Daniela Kefala joined the firm as a Trainee Associate in 2018 and through her abilities, eagerness and hard work, the firm has made her an offer to stay on as a Junior Associate in the same department.
Daniela says:
As a trainee in the real estate, employment and commercial advisory department of Harris Kyriakides LLC, which is a non-litigation department, I was mainly involved in the drafting, reviewing and concluding different types of documents and agreements.
AM: My working day started at 08:00am. As soon as I arrived at the office, I would check my emails and calendar, in order to organize my tasks and prepare for the day’s meetings accordingly. A short internal team meeting was usually held in the morning during which we would discuss any urgent pending matters.
I found the one-to-one contact we had with the head of my department to be particularly useful as it gave all team members the opportunity to ask questions and make suggestions for next possible courses of action. During the rest of the morning I would usually work on the tasks I had been given, which included any of the following: reviewing and/or re-drafting documents or agreements, drafting agreements, researching, organizing case files and making notes, and generally assisting my team members with any ad hoc tasks they may have required of me to complete.
PM: Around noon a lawyers’ meeting was held in the firm’s library. During this meeting we would discuss any relevant current events and noteworthy matters, and then proceeded with reviewing the list of court appearances taking place the following day and allocating the relevant cases to the lawyers who would be making these appearances.
Following this meeting, we would usually break for lunch. Provided I did not have to attend lectures of the Cyprus Legal Council on the day, I would usually spend my lunch breaks in the firm’s dining area with colleagues. After lunch, the rest of my afternoon usually consisted of meetings and/or working on my tasks.
My experience as a trainee at Harris Kyriakides LLC has proven to be invaluable, as I was provided with the tools required to begin developing into the lawyer and professional, I wish to become. The direct contact with colleagues, supervisors and clients, as well as the hands on experience with a vast range of cases, were, and still are, all important factors contributing to my growth and development.
Since completing my training, the Firm has made me an offer to stay on as a junior associate in the same department, which I proudly accepted. Whilst my workload has since become heavier and more complex, I am taking it all in and enjoying the learning process.
