📩 How he secured a TC at a Magic Circle firm

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This upcoming Friday, James Mercer will go over how he secured a training contract at Clifford Chance.

This is the perfect session to learn about how others approach applications, research firms, and prepare for assessment centres and interviews.

The session will close with a live Q&A where you can ask James anything about his experience, the firm, or the application process.

If you’re making content on TikTok, Instagram, Meta, LinkedIn, Snapchat, or YouTube and you’ve built an audience of aspiring lawyers or students, we’d love to work with you.

We're partnering with student creators to get EOC's opportunities and resources in front of more people who'd benefit from them. This is a paid collaboration.

If you've got 1,000+ followers on your main platform, drop your details here and we'll be in touch:

Over 1,350 people have already registered for the Summer Application Bootcamp.

Over three days, Mark Dubes will take you from a blank page to a clear strategy, proper research, and drafted answers. Mark has spent 20 years in legal graduate recruitment, including at Mayer Brown, and has interviewed more than 10,000 candidates.

DAY 1 — Tuesday 18 August
Choosing your firms
How to build a realistic firm list and a clear application strategy before the season fully opens.

DAY 2 — Wednesday 19 August
Researching them properly
What genuine research looks like beyond the website, and what recruiters notice when you haven't done it.

DAY 3 — Thursday 20 August
Writing your answers early
How to draft strong answers to the most common questions firms ask, ready to adapt the moment applications open.

If you attend all three days, you will receive a certificate you can add to your LinkedIn profile, showing firms you put in the work before applications opened.

One registration covers all three days

We are running an Instagram Giveaway.

We’re giving one winner a private session with a graduate recruiter. You could win:

• A one to one training contract strategy with a graduate recruiter

• A line-by-line review of your written application

• A mock interview that tests you like a real firm would

The winner will be announced on our Instagram on August 21st.

Accell Group, the owner of reputable cycling brands like Raleigh, has filed for insolvency under Dutch law. This insolvency filing comes months after KKR and other investors lost their entire €1 billion+ equity investment in the company.

KKR and other investors bought out Accell for €1.8 billion in 2022, betting on the pandemic-era surge in demand for e-bikes. However, the demand for e-bikes was not sustainable and the sales growth on these bikes came in below expectations.

This was a failed leveraged buyout. KKR bought out Accell on underlying assumptions that quickly began to unravel at the point of purchase. In addition to falling demand, Accell had over-ordered on parts in anticipation of sustained demand and supply chain disruptions meant these very components cost more.

KKR and the co-investors continued to pour hundreds of millions into the company after Accell began to struggle, but Accell continued to burn through cash till the point of insolvency.

What does this mean for the sector?

• The Accell collapse is a prominent example of the correction hitting private equity funds that acquired businesses on inflated demand assumptions

• The e-bike market specifically faces a credibility problem now as this sort of near-term demand volatility is going to drive away investors Particular brand assets like

• Raleigh may survive the Accell insolvency through a carve-out sale, demonstrating how IP and brand value can persist post-insolvency.

How to Use This In Applications

Want a clearer route to securing a training contract?

The Future Trainee Academy brings the full recruitment process into one place, with guidance from a recruiter who assessed 10,000+ candidates and examples from future trainees at top firms.

It covers applications, interviews, assessment centres, and more. You’ll also get a certificate you can add to your CV and LinkedIn.

When you join, you will also gain access to the Watson Glaser Practise Hub where you can practise as much as you need to comfortably pass it!