1. Commercial Awareness Lesson 1: Introduction and Structure
Aspiring commercial lawyers network
Izzet Hassan

2. Why is commercial awareness important?
What do commercial solicitors do?
Advise on legal issues
Implement legal changes
Advise on commercial issues
Who are the clients?
Typically companies
Advise on matters using your legal expertise and knowledge of the commercial issues impacting your clients’ business

3. How do we do it What it’s not What it is Regurgitation
Thorough knowledge of a news article
Reading the FT / BBC News for the sake of it
What it is
Essentially three steps:
1) Takes a piece of news
2) Figure out how it will impact the client
3) Explain why that client will need a commercial solicitor.

4. Example of a terrible commercial awareness answer (don’t judge me…) Last month, Lawyer 2B published an interesting article discussing the Government’s backing of a third runway at Heathrow Airport. Whilst this expansion project has been in contention for over a decade, it has gained prominence following recent forecasts that UK airports in the South East will reach maximum capacity by If this capacity is reached without a functional third runway in place, the UK’s airports will be stripped of their competitive position in the market. What makes this issue an urgent concern is that projects of this magnitude take several years before they become operational; any expansion project must therefore be launched in the immediate future. The internal stakeholder, British Airport Authority (BAA), embraces the expansion because of the financial rewards attached to increasing the number of flights at Heathrow. Additionally, the Government has hailed the third runway as a solution to the aforementioned long-term capacity issues and believes that it will not only improve the UK’s global connectivity, but also lead to mass job creation.

5. What issues did you spot?
Not relevant to commercial law
No structure
Not firm specific
No application of your interests:
Your experiences
 Your motivations for commercial law
 Your motivations for the firm
 Your commercial awareness answer

6. The Steps… Work backwards Identify the client
Never find the article first. This forces you to apply any article you see to a law firm
Or worse…
Makes you write a generic answer about law and technology etc.
Identify the client
Ideally find an article relating to that client, if not the industry
Put yourself in the client’s shoes (a lot easier than it sounds)
Ask yourself: Why would I need a lawyer.
*TIP: Wherever there is a contract involved, you will need a lawyer.

7. Why would you need a lawyer?
Example:
You are a car manufacturer in China. Due to tariffs, you can no longer get the metal you require to manufacture your vehicles. Your profits suffer as a result. What would you do?
Find an alternative supplier – draft contracts
Integration into the supply chain- acquisition?
Cut costs
Labour costs
Technology to speed up production
Production costs
Raise prices – draft contracts with suppliers

8. Structure of Law Firms
Finance
Corporate
Tax
Employment
Restructuring

9. My approach to commercial awareness
I applied to firms with a strong private equity focus
Found clients of the firm by google searching “X law firm advises PE fund on….”
Found an article relating to the client company or the industry in general
Considered how the news would affect me and why I would need a lawyer.

10. Good Commercial Law Answer
Last month, the Financial Times published an article discussing the pressures faced by private equity funds to restrict UK investments due to ongoing economic uncertainty. Having previously read about [] plans to raise €5 billion for a European private equity fund in 2018, as well as [] intentions to raise €5 billion from investors for a fifth European buy-out fund, this article captured my attention immediately. What makes this issue particularly interesting is that private equity fundraising across Europe has remained consistently high in recent years, peaking at €74.5 billion in A change in the level of UK investment may create new opportunities and challenges for law firms. The UK appears to be an undesirable destination for investment due to the uncertainties surrounding Brexit. Companies with a large number of EU national employees may be perceived as problematic targets by private equity houses, who fear losing their assets. This, combined with the rising inflation, could deter UK investment, which may result in a reduction in private equity work for law firms. However, if certain sectors continue to attract investment, [ THE FIRM ] may be able to pitch its services to new clients. For example, Britain has continued to outrank other European countries as a technology investment hub, despite last year’s Brexit vote. A further increase in the number of UK tech buyouts could result in new private equity work for [ THE FIRM].

11. Good Commercial Awareness Answer Continued…
[ ] European Head, [ ], recently drew attention to the investment opportunities presented by President Macron’s business-friendly policies in France. The new French government scrapped its wealth tax on everything apart from property assets and introduced a flat rate on capital gains in an attempt to attract foreign investment. If Macron’s attempts are successful, [ ]may need to consider opening an office in Paris as a response to the increase in client activity. The firm’s Munich office is also likely to benefit from the high levels of private equity fundraising across Europe. In its Private Equity Trend Report last year, PwC noted that private equity investment in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland had increased by 28%. [ ] and [ [were involved in two of the largest transactions in the DACH region. If Germany’s strong middle market and stable economic conditions continue to attract investment, [THE FIRM’s] private equity team in Munich may enjoy an increase in work volume as a result.

12. Let’s break it down Clearly knows firm’s focus
Correctly identifies client
Commercial article is relevant to client’s work
Understands how the news will affect client
Understands what the client will want from his lawyers
You are writing to HR (know your target audience!)
Law firms provide all kinds of legal and commercial advice. Difference between lawyers and consultants?

13. Next Steps… Find a practice that actually interests you (ideally M&A)
Litigation is difficult for commercial awareness
Firm’s have similar clients, so it’s more a matter of stating somewhere that ‘this would affect clients of the firm like…’. This is half way to interview
Other half is correctly explaining why the client will need you

14. HAVE I ACHIEVED MY GOAL?
Next session: Application Questions Lesson 4: Why this firm? Tuesday 22nd October at 9 pm