I decided at the end of my second year at university that I didn't want to work in London, but that I still wanted to join a firm that offered a variety of high quality work with an impressive client list. My ideal firm was going to be based in Leeds, as not only is it a city that I have always loved, but it is regarded by many people as the 'London of the North'. DLA Piper fitted the bill perfectly, as not only is the Leeds office renowned for offering a high quality City service outside of the City, but DLA Piper's international reach meant that I could live in Leeds and also enjoy the benefits of a very large international legal practice.

I joined DLA Piper in 2001 after taking a year out to travel before starting my training contract – the firm was very supportive of that. Two years later I qualified into restructuring and have been there ever since.

Things have changed a lot in that time. Rather than being a top ten national law firm with a European presence, we are now one of the world’s largest firms...

I started at what was then called Dibb Lupton Broomhead in January 1995. I had trained at Simmons and Simmons in London and worked in their property litigation department for about nine months after qualifying. Basically it was a lifestyle choice to move to Yorkshire – my wife’s from Yorkshire and she made me do it.

I was looking for a firm that was going places and had something about it. At the time DLA Piper was a firm that was...

Why did you join DLA Piper? I wanted to join a firm that offered truly international reach whilst allowing me to stay in Leeds, the city in which I studied whilst at university. DLA Piper offered the best of both worlds, allowing me to experience top quality work from a great city.

What have you found to be most challenging so far? I took the opportunity to work in the litigation department of a major client of the firm. Having only had one week's litigation experience...