I wanted to help people. As a teenager, I looked at different [career] options. Ultimately, it came down to going into the Church of England to train as a minister; the other option was becoming a solicitor. I was and still am a practising Christian. Over the years, I undertook a lot of work for friends and acquaintances whom I knew through being in the church. I had one client who was referred to me as she only wanted a Christian solicitor.

JohnGill

I was born and brought up in Wakefield. As a teenager, I undertook work experience with a high street practice in the city. After A-levels and a period of study in the law department at Leeds Polytechnic, I became an articled clerk in the same firm of solicitors in Wakefield. There were several periods of study with six-month courses to prepare for the Law Society’s Part II examinations at the College of Law in Chester. There was also a month-long accounts course. I qualified in May 1980 and was admitted to the roll on 1 July 1980.

My first position after completing my articles of clerkship was in a three-partner practice in Beverley in the East Riding of Yorkshire. I worked there from the spring of 1980 until January 2001. I became a salaried partner in 1985, an equity partner in 1988, and, from 1995 until the date of moving on from the firm, was senior partner.

For the first few years in Beverley, I undertook probate and wills and associated work in the main. I also did some residential conveyancing, most of which in those days was dealing with unregistered titles. However, as the probate work increased, I concentrated mainly on that area of work and discontinued working with conveyancing transactions probably in or around 1982. 

'When I started out in 1980 there were no computers... we received a large volume of paper correspondence/post. After a holiday or other absence, my desk was covered with piles of paper which had either come through Royal Mail or DX'

I then moved to a large practice in Goole. There, I was an employee/associate solicitor. This was a relief after being senior partner in a three-partner practice, given all the additional work, compliance and employee issues, and other responsibilities that role had entailed.

The legal sector has changed greatly since I started out. In 1980 there were no computers in the office. Each morning, we received a large volume of paper correspondence/post. After a holiday or other absence from the office, my desk was covered with piles of paper which had either come by hand through Royal Mail or DX. In the practice in Beverley, the accounts lady was the first person to get a computer. My two partners started using a computer shortly before I left the partnership.

After 44 years in practice, one of the biggest changes professionally from a practical point of view was getting used to technology and modern ways of communicating. I am now rapidly approaching the age of 70 having started at the age of 25. For the last 10 years, I have been reducing my working hours gradually. This has given me more time to spend with family. I am involved in many other activities, particularly in a very large church in the centre of Leeds.

I will very much miss my fantastic colleagues at the Goole office and also the interaction with clients. I love people of all ages, particularly the elderly, which has of course been useful in my work. I seem to have a great deal of patience with elderly clients. Sometimes I have been called pedantic but think that this is not a bad thing in detailed probate work.

As to what I will miss the least, obviously the pressure, even when working only very limited hours. Occasionally, there have been incredibly demanding and dilatory clients. Generally, I have found people to be really pleasant and helpful.

I have not been involved very much in marketing, particularly in recent years. Although I am very much old school, I always thought, and still do, that the best form of recommendation was clients coming back for repeat business and recommending me to family, friends, work colleagues, neighbours and acquaintances. I would also like to mention that the partners and office manager at my present firm [Symes Bains Broomer] the  practice I am sadly leaving have been excellent. I have always felt valued and respected. 

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