Matthew Emms

Title: Senior associate
Division: Employment, pensions and incentives
Location: London

Before joining Herbert Smith in August 2007 I had taken a Law degree at Liverpool University and had worked at Addleshaw Goddard.

Herbert Smith was the right move as it gave me the opportunity to work within a larger team on some of the largest and most complex transactions, such as the proposed acquisition of Sainsbury's by DIC Capital in 2007.  I have found that FTSE 100 transactions stretch you that little bit more and your learning curve gets steeper and longer.

Approximately one third of the deals I've worked on are for international/global companies. In the employee benefits department we have undertaken stand alone advisory work for companies based in Dubai, Russia, the US, France, Germany and India.

Herbert Smith is not all about work. I currently spend an hour a week working at a school at Tower Hamlets teaching children how to play chess. I have also taken part in the London Mazda Triathlon for Breast Cancer research, in what turned out to be an incredibly hard but rewarding experience for a great cause. The firm has a "work hard, play hard" culture with lots of social events organised after work, from theatre nights to pool competitions.

If you are looking for a challenging but rewarding career in the law, Herbert Smith is the perfect place to start your legal training as you will get to work with the best people on the best transactions.