Bevan Brittan

All this top-level work has led to some top-level financials. In what is now the firm’s eleventh year of consecutive growth, revenues enjoyed a substantial 13% rise, growing from £67 million to £76 million. Profits grew an equally impressive 11% and now total £19 million firmwide. Average profit per equity partner (PEP) is understood to sit at around £730,000. Managing partner Duncan Weir has credited the recent success to BB’s “commitment to our chosen markets” and “continued investment in our people”. This last comment certainly rings true in light of the firm’s latest promotion round, which saw a record 38 colleagues move on up, with five making partner. This is in addition to the 32 senior lateral hires which the firm made this year, poaching partners from the likes of Trowers & Hamlins and Devonshires.

At trainee level, the firm has increased its intake from ten to twelve, a number of whom told us that it’s a good place to learn your craft as a lawyer: “The firm provides excellent training and gives trainees the autonomy to take on more complex tasks and responsibility when they feel ready,” and likewise, “the quality of the supervision, range of work and responsibility given is outstanding.” Rookies boast of being given “opportunities to lead in transactions” in seats like commercial property, and you can expect “exposure and a wide variety of work” in “every stage of a litigation claim”. Supervisors are also said to be “receptive to requests” for certain types of work — property, litigation, clinical negligence and malpractice claims are popular choices. But regardless of your seat, recruits across the board say the firm makes a “genuine effort” to give “good quality work which will form a good basis for qualification!” Inevitably, there are still some“administrative, more routine” type tasks which are passed down, but these are relatively few and far between.

Successful applicants will do four six-month seats in the firm’s various departments: clinical risk, commercial & infrastructure, litigation, advisory & regulatory, employment and property. And whilst international secondments aren’t on offer at Bevan Brittan, there are client secondment opportunities seeing trainees posted to NHS Trust legal departments, the London Ambulance Service and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Bevan Brittan (don’t spell it “Britain” in your application) is headquartered in Bristol and has three further bases in London, Birmingham and Leeds. The firm takes trainees across all of its offices, but we understand the lion’s share of the intake head to Bristol and London. Those considering putting in an application are recommended to apply for the firm’s vacation scheme, with Bevan Brittan filling most of its trainee spaces through this route. The firm has a handy section on its careers website giving its take on the training contract applications it receives and providing top tips for prospective applicants.

The relatively small cohort is (luckily) a supportive one — perhaps a knock-on effect of the clients being mostly dedicated to public service rather than profits. “I think one of Bevan Brittan’s biggest selling points is the friendly atmosphere, which isn’t hierarchical at all”, one current trainee tells us. Another enthuses that “there is a really supportive atmosphere amongst trainees and juniors in the firm”, and our sources were keen to point out that, “everyone genuinely wants the other to do well”. Trainees have two supervisors and a buddy for each seat, so there is also “consistent opportunities, support and guidance” on hand when you need it. What’s more, we’re told that all the offices are open plan, meaning trainees will often find themselves sitting beside more senior members of the team including the odd partner.

Networking drinks for juniors are commonplace year-round and the firm is said to operate somewhat of a rookie initiation whereby first year trainees are encouraged to do a round of fundraising for the firm’s sponsored charities. The social committee’s efforts in “organising monthly lunch or drinks” hasn’t gone unnoticed either, with those in London reporting of “fundraising quizzes, sporting events, walks and the London Summer party at OXO Tower” when asked about the office social scene.

Fee earners themselves have a reputation of “going above and beyond to provide clear feedback and praise” according to LC spies. As one sentimental trainee recalls: “After doing a time pressured task, I have often opened my inbox to find a thank you email from a partner. It really makes a difference when you come to appraisals and self-reflections”. That being said, some do report of “feeling disconnected” with seniors, who can be “harder to reach” due to the firm’s very flexible home working policy.

That’s right, BB offers a completely flexible WFH set-up with no hard and fast rule on attending the office — difficult for keeping track of partners, but great for those lazy days when you don’t fancy the commute according to our insiders. The home set-up itself is said to be “really good” with the firm providing anything you want — from monitors to docking stations to ergonomic desk chairs — usually within 48 hours of your request.

Aside from this, perks include the standard private medical and gym subsidy package, which has left a few with a bit of perk envy when hearing of free food and trainee ski trips elsewhere. But by far and away the best perk on offer here is a healthy work/life balance, with lawyers generally expected to knock off between 6pm and 7pm. Unsurprisingly, this is greatly appreciated by the firm’s juniors: “Work life balance is probably the biggest perk of this firm… I don’t feel the need to check my emails or work phone in the evening”, one insider explains. Another offers this truncated version: “The work life balance could not be better at this firm”.

There is, of course, a trade-off to be had, with one insider stating that they have a “better work/life balance than a lot of other commercial firms but then our pay also reflects that”. Still, most seem happy with this deal and it’s not hard to see why when you hear of heart-warming stories like this floating around the office: “I have had fee earners come up to me in the office or message me on Teams if I am too deep in work late on a Friday, and they have told me to either leave it until Monday if it can be done or they have asked if there is anything they can do to help”.

The facilities themselves aren’t world-beating, with one newbie dryly describing the office space as “fairly average”. It’s noted that many of the firm’s top office perks, including an on-site gym and subsidised café in Bristol, didn’t survive the pandemic, and we even received a few grumbles concerning the absence of a coffee machine available for staff use. That being said, there are some positive reports of standing desks, agile working spaces and a “sunny terrace” on the tenth floor of the new Birmingham abode. The “nice and shiny” London office in Fleet Place House, just around the corner from St Paul’s, is also said to be “well located” with one describing it as “the classic corporate office — modern, open plan and with glass walls creating an airy environment”. Bristol is “good” even if it isn’t quite “as new as the others” and Leeds walks away with some credit for having a “modern feel”.

We’re told the firm’s tech offering is “what would be expected” and in some cases “quite outdated.” However, the firm is currently in the process of changing the IT provider and trainees trust BB is moving in the right direction on this front, with new collaborative online portals for major clients recently being rolled out.

If you hadn’t already guessed by the logo, Bevan Brittan has a big focus on being green! Trainees were full of praise for the firm’s “environmental credentials and Green Ambassador internal network, which focuses on ways to make the firm more environmentally conscious”. Travelling to in-person events and printing are also closely moderated and even fee earners are “cautious to print when anything can be sent digitally!”