In conversation with: Akil Hunte
Thursday 14th May 2020
Akil Hunte is a Future Trainee Solicitor at CMS. He is also Managing Director of The New Black UK and the Founder of LinkedIn Skills for Lawyers.
Akil recently spoke to Commercial Astuteness Founder and Editor Kiran Pillai about commercial awareness and his journey into commercial law.
Kiran Pillai (KP): Akil, thank you very much for taking the time to speak to me. Perhaps I can start by asking you, as a future trainee, what you understand ‘commercial awareness’ to be and how it is valuable in commercial law.
Akil Hunte (AH): Commercial awareness is an interesting term and one that is seen as quite nebulous. When I started trying to develop commercial awareness, I didn’t really know what was expected of me from law firms. Now I’d describe commercial awareness as understanding how social, political, economic, environmental and legal matters affect how clients conduct their business directly or indirectly. It’s valuable to know for three reasons:
This skill is expected of aspiring lawyers when they’re advising in practice and at interviews;
Commercial awareness allows you to further understand a client's perspective to matters; and
You’ll be required to have a deeper understanding of commercial awareness the further you get up in your legal career. The sooner you start developing this the better.
KP: So, with commercial awareness being so important for anyone pursuing a career in commercial law, firms are naturally keen to see it demonstrated in the application process. Do you have any advice on how to do this effectively?
AH: I’d say commercial awareness is mainly demonstrated in how fluently you can articulate yourself on commercial topics. Law firms typically ask applicants about a challenge that will affect their firm in the future or something you’ve seen in the news recently that you have found interesting. If you can articulate your thoughts on these subjects in a well-researched, coherent and thorough manner you’ll be well on your way to having a strong application. You would want to avoid using terms or discussing topics that you don’t understand. You should aim to showcase a genuine interest in the firm or the current climate it operates in.
KP: You are also the Founder of LinkedIn Skills for Lawyers. LinkedIn is certainly a popular platform amongst current (and aspiring) lawyers. Could you tell me a bit more about this project?
AH: For sure. LinkedIn Skills for Lawyers is a personalised marketing and branding coaching programme for aspiring and practising lawyers. It was birthed out of the fact that many aspiring and current lawyers use LinkedIn, but they don’t know how to use it effectively for their purposes. The aim of the programme is to educate aspiring and practising lawyers on the skills needed to improve their brand visibility on LinkedIn. The programme consists of a four-step approach where clients go through different aspects of LinkedIn in depth and improve their understanding according to their personal objectives. The programme has been received well so far, with the average rating from clients being 9.25/10 for effectiveness. I’m currently exploring ways to make it more accessible for the near future especially for university students.
KP: Finally, do you have any other pieces of advice for someone who is just starting on their journey into commercial law – and perhaps feeling a little overwhelmed?
AH: The main advice I’d give to someone starting their journey is to take your time and don’t panic. Most students think if they don’t have a training contract by the end of second year of university then the sky is falling! That could not be further from the truth. There was a musician called Nipsey Hussle who had a slogan called “The Marathon Continues”. This inspired me to apply that mindset on my journey into commercial law as it is infamously lengthy. It’s a marathon, not a sprint, and students should never forget the average age of a trainee solicitor is 27 in the UK.
KP: Brilliant advice – thank you for joining me today.
AH: You're welcome. If anyone has any questions, they can contact me on my LinkedIn “Akil Hunte”.
