Outline of the practice area
My name is Emily and I’d like to share my thoughts on my first seat in Litigation and Regulation. I’m a trainee currently working in the Aviation Team in London, within the Litigation and Regulation practice group. Despite having to work remotely and contend with the limitations of the lockdown, I have enjoyed the buzz of working in a fast-paced and exciting environment. Our group is divided into multiple teams which together cover a wide variety of work, ranging from Corporate Crime and Investigation to Global Trade and Government Affairs. Throughout my seat I have had the opportunity to work on a series of interesting cases and regulatory issues and have collaborated with other teams across the firm in the UK and internationally.
Example of the type of work completed / of a deal(s)
My role encompasses both litigious and regulatory work. An example of the regulatory work is our team have been advising an airline client on regulatory matters relating to the myriad of problems that that have arisen as a result of the pandemic. I assisted the team in advising the client on their challenge of the highly controversial international travel traffic light system. This has been an interesting matter to be working on as the Public Relations, Competition and Aviation team have worked together and helped strengthened easyJet’s arguments in their respective areas of expertise. Further to this, we have also been advising several airline clients on updated Covid aviation regulations which apply to large parts of Europe as well as the UK.
In terms of our litigious work, the role that I and other trainees have performed in litigation has included assisting in the disclosure of relevant documents to the court. Using the firm’s artificial intelligence system Relativity, we are able to quickly review relevant documents and highlight the ones that will help shape and support our arguments. The process allowed me to appreciate the full breadth of the case and understand the way we were able to build our arguments.
Why is the practice group an exciting place to work / innovations & exciting things happening in that area
The pandemic has had a dramatic impact on the kind of litigious and regulatory work at DLA Piper and has created new and interesting opportunities for the firm. It has been a privilege to work on issues that frequently make headline news and to be part of a team that is constantly striving to develop its services and offer advice of the highest quality. By way of example, our team in aviation has recently committed to providing our clients with a weekly report on sustainability issues as they seek to support government initiatives to reduce carbon emissions within the aviation industry. This report is a complement to the weekly publication that DLA Piper already provides to its clients on other issues affecting the aviation sector including recent case law. Together these publications are addressing not only the vital news updates for the sector in general, but also addressing the sector’s drive for innovation. In addition, many teams hold regular meetings in which team members address key areas raised in recent case law to ensure that the teams themselves are continually aware of the latest trends and areas of contention in order to best advise clients. The constant awareness the firm has of the litigious and regulatory environment and the desire to continue to improve our client support has made the group a very exciting place to be for my first seat.