Blog by Alex Regan, Head of Family Law, Oliver & Co Solicitors
I qualified as a solicitor in the early 1990s. My university (Liverpool) had been chosen based on how good the local nightlife was ( AAA*) and my desire to be a lawyer was fuelled mainly by episodes of LA Law, where everyone had a corner glass office and shoulder padded suits to die for.
I was not motivated by any desire to change the law for the benefit of humankind. In fact, my main challenge was how to get up before 10am for a tutorial. It would be fair to say that I fell into family law when a vacancy arose immediately post qualification as head of a family law department. It sounded attractive but, in reality, I was head of a department with only one person in it – me. Whilst I felt very welcome in the firm, there were many times when I wished I was part of a larger team, or had someone to mentor me, or simply work through a tricky case with. I moved from firm to firm restlessly, often doing locum work but continued to feel that I was often left to my own devices without anyone to really inspire or guide me.
Thirty years later, I work at a firm that has everything my twenty-something-self wished for. I had worked briefly at Oliver & Co as a locum in 1993, and then returned for a longer period of five years from 2000 to 2005. Oliver & Co is based on very firm foundations and was obviously in my blood as I returned finally in 2012 and I am here to stay.
The firm has developed enormously over the years that I have had a connection to it. Being part of an employee-owned trust has brought a new energy to the firm which I feel every day. We all now understand and appreciate that together we can create a happier, more fulfilling and financially rewarding workplace. I would like to think that our attitude is not “what can I do for myself” but “what can I do for others” because we know that by creating a better workplace for others, we are also rewarded.
