Shoosmiths

What sets us apart is our approach to the way we work - our working culture. You'll like our open, unstuffy atmosphere in which you're given the space and the support to thrive.

We work hard, but because of our easy internal communication and a real lack of internal politics, this energy is focused on our clients. That's what's driven our success so far - and we've had a great time doing it.

You'll have the space and the support to grow your skills and challenge yourself. And you'll find a refreshing lack of hierarchy, absolutely no pomposity or arrogance - just a recognition that happy, energised individuals are at the heart of our success.

 

Shoosmiths is an Equal Opportunities Employer and we are proud of the diversity within our workforce.  This was affirmed by the first survey of its kind undertaken by the Black Solicitors' Network (BSN) which measured diversity in the top 100 law firms; Shoosmiths topped this league table.  The following is press statement by BSN:

Taking all diversity classifications into account; ethnic minority (Asian, Black, Mixed and Chinese) and gender, across four different categories (partners, associates, trainees and paralegals), Shoosmiths emerged as the top ranking firm within the UK 100. They out-performed the competition in relation to their employment of female staff, ranking in first position for female paralegals and third position for the number of female partners and associates. Says Louise Hadland, Director of HR at national law firm Shoosmiths: "This survey completely endorses what we already knew:  that Shoosmiths is different and better because of the superb mix of people who work here.''

Our approach to equality and diversity has enabled us to attract and retain some of the UK's brightest people. This success has been translated into a highly motivated workforce, keen to deliver a great service to our clients whilst upholding Shoosmiths' key brand values; in turn, our people have become natural ambassadors for excellence within our business.

 

Shoosmiths promotes equality of opportunity. This means that everyone who works for the firm is treated equally, whatever their gender, age, ethnic origin, nationality, marital status, disability, sexual orientation or religious beliefs.

We need to ensure that our policy is working in practice, and that there is no discrimination in the way we take on new members of staff.

To do this we need to look at:

How we advertise

How we select people for interviews

How we interview

Who is offered a job

What we do after an interview

At Shoosmiths we always turn what we promise into decisive action. So we're delighted that in 2006 the firm was voted Most Diverse Law Firm by The Lawyer.

 

CSR at Shoosmiths is a wonderful mix of bottom-up initiatives chosen by our employees across our seven offices and a framework and support system delivered from our Chief Executive as part of the firm's strategy.

Partner Judith Dorkins leads our CSR policy, but there is plenty of opportunity for employee involvement in CSR at every level and this is one of the reasons why the firm is such a highly rated place to work.

Shoosmiths is completely committed to being a responsible employer, supplier of legal services and member of the community.  We work hard to minimise our impact on the environment and maximise our commitment to those who need our help most.  Our policies, including giving one "volunteering" day to each member of staff, are held on our intranet.

We hold an annual employee vote to choose our Charity of the Year and local groups of employees run fundraising initiatives and pro bono activity for local charities as well as coordinating activity to raise money for the Charity of the Year.

Shoosmiths places high priority on work-life balance as a responsible employer.  It is part of our culture which has enabled us to evolve successfully, attracting many new employees who want to work with high profile clients on quality transactions but still see daylight.

We have attracted new clients and opportunities to tender for work from organisations which value a caring approach in their legal suppliers including one of our clients - multinational chemical company, The National Trust and World Vision.

We have also helped many people – from children in Nigeria to local community work such as school governorship and establishing new charities.  Not least of all, one employee has already donated life-saving bone marrow and over 210 new donors from Shoosmiths are on the Bone Marrow Register.