Day in the life of an intellectual property and commercial trainee solicitor

I'm a first-year trainee, just finishing my second seat in the firm's Intellectual Property & Commercial Team.

9:30am - Once a month the IP & Commercial team has breakfast together before the usual weekly team meeting. It's a good opportunity to get to know the individuals on the team a bit better as well as enjoy a pastry and mini fruit salad! 

10:00am -Team Meeting: at the team meeting, people run through the matters they are working on, as well as discussing any legal updates and events coming up. Having an awareness of what is going on within the team is great for understanding the breadth of work the team does and gives you the chance to volunteer to assist on a matter that piques your interest.

10:45am - I've been working on a research project to understand the new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. There are several changes to consumer law that have come out of the act and I'm producing a summary briefing note on how the law is changing, which I'll be turning into a presentation. It takes a lot of time to read through and understand the rather hefty new legislation, but it's interesting to see how the law responds to adapt to the challenges of the digital marketplace and consider how it will impact clients. 

12:30pm - Lunchtime! Up to three days a week, there are free lunches in the office. Normally, we eat as a team but today I'm catching up with some of the other trainees before taking a quick walk along the Thames to grab a coffee.

1:30pm - I finish up a mini trade mark audit I started yesterday before writing up my findings and sending my results and suggestions to the partner for review.

2:30pm – I make a call to the UKIPO to ask for their view on an issue related to a trade mark assignment. 

3:00pm - I am working on trade mark opposition in relation to a world-famous mark. As part of this, we are gathering statements from third parties to speak to the fame of our client's mark. This is something I've been taking a lead on and this afternoon I'm working on finalising a draft of the witness statement based on a call I had with the witness yesterday.

4:30pm - We are in the process of applying for a large amount of trade marks for a client. Today, I'm checking on the progress of the international trade mark registrations with WIPO and then preparing reporting letters to send to the client.

6:30pm - Time to wrap up and head for dinner nearby with one of the trainees. Our offices are well located, so there's always a lot of choice!