Top Lawyers: Malcolm Simpson of Walker Morris On The 5 Things You Need To Become A Top Lawyer In Your Specific Field of Law

An Interview With Chere Estrin

… Passion for your work. Working as a lawyer can be a pretty tough life — long hours and plenty of stress. The pay cheque will never be enough to keep you in a job you don’t really love.

The legal field is known to be extremely competitive. Lawyers are often smart, ambitious, and highly educated. That being said, what does it take to stand out and become a “Top Lawyer” in your specific field of law? In this interview series called “5 Things You Need To Become A Top Lawyer In Your Specific Field of Law”, we are talking to top lawyers who share what it takes to excel and stand out in your industry.

As a part of this interview series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Malcolm Simpson.

Malcolm is Managing Partner and has overall responsibility for the firm. He has nearly 30 years’ experience handling commercial disputes. As well as being an accomplished trial lawyer, he is frequently involved in arbitrations, mediations and expert determinations. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (FCIArb) and a CEDR accredited mediator.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series. Before we dig in, our readers would love to get to know you a bit more. What is the “backstory” that brought you to this particular career path in Law? Did you want to be an attorney “when you grew up”?

I actually had quite an unorthodox route into law; I worked for a bank at 18, which I was advised was a “job for life”. I realised pretty quickly it wasn’t for me but, through the banking exams, I had my first taste of law, which has been a lifelong passion ever since.

I left the bank and spent a year working for a small law firm whilst applying to universities. I wanted to be sure that it was the career for me. I was the first person in my family to go into higher education and my family were concerned that I was giving up a secure job to go back into education. I had absolutely no doubts that it was the right path for me, however.

I loved studying at university and the course ignited a drive and passion in me. I then trained and qualified at Simpson Curtis, now Pinsent Masons, before gaining more experience at Eversheds. I moved to help establish a new office and commercial practice as part of a team for insurance firm Irwin Mitchell. I learned how to build a practice and am still acting for a number of the same clients 25 years later. In 2000 I moved to Walker Morris as a Partner in the disputes practice. I subsequently took on roles leading the firm’s international group and US desk as well as playing an increasing role in the firm’s management. I was appointed as my firm’s Managing Partner in 2018 and am now in my second term.

So, no — I didn’t know I wanted to be a lawyer when I was young! I had a meandering early career that provided a variety of experiences in different occupations and industries, which helped me discover that a legal career was what I wanted to pursue.

Can you tell us a bit about the nature of your practice and what you focus on?

I have spent my entire, 30 year career handling domestic and cross-border commercial disputes for corporate clients, many with a global foot print. These could be disputes arising out of company mergers and acquisitions, complex projects or trading contracts and agreements for the acquisition and development of property. I’ve practiced in many sectors — automotive/engineering, energy and oil and gas and construction — and for businesses across the globe. Recently I led the successful defence of a Fortune 50 company in a substantial damages claim brought by its former distributor in Nigeria, a case resolved immediately prior to a Supreme Court appeal; a number of disputes arising out of major mining projects in western Africa and power generation projects across Europe.

I enjoy working with clients to find solutions to seemingly intractable problems. Having a crystal clear view of opportunity and risk is vital. Knowing that I have a strong, experienced team to support me to trial also means I can hold out for the best possible negotiated deal.

Of course, a huge focus for me now is leading Walker Morris through our growth strategy, which we have named Ambition 2024. I have had great support, ideas and challenge from our Board in devising our strategy and it has been pleasing to see the whole firm get behind our plan for a more robust, forward looking and ambitious firm.

Of course, it includes growing the firm’s revenue and whilst revenues are important, we are also enormously focused on making sure that Walker Morris is an exciting, dynamic environment, where our staff can develop and grow their careers. With this, we also want to grow our capabilities, expand our offering to clients, investing in them and in technology to continue to grow our service offering to support them.

You are a successful attorney. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? What unique qualities do you have that others may not? Can you please share a story or example for each?

Loyalty is highly important in developing good relationships. I was approached to act for a corporate client very early in my partnership career. The client and its staff were targeted by protesters, who also targeted the supply chain, including lawyers. I acted when long standing advisers were unwilling to do so and at some significant risk to my firm, which was also targeted. My partners were entirely supportive, for which I was hugely grateful. Loyalty really counts — I’ve had a deep and lasting bond with my client ever since.

