YOUR PEOPLE PARTNER IN LAW
Who we are
We are the pioneers in delivering flexible junior resources to the legal profession. When others were focused on experienced contractors, we got to know and understand what great junior legal talent looks like. Founded and run by solicitors, we understand the legal industry with a commitment to bridge the gap between aspiring legal professionals and top-tier legal opportunities using a unique approach of combining advanced technology with personalised mentorship to provide tailored legal training and resources.
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Meet Our Team
Susan Cooper
Founder and CEO
Susan trained and practised as a banking lawyer at Hogan Lovells and completed an Executive MBA with distinction. She is passionate about diversity and creating opportunities for graduates which is evidenced by her introduction in 2012 of an innovative, award-winning business model designed to disrupt the traditional route to legal qualification. This groundbreaking model was the forerunner to qualifying work experience which forms part of the new route to qualification introduced by the SRA many years later making Accutrainee the pioneers in this field. Susan is responsible for the overall management of Accutrainee and Accuflex.
Meera Ferguson
Operations Director
Meera is a UK city qualified lawyer with over 20 years’ experience and supports all aspects of operational delivery at Accutrainee.
She is passionate about talent and has a ‘People First’ approach to training legal professionals to equip them with the right skills to work in private practice and in-house. She also sits as an advisory board member for universities and organisations to support employee engagement and uses her position to champion initiatives which promote change, diversity, inclusion, and equity.
Andrea Gallo
Human Resources Manager
Andrea is a human resources professional who obtained his MSc from Brunel University in 2016. He also has an academic background in Philosophy. He is passionate about recruitment and learning and development. As part of the HR team, Andrea is responsible for managing the employee lifecycle and the selection process, dealing with queries from candidates and Accutrainees and maintaining our HR processes.
Alessandra Calabrese
HR and Recruitment Coordinator
Alessandra graduated from an MSc in HR Management from King’s College London in 2022, after completing her BSc in Psychology. She joined Accutrainee to kickstart her career in the people function, drawn by the opportunity to help individuals navigate a complex industry and pursue their desired career path. Alessandra’s role involves supporting the smooth running of the selection process and employee lifecycle for Accutrainee and Accuflex candidates and employees.
Cara Baalham
HR and Recruitment Administrator
Cara is a Business Psychology graduate who is interested in understanding the intersection of Business and Psychology. She has a passion for employee wellbeing as well as learning and development. As part of the HR team, Cara is involved in the recruitment lifecycle as well HR and administrative duties.
Kevin O'Shea
Talent Acquisition Manager
Kevin has over 20 years’ experience in operations, talent attraction and selection, most of which was spent focusing on the legal industry. Kevin has a wealth of experience in recruitment with key strengths in optimising operations, curating top-tier talent and gaining a deep understanding of industry dynamics. Kevin is heavily involved in identifying and presenting the best talent to our clients.
Elizabeth Holden
Consultant / Principal
Elizabeth has always been interested in developing talent. During her 20 years as a corporate lawyer at Slaughter and May, she was heavily involved in recruitment and development, especially of trainees, and is delighted to be continuing this through her work with Accutrainee. She does this alongside a portfolio of listed and unlisted non-executive roles, while also continuing to develop the careers of practising and retired lawyers through BCKR.
David Malkinson
Fractional Sales and Marketing
David has been a marketing and product management professional for over 25 years and is Founder & Director of Maxam Digital. He is working with Accutrainee to support business growth through digital marketing and sales.
Martyn Gosling
Technology
Martyn has worked with Accutrainee since its launch in 2012. With a background in computer programming, website and App development, Martyn has since studied Digital Marketing with the Chartered Institute of Marketing.
Kathryn Davis
Trainee Mentor
Kathryn spent 26 years at Slaughter and May as a corporate and commercial lawyer, 17 of them as a partner. During her legal career she advised clients from a variety of sectors across a wide range of practice areas ranging from public and private M&A, commercial contracts, debt financing, equity and debt capital markets, regulatory enquiries, insolvency situations and general corporate advice. As a partner Kathryn was also heavily involved in trainee recruitment and the entire trainee lifecycle responsible for co-ordination of the supervision of the 10-12 trainees who rotated through the group every six months. She also directly supervised over 30 trainees herself during her career, many of whom she remains in touch with. We are therefore very fortunate to have Kathryn mentor some of our trainees. During her career, amongst many other things Kathryn also delivered considerable trainee and newly qualified lawyer training.
Gary Marsden
Trainee Mentor
Gary trained at Linklaters and moved to Kirkland & Ellis on qualification, where he worked on fund formation and financial services regulation. He later moved to the financial services regulatory team at Herbert Smith Freehills, where his focus shifted more to contentious matters, and subsequently back to Linklaters. Gary then went in-house at Santander UK plc, where he set up and managed the contentious regulatory team at the bank. He also developed, implemented and managed Santander UK’s training contract programme, which gave him a wealth of exposure and experience in developing young talent. Gary now works as a legal consultant, and is one of our trainee mentors.
Anne Marie Rugeris
Trainee Mentor
Anne Marie trained and qualified in the Regulatory Department at Capsticks Solicitors LLP and has over fifteen years’ experience in acting for healthcare regulators and the NHS. Anne Marie considers being given the opportunity to supervise and mentor trainee solicitors to help and support their professional development as one of the highlights of her career and she is delighted to be continuing this favoured aspect of her work with Accutrainee.
Adam Freeman
Mentor
Adam is a former partner in a Magic Circle law firm who now focuses on a variety of interests. Adam is passionate about people and helping them grow and develop to achieve their full potential, especially when they function as part of a team. Adam is also a qualified executive coach which came about through his association with The Møller Institute at Churchill College, University of Cambridge. This has led him to work with The Growth House, Accutrainee (as one of our fantastic mentors) and Heroprenuers in coaching and mentoring.
Kathy Hughes
Trainee Mentor
Kathy spent 23 years at Slaughter and May, the last 15 of those as a partner in a corporate group. During that time she was involved in the recruitment of trainees. Since retiring from practice Kathy has taught on the LPC Accelerated course at BPP University – teaching BLP PCR, 18A, Equity Finance and Corporate Transactions. Kathryn is one of our trainee mentors.
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Meet Our Advisors
Accutrainee is very fortunate to benefit from the guidance and expertise of highly experienced and respected individuals within the legal profession.
Henry Raine
Henry has held senior roles in investment banks, law firms and commercial enterprises. He was an investment banker for a number of years, including a director at BZW, before returning to the law as a partner at Herbert Smith in 1998 acted for a large number of financial institutions and overseeing the opening of a number of international offices as well as being responsible for the relationship with Herbert Smith’s European Alliance firms. Throughout his career Henry has been heavily involved in recruiting both at junior and partner level.
Anand Doobay
Anand is a partner at Boutique Law LLP and is highly respected as a specialist in business crime and extradition. As a former training principal to Accutrainee, Anand is very familiar with market challenges relating to qualification and has always been particularly interested in the development and training of our future lawyers, their routes to qualification and career progression.
Our Brands
I love the impact I have in my role at Accutrainee.
What we do is making the legal industry more accessible to young people from diverse background.
Meera Ferguson
Operations Director
