What better way to show commercial awareness?
Aspiring solicitors desperate to stand out from their rivals are looking to take advantage of the imminent London Stock Exchange (LSE) float of a national law firm.
Gateley announced today that its initial public offering (IPO) — the first by an English law firm on the LSE — will take place from 8:30am on Monday 8 June with shares priced at 95p each.
The news has sparked a flurry of excitement among lawyer hopefuls, with some telling Legal Cheek this afternoon that they are planning to invest in the firm and then submit a training contract application to it.
One law student at a leading London university said:
“I hadn’t even heard of this firm until I read about their listing. But now I’m planning to buy a few shares in them and then use that information on my application form when I apply to them. It’s got to be worth a try!”
Another added:
“I’m definitely interested. What better way to show commercial awareness?”
But a further UK law student we spoke with expressed unease with the situation:
“I mean as utopian as it sounds I want the TC to be ‘fair’ and not give people more ways to buy their way in.”
We got in touch with Buchanan, the PR agency handling the listing for Gateley, and a spokesperson confirmed that it was indeed possible to just buy one share in the firm, telling Legal Cheek:
“There are no London Stock Exchange rules against buying just one share if that is what you want to do.”
Legal Cheek understands that the commission charged by stockbrokers for such transactions would vary between £10 and £300.
So for £10.95 students could have a nice little something to make their application forms stand out.
Gateley did not respond to our request for comment on this innovative training contract-hunting strategy.