There is an old saying that sunshine always follows the rain. The destruction of my blog yesterday was upsetting but fortunately it was only short term. However, today I have some great news. 

We have today signed up to a property in Central London, literally 2 minutes from the family court (aka the Principal Registry on High Holborn); and when a makeover has taken place, Stowe Family Law will be opening its third office. In London!!! 

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Obtaining a training contract is never going to be an easy task, especially during this difficult economic time. In this post, I seek simply to make readers realise that although times are tough and jobs in the legal profession may be harder to come by than they used to be, there is light at the end of the tunnel and that big city firms are not necessarily the place to be anymore.

Speaking to most aspiring lawyers, I get the impression that they seem to think that in order to succeed in the legal profession nowadays you have to work in a big city firm – preferably in London. However, it seems to be those firms who are suffering most as a result of the economic climate. Many are struggling to keep their promises of a training contract to those they have offered them to; instead offering their prospective trainees compensation to begin their training contracts a year later.

I know firsthand the frustration and uncertainty this causes; my other half suffered that same fate. Smaller firms, on the other hand, have dealt with the crisis with more aplomb. They waste less money advertising. The process itself is more flexible without the various application forms, assessment days and interviews, which only provide a shallow glimpse of a person. Perhaps more importantly, they are keeping their promise that when an individual is offered a training contract, it will still be waiting for them when they turn up on their first day.

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Now that Brian Myerson’s economic circumstances are transformed, he has tried, and failed, to overturn his original financial agreement.

Robin Charrot writes: Ingrid and Brian Myerson have recently hit the headlines. Brian Myerson is a fund manager who – needless to say – is going through tough times. His former wife Ingrid is a sculptor. Their divorce is at the head of a queue of cases and financial deals completed on the cusp of the world’s financial meltdown, when people like Mr Myerson were still seen as “masters of the universe”. His economic circumstances have since transformed and he wanted to unravel the original deal.

When the deal was agreed, Brian was doing quite well, having accrued assets in the region of £26m. The value of his shares in the company which he ran amounted to £15m. It is not reported what his annual income was, but I would wager that it was more than £1m a year.

Brian and Ingrid were married for 26 years. It was therefore a lengthy marriage, and Ingrid almost certainly had a claim to half of the assets. She may also have had a claim to a substantial part of Bryin’s annual income. I suspect that Ingrid sought financial security, and that Brian expected that his company would continue to make considerable amounts of money. Perhaps he did not like the prospect of having to pay out a significant percentage of his future income to Ingrid.

Capitalisation of maintenance

So this is what they did. Brian handed over to Ingrid the couple’s London home and a property in South Africa. He agreed to hand over a second property in South Africa (but hasn’t done so yet), and also agreed to pay her a lump sum of £9.5m cash, in instalments, over four years. He has already paid £7m of this, so £2.5m remains owing. Brian kept all of the shares in his company. In short, the wife received 47% of the assets and the husband kept 53% of the assets. As part of the deal, Ingrid also agreed to terminate her maintenance claims against Brian; this process is known as ‘capitalisation of maintenance‘.

This must have seemed like a pretty good deal for Brian Myerson at the time: he was left with the riskier assets but his wife kept fewer than 50% of the overall assets and he was poised to keep all of his future income.

What has happened since?

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Meet law student Abigail Black, who is working with us until the autumn. She has already secured a training contract with a major USA law firm based in London; from what I have seen, she will go far.

Abigail was telling me about some of the challenges faced by law students in search of good work placements, and I suggested that she write a “guest blog” about her experiences. We hope that her advice will be of use to other students.

Forget the endless university exams, the demanding coursework and the time-consuming dissertation; one of the biggest challenges facing law students today is working out where to go and what to do after graduation. Faced with an increasingly saturated and competitive legal marketplace, it is becoming more and more difficult for law graduates to make informed decisions about which type of law firm holds the key to that elusive career.

I must admit that until recently, “work experience” was a phrase that struck dread and dismay into my heart. I undertook my first placement after my GCSE exams. Two weeks later, I had established a firm friendship with the photocopier and could recite the tea and coffee preferences of every member of staff – but I had learned little else.

Fast forward a few years and, armed with a 2:1 law degree, I was excited but nervous when the opportunity for work experience at Stowe Family Law arose. My expectations were high – but I feared that, once again, I would find myself left none the wiser at the placement’s end. Fortunately, this hasn’t been the case. Continue reading »

Romance is for life, not just for Valentine’s Day

A reporter from a local newspaper called me to discuss top tips for Valentine’s Day. She wanted to know what a divorce lawyer would recommend to keep a marriage together.

I’ve seen some interesting clients recently, whose experiences enabled me to give an opinion. Continue reading »