8.15am: I've been at the firm for a while now but still get a bit of a buzz from the approach to Tower Bridge House. It's a genuinely beautiful bit of London. I head straight to the café, well in time for the free breakfast. I'm feeling healthy, so skip the bacon and go for a fruit salad and cappuccino. I bump into a couple of the other trainees so eat with them before heading up to my desk.

8.45am: As I'm logging on, one of the partners comes across (there's nowhere to hide in an open-plan office!). She needs a quick bit of research doing into the construction of contracts. I write a memo and go to her desk to talk through the client's legal position. I prepare a draft email, outlining our advice, which then goes out to the client.

9.30am: One of the matters I've been working on is a potential breach of contract claim. The contract is governed by English law but deals with the transport of goods in Kefalonia (requiring them to be moved only in certain weather conditions). I get the details of some experts - meteorologists - and give them each a telephone call to talk through the work. I put together some quotes and email them to the partner who is supervising the matter.

10.30am: I've been heavily involved in a complex dispute arising from a share purchase agreement between two multinational corporations. I'm the main trainee on the matter and work with an associate and two partners. This morning we have a conference with leading and junior counsel in chambers. I'm mainly at the meeting to take a note, but a report I've written also forms a key part of the discussion, so I am asked to talk about it.

12.00pm: Back at the office, I dictate the attendance note and send it off to my secretary.

12.45pm: It's time for lunch. The trainees troop downstairs and take over a corner of the café. The intake is an ideal size - small enough to really get to know everyone without becoming claustrophobic.

1.30pm: Back at my desk, the Kefalonia matter is back. The partner has picked his preferred expert and asks me to draft some instructions to send to them. We're under time pressure due to the client's commitments so this needs to be finished before the end of the day.

1.45pm: My phone rings. It's a lawyer from one of the firms in TerraLex, the global network of law firms of which RPC is a member. She is calling to follow up on an email I sent to her yesterday. Her firm is based in mainland Europe and is effectively our client on this matter. We're helping them to serve proceedings on some English defendants. I deal with the call before turning back to the instructions.

3.00pm: I finish drafting the instructions and, after checking with the partner, email them to the expert. My secretary drops off the attendance note from earlier; I make a few amendments and save it to the file.

4.35pm: I turn to a task I was asked to do a couple of days ago - preparing a costs schedule. This is effectively a summary of our client's legal costs, which the other side has been ordered to pay. It's not the most exciting work but it makes you appreciate the importance of recording your time properly and how litigation costs stack up.

7.10pm: Work done, I clock off for the day. The trainees are currently working on a film project to be shown at the firm's coming Christmas party. It's good fun and a good 'team-building' project. After a few hours of filming we decamp to the bar on St Katharine Docks for a well-earned drink.