely treated as fee earners.”

Bevvy B’s 

All three of Bevan Brittan’s “perfectly lovely” offices are bang in the centre of their prospective cities. “You do feel proud coming to work,” confessed one trainee. Bristol is the biggest of the bunch; open-plan and overlooking the river and the park, its size brings perks including an on-site café and a gym, but the satellite offices are perfectly happy with their smaller numbers and friendly atmospheres. There is a strong sense of unity across the three branches, and “they try to encourage a one-firm mentality.”

“I think that because it is quite specialist, people have a real commitment to their work. It makes for a better atmosphere. The people here want to be here.” There is a general consensus that there are no egos and it is “genuinely a down-to-earth, friendly place.” The only real grumbles this year came from the Midlands, where redundancies hit the tight-knit office particularly hard. The bouncy atmosphere has reportedly “taken a bit of a battering” but trainees reported that “it seems to be picking up again.”

There is always a good crowd to be found at the local watering hole on a Thursday or Friday evening. In Bristol, this is The Bridge Inn, where staff can get their hands on some local Bath Ale, while in London they naturally congregate in Jamie’s Wine Bar directly underneath the office. The Birmingham office is reportedly the most sociable of the three and regularly arranges events around the city.

Trainees provide the entertainment at BB’s Christmas party. “Basically, you put on a sketch and take the piss out of partners.” This could potentially be a risky business – as one trainee giggled: “It was the scariest moment of my training contract, but we just managed to hit the right side of the line and everyone enjoyed it.” Plus, they can all compare stories six months later at the annual summer party in Bristol, this year featuring sumo suits and partners in the stocks. Other events such as a ‘mystery trip’ to Brussels and a royal wedding tea party help to foster a friendly vibe. In addition to regular fund-raising events and community projects, there are occasional opportunities to get involved with pro bono cases, and London trainees are encouraged to help out at the South Westminster Legal Advice Centre.

Recruiters at BB aren't purely looking for good grades from a respected university. A significant number of current trainees have also acquired a few years of work experience, in either a legal or political environment. The firm says: “We want to recruit people that will make the most of a training contract, organising social and charity events – people who will get involved above and beyond the basic work.” It recruits quite heavily from its vac scheme, which “offers a good, succinct insight into the workings of the firm.”

And finally... 

If you are after a corporate powerhouse, Bevan Brittan is probably not for you. However, for those with a passion for the public sector and an interest in local government or healthcare, it is worth serious consideration. In 2011, eight of ten qualifiers stayed on as NQs.