Lawyer in the news: Michael Smith, Revantage Real Estate

Who? Michael Smith (pictured left), principal legal counsel at Revantage Real Estate, an affiliate of the private equity giant Blackstone; and trustee of SeeAbility, a national charity that supports people with learning disabilities, autism and sight loss.

Why is he in the news? ‘To celebrate SeeAbility’s 225th anniversary and my boss Jack Stacy’s (right) appointment as chairman of this life-changing disability charity, we decided to hike up 24 peaks in 24 hours around the Lake District. The challenge is rated extreme – over two days we’ll be covering at least 28 miles while ascending a total of 12,000ft. I am registered blind and don’t have much depth perception, so Jack and I will be tethered together with him sight-guiding me the whole route. It’s a daunting challenge, not least because we have set ourselves a fundraising target of £150,000. Jack and I have flexed our professional and personal networks and publicised the challenge across various media channels. The reaction up and down the country has been humbling. We’ve appeared on TV and this led to an increase in donations. We have approached several of our company’s panel law firms and they have supported our challenge, which has made a great difference. The training has been intense with lots of gym sessions and hill runs on the weekends.’

Dealing with the media: ‘It’s been great fun. We’ve appeared on live TV, radio and even a podcast. Being behind the scenes of some of the nation’s most-watched breakfast TV shows has been fascinating and nerve-racking in equal measure. There’s nothing quite like being counted in live from an ad break. It’s all very spur-of-the-moment and exciting. We’ve both been working our normal jobs while the story has hit the news, so it’s been full-on. One of the most rewarding interviews was a podcast with children who have disabilities posing the questions. Children have a perception of the world uncluttered by the prejudices that many adults have and the questions were really thought-provoking. As well as raising funds for SeeAbility – and in keeping with the charity’s ethos – Jack and I want to challenge perceptions of what people with disabilities can do. The media exposure has helped us do this on a grand scale.’

Why become a lawyer? ‘I lost my sight while in my first term at medical school. After rehabilitation from the initial shock of sight loss, I was introduced to several visually impaired lawyers who thought that the industry was very accessible due to its document, correspondence and advisory themes. With advances in technology and increasing awareness of disabilities, it gets more accessible day by day.’