The Gilbert Stephens Solicitors Young Professionals Network enjoyed some excellent Vietnamese cuisine at Pho Exeter for lunch yesterday.
The Exeter based Young Professionals Network (YPN) offers members a chance to network with like minded professionals on an informal basis. The network was set up by Gilbert Stephens in 2010 to provide the firm’s younger members to build their own network of contacts in the Exeter area. The group has grown annually and now has over 300 members from industry, professional services and the charity sector.
The YPN is different to other formal networking groups as the atmosphere is relaxed and informal. What makes the events extremely popular with younger professionals is the alternative option to building professional and personal relationships outside of the more traditional business networks.
Wherever possible the group aims to support, through their events, new businesses in the local area. Events are typically announced 2 -3 weeks prior to the event taking place. The previous events have varied from cocktail making, bowling, laser tag, the art of sushi making to trying the menus of some of Exeter’s latest restaurants and informal drinks events.
Join the Gilbert Stephens Young Professionals Network today
Simply contact us via one of the methods below to register. Membership is free and confirmation of acceptance of membership will be emailed to you. Once you have received confirmation, you will be emailed invitations to our events.
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Email and/or follow us on Facebook @GSYPN and Twitter@GS_YPN
Here’s some further photos of yesterday’s delicious lunch!
The postponed East Devon Golf Club Captains’ Charity Day event took place on 15th August and we were pleased to again be a sponsor for this much anticipated event. Our team Marcus Quick, Peter Bennett, Steve Tutchings and Simon Cornwell, took on the course which is regarded by many as one of the finest courses in the region. It’s easy to see why it is reviewed as one of the top 100 golf courses of the British Isles with such breath-taking views across Lyme Bay. The team were a little nervous at tee off but, despite the distracting beauty of the Jurassic Coast, they were able to hold their heads high with a mid table finish.
In addition to sponsoring a hole at the event we donated a picture by local artist George Hutchinson of Coastal Impressions. George’s bold colour interactions showcase this special part of the world, the image seemed very apt for a Club situated in such a stunning setting and the image will be used for their future fundraising ventures.
Acknowledging the importance of the day Patrick Langrishe, partner at Gilbert Stephens Solicitors, noted that “the club is a community hub and this fun event helps raise money that will be a vital lifeline to charities and we are proud of our continued involvement, and team performance!”
Tony Mackness captain of East Devon Golf Club added “it was a very, very successful day raising over £8,000 for the charities, Prostate Cancer UK and Bramble Ward Trust at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, with more money due to come in by the end of the year. The day out performed all my expectations!”
We were at our final show in Chagford on 16th August which was another exceptionally successful day for all involved.
We have really enjoyed our time in the countryside throughout August attending Honiton, Okehampton and Chagford shows. All three shows were lots of fun, with many old friends visiting, and new friends met. We are very much looking forward to doing it all over again next year!
It was great to see our guests enjoying the refreshments we had on offer, the Pimms, strawberries and pasties went down particularly well!
Sam our gun dog puppy found the experience very exciting, he was very popular, it was great training for him to be with us so he could get used to lots of different people, without being too overwhelmed. We hope you enjoyed meeting him as much as we enjoyed having him with us.
We loved the face painting designs the kids were going away with, unicorns were as ever one of the most popular with lots of bright sparkly colours, hopefully it wasn’t too much hard work to wash off at the end of the day.
Thank you to Diane Coates from The Sculpture School who joined us at the Okehampton show and showcased some beautifully designed sculptures for visitors to admire; and thank you to the Farming Network Community who joined us at Honiton and Chagford shows, and supplied colouring to keep the kids entertained whilst their parents relaxed, soaking up some of the Gilbert Stephens’ hospitality.
Terry Bastyan, Managing Partner of the firm said: “We have 6 branches across Devon and we love joining in with events like these country shows which showcase our incredible array of local produce, artists and businesses. These shows are an extension of this for each town and we are proud to be a part of it. We thoroughly enjoyed our time at all three shows this year, thanks to everyone who came and saw us and joined in our fun, we look forward to doing it all again next year!”
We specialise in agricultural & countryside law, we can assist you with buying & selling of property, tenancies, occupancy, environmental issues, sporting rights and woodland. Additionally, we are experts in farm succession planning helping you ensure the future of your farm, this is something which can be a difficult and contentious issue within families, so it is good practice to plan for the future well in advance.
If you need legal assistance whether to sell a farm, diversify the business or to ensure everything is put in place for when you retire get in touch with one of our offices based in Budleigh Salterton, Crediton, Exeter, Okehampton, Ottery St Mary and Sidmouth you can learn more about our services on our.
We had a brilliant time at Okehampton Show last week. Thanks to everyone who came and saw us at our marquee. We had plenty of refreshments for all which we hope you all enjoyed, the Pimms and pasties seemed to go down particularly well. Face painting for the kids was also popular and it was wonderful to see the colourful designs they chose, lots of unicorns! We had more entries for our giveaway to win a child’s quad bike, the last chance to enter will be Thursday 16th August at Chagford show – be sure to come and see us, and check out our Facebook competition to win tickets here.
We were particularly delighted to host Diane Coates from The Sculpture School who showcased some beautifully designed sculptures for visitors to admire. They are based in North Tawton and recognised as Britain’s premier centre for mastering the very best figurative sculpture know-how and techniques. The sculptures were stunning and understandably they drew plenty of attention.
We mustn’t forget to thank Sam our gun dog puppy for spending the day with us again, he lapped up all the fuss.
Terry Bastyan, Managing Partner of the firm said: “We opened our office in Okehampton over a year ago and there is a real community feel in the town, the show is an extension of this and we are proud to be a part of it. Thanks to everyone who came and saw us on the day and enjoyed some fun at our marquee, we look forward to doing it all again next year!”
