My year as a placement student – what’s it really like to work for an Intellectual Property (IP) firm?
At Barker Brettell we acknowledge that sometimes it can be difficult for students to connect studying for a degree and a future career. Especially if that career might be in the legal profession, and the student has no family members or peers working in this environment.
Barker Brettell has regularly offered a placement year position for students thinking about pursuing a career as a trade mark attorney, giving them real-life experience of the day-to-day workings of an IP firm.
But what is it like to be on placement at Barker Brettell?
In her own words, Warisa Ahmed, an undergraduate at Aston University, looks back at her recently completed year:
“I have had the pleasure of being a Legal Research Assistant at Barker Brettell as a part of my placement year at Aston University. This has been an insightful experience where I have had the opportunity to peep into the world of intellectual property law and see how trade mark law works in practice. Working within the trade marks team has been amazing!
Throughout my time as Legal Research Assistant I have assisted on a multitude of jobs, including supporting fee earners with clearance work for a time-critical project and a large-scale assignment programme, which involved liaising with attorneys around the world.
I quickly learnt how to navigate a range of legal databases and identify relevant information, and relevant case law, to assist with ongoing cases. This skill was particularly useful when working on trade mark opposition and infringement cases and has deepened my understanding of trade mark law.
Another significant aspect of my role involved conducting due diligence searches for clients wishing to file new trade mark applications. This enhanced my research skills and attention to detail, as well as helping with my understanding as to when third party rights may be problematic.
One of the most rewarding parts of my placement has been seeing the law put into practice by talented and experienced attorneys; being able to witness contentious proceedings and work on high profile cases has been extremely interesting. Experiences like this have improved my ability to communicate legal concepts clearly and concisely. Further, supporting attorneys with global IP portfolios has significantly broadened my commercial awareness.
Being part of such a lovely team made my placement so enjoyable. Regularly observing and contributing to discussions on current issues and working directly with different fee earners and paralegals has really helped in giving me an insight into different working styles and approaches to problem-solving. This exposure enhanced my ability to think critically and approach legal issues with an open mindset.
My placement has been an invaluable learning experience that will be one I will remember dearly. I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to work at Barker Brettell. It has piqued my interest in pursuing a career in trade mark law and I believe it has equipped me with the indispensable skills that I will use throughout my degree and future career.”
Rosalyn Newsome, trade mark partner added:
“Warisa has been an enthusiastic and helpful member of the trade mark team, and we appreciated her contribution on various work projects throughout her placement year. As a firm, we feel it is important to offer undergraduates the opportunity to experience working in the legal profession, enabling them to make informed decisions about their post-graduate career path.”
If you are interested in becoming part of Barker Brettell’s team, please visit our careers page for details of our current vacancies.
