London Lawyer Starts New Life in New Zealand

Mark Burton, originally from Scotland, currently works for Chapman Tripp -  a leading NZ law firm. He talks to Law and More about life, law and making the move down under...
 

Could to tell us a bit about your background and training in the UK?

I am originally from the West of Scotland, with English and Filipino parents. But I was at sent to boarding school near Ipswich, went up to Cambridge for my law degree and attended Nottingham Law School for LPC. In 2000, I started training at the London office of Andersen Legal and later moved tothe newly established London office of Dundas & Wilson, where I remained until my wife and I moved to New Zealand in early 2006.

My practice consists of all things corporate and commercial, with a preference for investment funds and energy work. My wife and I are NZ permanent residents, and have just had a little girl, who is botha Brit and a Kiwi.

What made you move to New Zealand!?

Whilst the work at my previous firms was of the highest quality, I was getting bored with dealing with the frustrations of day to day living in London; sitting in crowded trains for 2 hours of my own time every day, sitting in traffic on my days off, and stretching myself to afford somewhere where I actually wanted to live.
So my wife and I decided to take the initiative and looked for the new challenges of a life overseas.

How are you finding life and work down under?

Life is great. If you compare New Zealand to the UK, there is very little in the way of culture shock. I have found more affinity with Kiwis than Australians, for instance. Undoubtedly Auckland is smaller than London, but that makes it easier to get to know, and it does not leave you wanting for much.

However, the best thing about Auckland is that it is a great platform from which to launch into the remainder of New Zealand. And New Zealand is as full of fun and dramatic locations as the ads would have you believe.

Regarding work, the headline values of the transactions are invariably lower than those back in London, but working at Chapman Tripp, I have the new satisfaction that a large proportion of what I do, I go on to read about in the popular press.

How has your work/life balance changed since moving?

The rewards of hard work and success are as readily available here as you are willing to work for them. The difference is that it is considered perfectly reasonable to control your volume of work at any given time, by saying “I have enough at the moment”, and the work will invariably be shared around. In reality you do not say it often, but knowing you can say it makes the difference.

Otherwise, it now takes me 30 minutes to get to work, drinking coffee whilst sat in the sun on a ferry. I have the pleasure of home ownership within my means, and I finally have a little sailing boat. When the days are long enough, I take the family for a walk on the beach after dinner.In short, my work life balance has changed in line with how I hoped it would.

Any regrets? Anything that you miss?

Honesty, I do not miss a lot. Friends and family are the obvious things, especially when there are big occasions, like when we had our daughter. However, my friends from the UK are still my friends and there are so many ways tostay in touch. With some, we now talk and correspond more than we did when we all
lived the London lifestyle.

The flip side of the coin is that we now have a whole load of new friends, even if they talk with a funny accent. Otherwise, I miss the variety of Sunday newspapers, and Walkers Crisps. Online news deals with the first. My trousers fit better due to the second.

What does your typical day look like and what was it like before your move?

I use the ferry to get to work and am generally in at 08:00, although that is earlier than most. The office is fully underway by 08:30.

Office life operates in much the same way as any London office with the following
differences:

· We grab a coffee to catch up, rather than meet for lunch;
· It is normal to take your lunch hour out;
· 17:00 sees staff filtering away, and unless there is an operational reason to work on, fee earners are away between 18:00 and 19:00
· Without turning my head I have a 50km view over the Waitemata harbour, in contrast to the top 10 feet of the London Eye (if I stood on the desk)
· The office is genuinely egalitarian, with all support staff and all grades of fee earner performing equally essential roles in the delivery of advice to clients.

Transactions are transactions and true, they sometimes demand late nights and weekends, but at those times it takes only 12 minutes to get home, and what corporate lawyer would feel fulfilled without the occasional demand for midnight oil?

What do you think are the main benefits of moving to a New Zealand law
firm?

The biggest benefit compared to working in a typical London firm is that due to the modest size of the NZ legal industry, an intermediate is a lot more accountable as an individual practitioner. There is very little chance of hiding behind anonymity. From day 1, you work in terms of developing your own practice, rather than working to develop someone else’s.

Moving to any new country would provide new experiences, but I would say that New Zealand provides such a wealth of outdoor activities and wilderness, that it is the norm for everyone in the firm to get out and exploit that in some way.

There are, obviously, a large number of law firms operating in the New Zealand. What skills or areas of expertise should a lawyer, ideally, be proficient in should they be considering leaving the grey skies behind?

The multifarious nature of New Zealand practice best suits generalists. The size of the legal industry means that whilst you can have your specialties, you have to be flexible, as your clients may call you for a range of reasons, rather than for the same reason they called you last time. However, a large full service firm like Chapman Tripp can deliver a role for most practitioners.

Are there any specific packages or incentives designed for potential candidates?

This will depend very much on the firm concerned. However, Chapman Tripp will provide assistance with visas, by:

 Being flexible with the terms of their job offer, for instance by offering a position with a 3 month lead-in. This enables you to use the points generated by holding a job offer when you first submit your application for permanent residence; and if you are looking to enter NZ using the Talent Work Policy, as an accredited
employer under the Immigration Service policy, they can offer priority processing for a Talent Work Visa application.

When it comes to other assistance, Chapman Tripp offered a lump sum as a relocation allowance, which went a long way to help with the costs associated with the move.

How often do you get to visit friends and family back at home?

Home is where my wife and daughter are. I think that if you view the UK as home, you are destined for discontent and there is a greater chance of feeling the need to move back earlier.

However, I went back after 12 months to execute best man duties, and have a family catch-up. The emerging trend is for friends and family to come out here! For the time being, we intend to use our holidays to explore New Zealand, the Pacific Islands and the remainder of the Southern Hemisphere. We have already travelled extensively in Europe. It is now time to explore this part of the world!

 For more information on working for Chapman Tripp, visit: www.chapmantripp.co.nz

Interview with Vanessa Wozniak vwozniak@lawandmore.co.uk