My name is Sam Barker, and I have just finished my third and final year of my law degree at De Montfort University. Throughout my degree, I have found many areas of the law to be enjoyable, which had made choosing a specific sector to focus my career on a daunting task. However, during my final year I had the opportunity to study medical law and I discovered that it was something which I found interesting. It also made me realise that just learning about it in a lecture theatre wasn’t enough, and I wanted to experience how it was practised in the real world, away from the textbooks.
Luckily, I had the opportunity to meet Tereza Fotiadi at a networking event run by the Leicester Junior Lawyers Division (LJLD). Shortly after, I was able to be paired with her in the LJLD’s new mentoring scheme, and she began telling me about her experiences of working in medical negligence, whilst also listening to issues that I had and giving me advice on my own career goals. This culminated in an offer to spend a week at Moosa-Duke Solicitors, an offer which I gladly accepted.
My time at the firm has been fantastic, and I’m so grateful for everyone here for taking the time to talk to me about their work and for providing me with opportunities to carry out the tasks that are required for a lawyer working in the medical negligence sector. I know that some firms may use work experience as an excuse to park someone by the photocopier for a week, but at Moosa-Duke, they gave me a chance to really get stuck in and see what life is like for them on a day-to-day basis.
Some personal highlights for me this week have included reading case facts and researching the medical issues at hand, finding out how quantum reports are used to assess potential damages, and carrying out expert witness searches for current clients. It was also very rewarding to see the real, positive impact that Moosa-Duke’s work has on the people who have unfortunately suffered medical negligence, a feeling that was impossible to replicate in the classroom.
I’d like to thank Tereza, and also Fariha Ahmed, who both allowed me to listen to them as they explored potential cases with new enquiries. Asking prospective clients to recall difficult periods of their life to assess whether there is a legal case to be made is obviously challenging, but the professionalism and skill that both displayed has taught me a lot about successful client interaction.
It was also an amazing experience to sit in on client meetings with both Kirsty Dakin and Krishna Kotecha. The way they were able to make legal concepts such as breach of duty and causation make sense in layman’s terms, and then apply them to each client’s specific circumstance, was invaluable for me to understand what is needed for a medical negligence solicitor to be successful.
My week at Moosa-Duke Solicitors has greatly enhanced my understanding of the practical applications of medical negligence law, and I can say with certainty that I now see a future for myself working within this field.
