Name: Lara Onabaworin

Female

Trainee Solicitor at Allen & Overy

My name is Omolara Onabaworin. I was born in 1980 in Lagos, Nigeria. I completed my secondary school education at Queen's College, Lagos. Thereafter, I attended Lambeth College, Clapham Common where I sat A-levels in Law, Sociology and Government & Politics. Following that, I completed my undergraduate degree in Law at the London School of Economics and Political Science (the LSE), and I subsequently attended BPP Law School in London.

My interest in the legal profession stemmed from studying A-level law. I found topics like contract and criminal law particularly interesting because of their impact on our day-to-day life. After completing my A-levels, I opted for a gap-year. This gave me the opportunity to work within the legal profession through which I began to grasp just what it was like being a lawyer. I worked as an outdoor clerk in a firm of High Street solicitors that specialised in immigration and criminal law. I found the work varied and challenging; however, I was convinced I was not suited to this area of law – I was more interested in furthering my interest in contract law which I believed was better served by a career as a Corporate lawyer.

Whilst at the LSE, I attended Open Days at a variety of law firms. This gave me a better insight into each firm by contrast to the limited information provided in undergraduate career brochures. Further, I undertook a Vacation Scheme Placement at Allen & Overy. This was immensely useful as it gave me a greater appreciation of the culture and atmosphere of the firm and of what working in an international and culturally diverse organisation entails.
I eventually chose to accept an offer of a training contract with Allen & Overy because of its excellent reputation as a top-tier global law firm and, in particular, the firm's strong commitment to individual career development which is demonstrated by the first-class training it offers at every level, ranging from trainees to partners.

I started my training contract in September 2006 and I am currently in my first seat in the Corporate Department.
I must admit that there is no such thing as a ‘typical’ day or week in the life of a trainee at Allen & Overy. No day is ever the same and I regard each day as a learning process with new challenges and opportunities.
As a trainee solicitor in the Corporate department at Allen & Overy, you will be involved in a wide variety of tasks and transactions, such as:

• liaising in person, on the phone and via email, with both parties on a transaction;
• proof-reading agreements to ensure that changes have been implemented accurately;
• legal due diligence – a fact-finding exercise where you review commercial agreements and also conduct company searches, with the objective of reporting to the client any information which you think the client, in its position as the purchaser or seller, ought to be aware of;
• verification of public documents e.g. a prospectus – an exercise to ensure the accuracy of statements made in documents which relate to companies owned by the public
• researching points of law
• drafting memoranda for clients; and
• drafting the first draft of a legal agreement under supervision.

In addition, you also get the opportunity of participating in either community or pro bono work (providing free legal advice), to which Allen & Overy has a strong commitment. On one occasion, I provided some pro bono advice on an employment matter in relation to an unfair dismissal and unlawful deduction of wages. This was an interesting experience and I was able to broaden my knowledge of this area of law. I have also been involved in some community work for CRISIS which involved transforming a hostel into more suitable Christmas accommodation for the homeless. This was quite tough but was a great chance to network.
The most interesting aspect of my work here at Allen & Overy is the opportunity to work on high profile, complex cross-border transactions. Particularly, I get a great buzz from reading about the deals we advise on in the Financial Times.
For those of you considering a career in the legal profession, be certain of which area of law interests you the most – be it Corporate, Commercial or High Street. Regardless of which field of law you choose, hard work and commitment are essential.
Also attend as many Open Days or Vacation Scheme Placements as possible to get a deeper insight into a firm and its culture. Finally, never lose sight of your vision - always remember that you can achieve anything as long as you have self-belief and determination.