Gilbert Stephens Solicitors specialise in agricultural & countryside law, they can assist you with buying & selling of property, tenancies, occupancy, environmental issues, sporting rights and woodland. Additionally, they are experts in farm succession planning helping you ensure the future of your farm, this is something which can be a difficult and contentious issue within families, so it is good practice to plan for the future well in advance.
If you need legal assistance whether to sell a farm, diversify the business or to ensure everything is put in place for when you retire get in touch with Gilbert Stephens Solicitors at one of our offices based in Okehampton, Exeter, Budleigh Salterton, Crediton, Ottery St Mary and Sidmouth you can learn more about our services on our website www.gilbertstephens.co.uk
I have written a couple blogs about my journey so far as a trainee solicitor but I think it’s interesting to look at how I got to this role, so this blog focuses on how to become a solicitor.
What I think many people may not realise is that someone who is a “solicitor” is a professional person who has undertaken the various legal studies and training requirements and is appointed by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority as a qualified solicitor. Whereas the phrase “lawyer” does not necessarily mean that the person holding themselves out to be one has any legal qualifications or experience and it is important when choosing legal representation that people are aware of this key difference.
In order to become a solicitor you have to first undertake a degree. I undertook a qualifying law degree at UWE in Bristol which took 3 years full time to complete. However, you can still become a solicitor even if you have not completed a law degree. You simply need to undertake a Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) to convert your current degree to a law degree. This course takes 1 year full time or 2 years part time.
Once you have completed your undergraduate studies you then need to complete the Legal Practice Course. This course can be done full time over 1 year or part time over 2 years. Usually people tend to undertake this course straight after completing their degrees. I completed mine part time over 2 years as I was also working full time at Gilbert Stephens during this time. I found that working in a law firm really helped reinforce the teachings of the Legal Practice Course. The course teaches subject areas that relate to being in legal practice, such as accounts and drafting. My firm was very accommodating with time off for studying and exams. I found that most of the people on my Legal Practice Course were also in the same situation, already working at law firms, and most of them had similar experiences with their firms being accommodating to the needs of the course.
Shortly after completing the Legal Practice Course I then began my role as a “trainee solicitor”. And whilst I had hoped that all my time spent studying was over I still had to complete the Professional Skills Course. This course attended by Trainee Solicitors is spread over 12 study days and includes 1 exam. The lecturers, who are qualified solicitors or barristers, teach a syllabus to reinforce the principles of client care, code of conduct and money laundering to name a few of the important principles of being a solicitor. The course, which highlights included a very nice lunch at Reed Hall in Exeter, gave me the opportunity to socialise with fellow trainee solicitors who are mostly local to the area and share our experiences as a trainee so far, many of which were very different!
I have now completed the Professional Skills Course and whilst I am very glad to finally have completed the educational side of training, which has spread over the course of 5 years from starting University, I will still need to find a new challenge to keep my brain active as I still love learning and attempting new things.
We had a fantastic time at Honiton Show yesterday, thanks to all who came and said hello. It was great fun and lovely to see old friends, and make new ones – including Norman the Gnome who really enjoyed his goodie bag according to his tweet!
Sam our gun dog puppy had a great time too and really enjoyed the fuss that was made of him. Here’s some of the photos from the event.
We are now looking forward to Okehampton Show on the 9th August, we’d love to see you there and you could win tickets via our Facebook competition here
Gilbert Stephens solicitors are delighted to be supporting Exwick Villa at the Exwick 3G Hub.
The Exwick 3G Hub is a sports hub, part of a £14 million investment in sports developments and facilities at Exeter College who worked in partnership with Exeter City Community Trust to officially launch the facilities in March, launched by the Lord Mayor it is a valuable asset to the community.
Gilbert Stephens Solicitors will be sponsoring a banner at the ground, providing funds to help support the team through their next season.
Club Chairman Clive Martin said “We enjoy building new relationships with local businesses and are grateful for the support of Gilbert Stephens, their sponsorship is invaluable to ensuring Exwick Villa’s future in the league”.
Exwick Villa, who finished fourth in the Devon & Exeter Football Premier League this season, have existed since 1968. Originally based at the Exwick ground and called Exeter Civil Service they were one of the most successful teams in the Exeter area whose players came from mainly a public sector service background.
The Club became homeless in 2012. It was then that Exeter College took on the lease and built the new sports hub and so became the club’s new landlords. The football committee decided to rename the club Exwick Villa from the 2013-2014 season. With a new 3G artificial surface down at the sports hub, after a well deserved rest, the team look forward to a successful 2018/19 season. However further sponsorship is still required and anyone interested should get in touch with Clive Martin.
The sports hub will be used by a host of other clubs including Exwick Cricket Club, Chiefs DPP Rugby, Alphington Youth & Wessex RFU and Exeter University Women’s Football.
It’s not long now until the first of the local country shows we shall be attending. This week we will be at Honiton Show on Thursday, then we will be at Okehampton on 9th August and finally Chagford on 16th August.
We will be running Facebook competitions giving away tickets to each of the shows so keep an eye on our page here
Local country shows like these showcase the best of local farming, produce, crafts and rural skills and we are delighted to have Jo Jones from the Farming Community Network with us at Honiton and Chagford shows. Jo will be supplying some fun colouring to keep the kids entertained. You will also be able to get your faces painted and enjoy delicious refreshments at our stand including Pimms, sweets, pasties and soft drinks. Whilst there be sure to enter our giveaway to win a child’s quad bike, all entrants from the 3 shows will be put together and a winner drawn at random.
This information does not constitute legal or financial advice and you are advised to seek the guidance of a lawyer or financial advisor to discuss your individual requirements.