I’m commercially minded and I never forget that we are business advisers first and foremost. Understanding clients’ business objectives and the role we can play in helping deliver them is vital. Other opportunities might well give a better return on investment, which will help determine strategy. Most disputes settle without going to court.

Being self-aware helps build better teams. We always want the brightest and best people (and I always try to hire people better than me) but teams need balance, to cover all the bases.

Do you think you have had luck in your success? Can you explain what you mean?

Somewhat, although I wouldn’t necessarily call it luck, rather, good timing. I have worked hard, approached challenges with an open mind and am willing to learn from others. Being able to spot opportunities and deliver a particular outcome comes down to many things other than luck. I’m not a golfer, but a Gary Player quote springs to mind: “The more I practice, the luckier I get”.

Do you think where you went to school has any bearing on your success? How important is it for a lawyer to go to a top-tier school?

Yes, but probably not in the way that you think. In the UK, many lawyers are privately educated and those that aren’t are often — wrongly — told the legal profession isn’t for them. As a result of that we ended up with a homogenised industry with little diversity of thought and perspective. That is a problem.

I wasn’t privately educated, I didn’t go to a top-tier school, and I didn’t always know I wanted to be a lawyer. As a result of my own experiences, social mobility is very important to me. There are many bright, talented young people who have simply never had the opportunity or encouragement to go to university, but it shouldn’t exclude them from a career in law. I certainly think my experiences gave me hunger and drive and had a positive impact on my career. I think it’s very important to focus on building law firms and practices with people from all walks of life, backgrounds and communities. How can we possibly offer our clients the very best advice and solutions to the challenge, if our team’s standardised experience means they all perceive it in a similar way?

Based on the lessons you have learned from your experience, if you could go back in time and speak to your twenty-year-old self, what would you say? Would you do anything differently?

I remember being advised to think of my career as a marathon, not a sprint. A career in law can be relentless and the demands on young lawyers are greater than ever. It’s really important to have balance and perspective, which helps to keep lawyers in practice for 30 years or more. I was privileged to have a month away travelling with my family after a particularly grueling trial. That experience probably kept me in the law industry and was the inspiration for the introduction of our sabbatical scheme at Walker Morris, which enables all of our lawyers to take a paid, extended break every three years. Away from the law, I’d advise my younger self to stretch regularly!

This is not easy work. What is your primary motivation and drive behind the work that you do?

I am proud to be part of a team that supports world beating clients here in Leeds, creating outstanding opportunities and careers in my home city.

What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?

I’ve already mentioned that I am leading on Walker Morris’ growth strategy, Ambition 2024, with a focus on our people and our practice. That translates to some really exciting developments and opportunities for our firm, our lawyers and our clients.

Given our firm’s expertise in international trade, I am currently working very closely with partners Andrew Northage and Nick Lees to support businesses on both sides of the Atlantic in taking advantages of the opportunities between the UK and the US.

As traditional industrial areas, the US Midwest and the UK’s Northern Powerhouse have long had much in common, with factories that power each respective territory’s economy, employment and exports. Today, they are hotbeds for the industries of tomorrow, including renewable energy, electric vehicles, bioscience, nanotechnology and advanced manufacturing, despite facing significant challenges posed by the pandemic.

Very much tied to that is supporting Industry 4.0 and the Factory of the Future. Many of our clients recognise the benefit in deploying edge tech to drive efficiencies within their business, building smart factories or using automation and AI to streamline manufacturing processes. I am closely involved with our expert team of partners from our Technology, Commercial, Corporate & Governance, International Trade, Planning & Environment practices who are providing leading organisations with sound commercial advice and the legal frameworks and contracts they need to make the most of these emerging technologies.

Where do you go from here? Where do you aim to be in the next chapter of your career?

I’ve just been re-elected for a second term as Managing Partner, so delivering on my strategy in the next three years has my undivided attention at the moment.

Without sharing anything confidential, can you please share your most successful “war story”? Can you share the funniest?

Not necessarily my biggest success, but this is something that made an impression very early in my career. I was a very junior lawyer, acting against a very respected senior partner in a local firm. I’d obtained judgment for my client and he sent me a cheque for a fraction of the judgment debt. I could only accept the cheque in final settlement. I returned the payment, but only after I’d frozen the amount of it in the lawyer’s client account. Even now it serves as a good reminder never to underestimate your opponent.

