Associate, Corporate Finance
Education
Bachelor of Laws, The University of Hong Kong
Bachelor of Business & Administration (Law), The University of Hong Kong
My first Deacons Encounter
Joining the firm as a Vacation Student
Deacons provides a broad range of legal services with strong expertise in each of its areas of practice. Being a trainee solicitor at Deacons allows me to receive comprehensive training as well as wide exposure to different people and working style.
My “First Deacons Encounter” is the vacation student programme in 2017. I found my experience extremely rewarding. Even though it was a one-month internship, I experienced little difficulty in transitioning into a working environment as I received plenty of guidance from my seniors and team members, while I was entrusted with challenging tasks and given room for professional growth.
Now as a trainee solicitor at Deacons, I experience the same and it is such great honour to be working as part of the firm again.
Click here to start your journey with us.
As a trainee solicitor in the Debt Capital Markets (DCM) team of Deacons’ Corporate Finance Practice Group, I assist in transactions such as bond offerings, private placement of bonds and issuances under medium term note programmes. I am also involved in structured products programmes, bill issuances and other DCM transactions. I am usually tasked with preparing / updating the offering circulars, drafting correspondences, preparing listing applications and closing documents, and reviewing transaction documents etc.
Having graduated with a dual degree in accounting and law, I believe Corporate Finance offers exactly the types of challenges and opportunities I am looking for, and is ideally suited to my skills and knowledge. Not only do I find teamwork enjoyable, I also derive great satisfaction from liaising and collaborating with different working parties.
What I have learned from people around me is to always think ahead, take initiative and act in the clients’ best interest. We should not be limited by the specified scope of work or the instructions received, but should be aware of the potential issues that may arise in a transaction and take steps to solve the problem or minimise their impact. Helping clients to take things forward is not only beneficial to them but also rewarding to us as we can always learn from experience.
The work. Every transaction is different to a certain extent. Observing how my seniors deal with clients and other working parties and tackle each problem or crisis is a big takeaway for me. I am also always given the chance to express my opinion and participate in decision-making processes. This process of “observe and practise” has accelerated my learning progress. I learn a lot from every day of my work.
The people. Seniors and colleagues show great hospitality and the welcoming atmosphere helps people to focus more on work. In Deacons, it is always easy to feel connected with somebody else. I cherish the bonds developed within the team, the practice group and the firm. The sense of togetherness makes work less tough and more enjoyable.
Observant, attentive and detail-oriented. As trainee solicitors, observing is an essential part of learning. I personally learn a lot from observing. Further, trainee solicitors always play a supporting role. It is crucial that we pay attention to details and not let minor mistakes grow to become an obstacle to delivering the best to the clients.
I usually feel stressed when I am overwhelmed with work and/or other issues. I will try to formulate a to-do-list in mind and prioritise the outstanding tasks. This makes me feel better as I feel that things are in hand. I think it is important to understand that it is normal to feel stressed and sometimes an appropriate amount of stress could help us get more focused and deliver higher quality of work.
