Wright Hassall—Gemma Macintyre & Melissa Scott

A Midlands law firm has announced the appointment of two newly-qualified solicitors following the completion of their training contracts.

Gemma Macintyre and Melissa Scott have begun their roles as solicitors at Wright Hassall, in Leamington.

Gemma, who is in the planning team, joined the firm in 2019 as a paralegal in the property litigation team and was promoted to senior paralegal before starting her training contract.

Wright Hassall’s training programme sees colleagues gain experience from across the business, allowing Gemma to strengthen her property litigation knowledge and spend time in the firm’s planning team.

She also took part in a secondment to work within the University of Warwick’s in-house legal department where she gained experience in commercial contracts and data protection.

Gemma said: 'I’m extremely pleased to have qualified. I’ve really enjoyed the training contract which allowed me to move around and try different elements of law, with a view to choosing a specialism.

'I enjoy property law, and planning feels like a natural fit for me. It is a niche area which is always changing, and Wright Hassall has a fantastic planning team.

'I now look forward to continuing to develop and hone my skills as a planning solicitor.'

Melissa, who is in the firm’s construction and engineering team, joined Wright Hassall in 2021 as a paralegal in the debt recovery team.

During her training contract she not only developed her knowledge in debt recovery, but also gained experience in commercial, commercial property, commercial litigation and construction and engineering.

Melissa said: 'The training contract was an excellent experience which enabled me to work across a number of different specialisms, and all of my supervisors have been so supportive.

'I knew quite early on that I wanted to be a disputes lawyer, but I still wanted a well-rounded experience where I gained a good overview of the different departments within the firm and how they all interlink.

'I’m really pleased to have qualified, and I’m now keen to continue gaining as much knowledge as possible to progress in my career, building my reputation in the construction legal sector.'

Wright Hassall partner Lucie Byron, who is one of those responsible for overseeing trainees within the firm, added: “The most satisfying part of our graduate programme is retaining excellent people and watching them start their qualified years with us. 

'In Gemma and Melissa we have two fantastic examples of trainees who have chosen specialist disciplines having thrived in them during their training contracts. 

'Adding skilled lawyers to our teams who truly understand our business, enhances the service we can offer our clients and is testament to the success of our trainee scheme.'

Image caption: Lucie Byron (left) and Melanie Wood (right), who are responsible for overseeing trainees within the firm, with Melissa Scott and Gemma Macintyre.