Let’s now shift to discussing some advice for aspiring lawyers. Do you work remotely? Onsite? Or Hybrid? What do you think will be the future of how law offices operate? What do you prefer? Can you please explain what you mean?

As a firm, we had actively encouraged agile working across our workforce in the two years before the pandemic hit. Our teams often work from different location across the UK and from our clients’ offices in the US, so when the pandemic hit and forced working from home, it was a seamless transition for us.

Our offices are a fully agile space where we hot desk and we give our people the autonomy to work in the way they, their teams and their clients need. Our flexibility means that we’re available face to face or virtually to support, encourage, and answer questions for any of our colleagues and clients.

I like to champion a sustainable life-long career in law and believe firms have a responsibility to help their colleagues to become the rounded, commercial lawyers they want to be. A work-life balance is incredibly important, especially in a career where long hours and intense client pressures are the norm.

In the last year, we focused on investing in our team — recognising shifting priorities we’ve all experienced as a result of the pandemic and forced working from home — and recently launched our industry-leading sabbatical scheme.

With our landmark programme we hope to promote a healthy work life balance and reinforce our wider strategy of investing in talent by offering a more sustainable, long-term career, handling exposure to topflight, City-quality work.

How has the legal world changed since COVID? How do you think it might change in the near future? Can you explain what you mean?

In the wake of the pandemic, and from experience working with clients in both regions, we know that American and British manufacturers are tackling a common set of commercial challenges in the face of global transformation, and the sector has encountered a wide range of obstacles for decades.

In our recent in-depth study of 200 manufacturers — Made for Trade — we highlighted the optimism and ambition that is felt across the sector. Our research revealed that one in three (34%) are targeting a merger or acquisition to drive growth and more than half (52%) are pursuing international expansion. However, manufacturers see regulation as a huge barrier to capitalising on these opportunities. The majority (87%) cited concern in understanding or working within foreign legal systems adding that barriers to trade, local content requirements and voluntary export restraints were also major obstacles to their international expansion plans.

Yet all respondents said that they see an opportunity for increased bilateral trade via access to more advanced production facilities, R&D centres, and as a gateway to neighbouring markets.

While regulatory challenges vary from sector to sector, there is one recurring question we receive from clients — how can I do this?

The answer is to get the right advice early on to identify where your organisation’s responsibilities and liabilities sit, and to ensure you have time to overcome any regulatory hurdles. The international regulatory landscape may seem daunting, but a good advisory team will identify the key legal and regulatory liabilities at each stage of the supply chain.

We often hear about the importance of networking and getting referrals. Is this still true today? Has the nature of networking changed or has its importance changed? Can you explain what you mean?

Of course COVID has changed the nature of networking, and I’m not sure it will ever go back to the way it once was and nor should it. I am sure our clients want us to travel less as part of our drive to be a net-zero business. We are maintaining our pre-Covid travel budgets but challenging ourselves to fly a little less and direct the spend to green projects. We can also make sure we reach more people than we did before now, through our online vents and webinars.

Attending events, speaking on panels, launching your own webinars etc. are still legitimate ways of networking with peers, prospects and clients, and can actually project authority and build trust in ways we previously wouldn’t have tried.

Ultimately, people buy people, and people are more inclined to buy from someone they feel they know or that has been recommended to them. In that way, networking — whether in the digital or physical world — is a key part of the business development cycle we all need to contribute to for commercial success.

Based on your experience, how can attorneys effectively leverage social media to build their practice?

Like all good relationships, social media relies on good communication, being genuine and trustworthy.

Treat social media like a conversation with likeminded people, rather than a platform to project, and lawyers can build relevant networks throughout their careers, much the same as in the real world.

Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 Things You Need To Become A Top Lawyer In Your Specific Field of Law?” Please share a story or an example for each.

1. Passion for your work. Working as a lawyer can be a pretty tough life — long hours and plenty of stress. The pay cheque will never be enough to keep you in a job you don’t really love.
2. Grit and determination. I keep a photo of Italian cyclist Fiorenzo Magni on my desk for inspiration. Magni finished the 1956 Giro D’Italia with a broken collarbone –Google the image!
3. Curiosity and an interest in your client’s business.
4. A competitive edge — especially for a disputes lawyer.
5. Adaptability. A long and successful career in law means having to adapt to changing markets and times.

We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might see this.

They say you should never meet your heroes but I would love to have joined in the podcast discussion with Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen last year.

This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent with this. We wish you continued success and good health!