Lex 100 - Dundas & Wilson CS LLP

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Dundas & Wilson CS LLP

Saltire Court 20 Castle Terrace Edinburgh EH1 2EN

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The trainee verdict

The lowdown (in their own words...)

Why did you choose this firm over any others? 'The firm's reputation in the Scottish market and in the wider UK market'; 'structured training programme'; 'range of seats on offer'; 'excellent reputation'; 'mid-sized London office offering full range of seats'; 'excellent in-house training scheme'; 'quality of clients'

How does your training compare with peers' at other firms? 'More opportunities to go on secondment'; 'our training is more tailored to our development needs'; 'the training here is second to none'; 'more variety of work'; 'hands-on training'; 'bigger transactions'

Best thing about the firm? 'The high quality of work you have the opportunity to get involved in'; 'in-house training'; 'variety of seats'; 'the members of my team are very encouraging and motivating'; 'reasonable hours'; 'location'; 'everyone is really approachable and friendly'

Worst thing about the firm? 'Often demanding hours'; 'lack of social events'; 'lack of client contact'; 'very small teams can also mean that you are overstretched'; 'too formal'; 'sometimes not as supervised as you should be'; 'few people say thank you for the hours you put in- it is just expected'

Best moment? 'Attending court'; 'being given the opportunity to draft important documents in legal actions on behalf of clients'; 'involvement in a high-profile and complex administration'; 'being taken out to lunch as a thank you from a client and the partner'; 'drinking completion champagne in the board room'; 'client secondment'

Worst moment? 'Working long hours and weekends while commuting'; 'the steep learning curve'; 'late night photocopying'; 'a few weeks before Christmas when I was working 11-13 hour days!'; 'being very quiet at the beginning of my current seat'

The Lex 100 verdict

The firm

One of the 'Big Four' firms in Scotland - and the largest firm north of the border - Dundas & Wilson has formidable strength across all practices, notably corporate, commercial litigation, IP/IT and real estate. A well-known presence in UK infrastructure projects with a strong national energy and utilities practice, the firm is also a regular advisor to the public sector on Scotland's largest projects. Clients report that the firm provides 'good, sound commercial advice' and is easy to work with, quick to respond, and adaptive to clients' needs.

The star performers

Banking and finance; Commercial litigation; Commercial property; Construction; Corporate and commercial; Education; Employment; Energy; Health and safety; IT and IP; Insolvency and corporate recovery; Local government; Media and entertainment; Medical negligence: defendant; Pensions; Planning; Private Finance Initiative (PFI); Professional negligence; Projects; Property litigation; Sport; Transport; Unit trusts.

The deals

Advised RBS in relation to merger clearance issues; represented Tullis Russell, a paper manufacturing company, in a number of commercial disputes relating to the acquisition of the Gemini paper brand from Inveresk; acted for City Property Glasgow (Investments) on an innovative property transfer deal funded by £120m of facilities provided by Barclays Bank; advisedthe lender on refinancing for Myriad Healthcare.

The clients

AEGON; Artemis, Caird Capital; Cancer Research UK; Chartis; Ernst & Young; KPMG; Oxfam; PwC; Roars not Whispers; Scotia Gas Networks; Scottish Widows Unit Trust Managers.

The money

(from Legal Business magazine)

Turnover in 2010: £61m (-8% from 2009) Profits per equity partner: £317,000 (-1%)

The Verdict

One of the giants of the Scottish market, Dundas & Wilson also continues to attract attention south of the border. The firm's 'solid' reputation, the wide range of seats on offer, 'secondment opportunities' and 'excellent' in-house training are just a few reasons the firm is inundated with applications. Working in a small team has its advantages (although you may have to do your share of administrative tasks), as trainees are expected to roll up their sleeves and it's not unusual to be heavily involved in high-value transactions or high-profile cases. And with fee-earners always willing to answer questions and provide support current trainees seems to relish the challenge. There are some grumbles about social life being a bit lacking at the firm and ongoing uncertainty around NQ jobs. The commute from Glasgow to Edinburgh doesn't thrill some trainees and others feel over-stretched at times. However, you can guarantee that you will be exposed to more 'comprehensive' and 'commercially-tailored' training than peers at some other firms, 'attending court' and 'working on high-profile and complex administrations'. Most importantly, at least for one current trainee, you will be 'constantly encouraged to improve and develop as a solicitor'. In the words of another 'if you want to train in Scotland, there's really no better name than Dundas & Wilson to have on your CV'. For those keen to stay down south, the firm also offers contracts in its London office.