NLJ PROFILE: Stuart Crippin, Seddons

What was your route into the profession?

In my final year at university, I went to a law recruitment event and spoke to people from a number of City law firms. As a result, I ended up completing summer vacation placements at two of the firms I had spoken to. Although I found the experience useful overall, I was keen to work overseas and felt that I was not quite ready to commit to the legal profession. Therefore, I went on to spend four years teaching English in Denmark, Poland and Japan.

When I came back to the UK after having been in Japan for nearly two years, I looked into the legal profession again. I realised that I was best suited to working with individuals in order to solve their legal issues, and decided to train at a fairly small, traditional and long-established private client firm in the City, rather than a big City firm. I was offered a job in the wills, trusts and probate team on qualification, and was very pleased to go into that area of practice.

What has been your biggest career challenge so far?

Although I am a non-contentious private client lawyer, I have always had an interest in trust and estate disputes and I have been fortunate to have had quite a lot of exposure to that type of work.

On one occasion, I was involved in advising on the UK tax consequences of settling a dispute relating to a multi-million pound estate, and drafting the deed of variation to give effect to the settlement. Due to a range of difficulties, the dispute was only resolved at the last minute. I worked late into the night on the second anniversary of the deceased’s death to ensure that the deed of variation was signed and dated by all parties in counterpart by the midnight deadline. The deed of variation needed to be signed by miscellaneous parties, some of whom were overseas and/or travelling. In particular, I one of the beneficiaries was in the departure lounge at Heathrow Airport on her way to Dubai, and another had just touched down in Australia. It was necessary to fax counterpart copies of the deed of variation to the relevant departure lounge at Heathrow and to a hotel at the airport in Australia, so that they could be signed, dated and duly witnessed. One area of concern was that the faxed counterpart to Australia showed the date as the following day, and we did not know if HMRC would query whether the deed of variation had been genuinely signed within two years of death.

The matter was further complicated because the deed sought to vary whichever of the deceased’s wills were later found to be valid in a way which ensured that the spouse exemption applied in full on death. The ultimate test was whether HMRC accepted the deed of variation and that no inheritance tax was payable. I am happy to report that they finally did!

Which person within the legal profession inspires you most?

I think that many people forget that Nelson Mandela was a lawyer and I must say that I have always found him worthy of genuine admiration.

I remember reading about the black activist Steve Biko in Cry Freedom when I was a boy and being incredulous that South Africa had a system of apartheid. I developed quite an interest in South Africa and read up widely into its history and politics. Reading about the conditions and hardship that Nelson Mandela endured in prison and seeing his emergence as the president of the new South Africa was inspiring, as were his humble demeanour and forgiveness.

If you weren’t a lawyer, what would you choose as an alternate career?

I have always had a great interest in languages and travelling. I have dabbled in a wide variety of languages and have been lucky enough to travel to a very good number of countries, although there are still plenty on my list! I have always thought that I would really enjoy being the manager of a high-class hotel or hotel chain and it was a career which I thought about (somewhat idly!) in my younger years. It certainly would have combined two of my great interests rather nicely.

The idea of creating a fantastic experience and providing a top-quality service for paying customers appealed to me. I console myself with the hope that I manage to achieve that in my legal career, albeit in perhaps a slightly less glamourous environment!

Who is your favourite fictional lawyer?

This is quite a hard question to answer but I think that Maxine Peake’s portrayal of the barrister Martha Costello QC in the BBC drama Silk between 2011 and 2014 was great. Professionally, she was steely, determined and resolute, but we also saw a very human and down-to-earth personality behind closed doors. It reminded me that, while all lawyers have a professional persona, there is always another, more personal, side. I have found that useful to bear in mind, especially earlier in my career, and when dealing with trust and estate disputes.

What change would you make to the profession?

I may not be popular for saying this, but I feel that there are probably too many law firms out there, and it can be a real headache for prospective clients to be able to choose which firm is right for them. Of course, personal recommendations are important, as are legal directories. However, I think that there is a need for a public-friendly, independent assessment of law firms which can help people make a choice, something akin to an Ofsted report for law firms. 

It goes without saying that some firms will have specialisms in certain areas, and while a full-service firm is good for a particular kind of work, clients may be better advised to go to another firm for a more specialised type of work. I think it would be hugely useful if prospective clients could turn to a guide which could give a genuine, honest and independently-compiled assessment of what they can expect from law firms in terms of specialisms, areas of strength, client experience and cost.

How do you relax?

I really enjoy spending time with my two daughters, and I feel that it is so important to try to devote time to playing with them when I am at home. Inevitably, work sometimes means that I can’t do this as much as I would like, but I do my best to strike a good work/life balance.

It will not come as a surprise to hear that family holidays feature quite highly on my relaxation list. My daughters are now nine and eleven, and we have taken them to some exciting destinations over the last few years, including the Seychelles and Costa Rica. The only problem is that when I tell them that we are going to Scotland to see family for our next holiday, in their minds, it doesn’t quite compare to some of the sunnier destinations they’ve been to.

Stuart Crippin is partner and head of private client at Seddons