This month I have had my first taste of working within the corporate department.  As a small firm, my training contract does not consist of the traditional four seat rotation.  Instead, I work on more of an ad-hoc basis assisting where and when I am most needed.  Our corporate department is always extremely busy in the lead up to Christmas and I was therefore asked to assist in completing a deal.  As we are acting for the buyer, one of the first tasks I was asked to complete was the Due Diligence Report.

As this was my first taste of the corporate world, I initially felt outside of my comfort zone in carrying out this task.  In order to complete the Report, I had to review the documents that the seller had provided and put them in some sort of order which was easier said than done.  In corporate, as in litigation, one of the key elements is to ensure that your documents are organised.

I then had to identify potential issues for the client arising from my review of the documents.  However, I had to ensure that the client was also provided with possible ways of overcoming the issues.  It is no use handing your client a document containing a list of problems so that they feel like they have hit a brick wall.  The key is to ensure that you assist them in overcoming any problems or issues so that the deal can progress.  I have now completed the Report and, in doing so, feel like I know much more about the Target business which will inevitably help me in assisting with the deal.  Fingers crossed it all works out for the client as intended!

Until next month,

Kimberley