Clyde & Co’s Arina Naumova reflects on her training contract and the lessons she learned along the way
“It’s very exciting to start!” says Arina Naumova, junior associate in the marine assets and projects group at Clyde & Co. Having just completed the final seat of her training contract, I talk to Naumova during her pivotal transition to newly qualified associate. “I’m fortunate that my final seat is the one I’m qualifying into, which makes the transition to life as an associate smoother since I’m already well-integrated with my team. I can take on more responsibility now which is great,” she continues. “Transactional work is inherently fast paced, so as an associate, I’ll often need to pick up the phone and keep things moving with clients. I’m also in a fascinating department, which offers opportunities to get involved in transactions that truly interest me.”
Fresh from Clyde & Co’s comprehensive training contract, I’m keen to ask Naumova how she found the experience and what the highlights were along the way. She gives me the downlow on her trainee secondment experience in German port city, Hamburg. “”When I arrived in September, the weather was beautiful, allowing me to experience the city as a first timer under the sun,” she shares. She adds that with an amazing bakery just around the corner from the firm’s relatively new office, the famous Hamburg pastry, franzbrötchen, quickly became a staple breakfast snack to bring into the office. “It’s very different to London, with a much smaller office in Hamburg, so I could work with both English and German teams together. And for me, the highlight was seeing how German law interacted with English law on complex international cases,” Naumova explains.
“Also, the port is actually in Hamburg so you can see with your own eyes the ships that you’re dealing with which you don’t get so much in London,” she says. “These huge ships were right there for you to see!”
An international secondment provided Naumova not only the chance to integrate herself into the firm’s extensive international network but also the opportunity to fully immerse herself in life in a completely new country. “I made friends in the city who have since visited me in London and I’m planning to go back and visit them in Hamburg,” she shares. “I already spoke a little bit of German before I moved, but breaking down the language barrier and improving my conversational skills with new friends in German was a huge plus!”
Now qualified into marine assets and projects as part of Clyde & Co’s highly regarded shipping practice, Naumova gives me the insight into the types of transactions she has a hand in. “There are so many exciting opportunities in this practice, for example to do with decarbonisation of shipping. Unlike researching precedent case law in a contentious practice, working on projects like this is interesting, because nobody knows how it’s going to work in practice,” she adds. “You have to be innovative and know where to look!”
Aside from her day-to-day working on everything marine, be that ships, rigs, yachts and more, Naumova has a keen interest in the energy transition. “You need ships to carry the supplies needed to build renewable offshore energy plants such as wind farms, for example. So, this practice closely interacts with energy and climate change laws,” she says. “And I feel very fortunate that I’ve been able to get involved in this side of the law over the course of my training contract.”
As part of Clyde & Co’s climate change group, Naumova has contributed to published articles on regulatory change in this area. She gives me an insight into how these legal changes are affecting her practice. “Interestingly,” she says, “certain regulation might have been introduced, but the technology it regulates isn’t quite there yet in practice. So, you must navigate advising clients on these regulatory changes and assisting in making their operations greener when the tech might not be readily available.” Clearly passionate about being able to work in such an innovative space, she continues: “It’s quite exciting because you’re looking at completely new fuels and ship-building methods which didn’t exist five to ten years ago.”
For Naumova, one of the biggest USPs of the firm’s training contract is the opportunity to get involved in many interesting projects outside of the boundaries of your core seats. “My seats over the course of my training contract have allowed me to experience so many different sectors, that have been very tangible,” she begins. “For example, I can now go on holiday and understand how a plane is fuelled, or which regulations affect its operation!” But being able to contribute to the climate change group, as well as pro bono projects have been enormous opportunities for Naumova.
“Trainees can assist in drafting articles, get involved in business development opportunities, undertake pro bono work and host events. So, outside of the work you’re given as a trainee, you can gain huge amounts of responsibility and exposure to very interesting areas of law,” Naumova explains to me. “Whether that’s with the climate change group or the firm’s AI group, which brings together people of all practice areas to contribute to work in the field.” And she’s keen to spotlight the firm’s social activities, which include netball and football competitions along with firm-wide socials. “It’s not just your regular nine-to-five, there’s so much more you can experience. This is the reason I wanted to stay at the firm; I have a connection with the people and I get to work on things I’m really interested in.”
Bringing the interview to a close, I ask Naumova what qualities make a successful trainee stand out from the crowd? “Clarity of thinking,” she replies. “Think to yourself: why are you drafting the things that you are drafting? Why are you presenting your research in a certain way? And how is this going to help the client?” She explains that trainees are not going to know everything, but it’s important for your supervisor to see that you can understand the commerciality of your work. “The main point is to be proactive, and to become an invaluable resource to your team.”
Meet Clyde & Co at ‘AI, risk and regulation — with Clyde & Co’, a virtual event taking place on Tuesday 10 September. Apply now to attend
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