Orla Wrigley, Deputy Head of Development at LPL, qualified as a solicitor in 2003 before joining LPL in September 2023.
Orla supports the entire team, from senior staff members right though to trainees. She particularly enjoys how her role allows her to work closely with trainees, and those early on in their career – drawing on her own experience of going through a training contract to shape the kind of supportive, progressive environment she wishes had existed when she was starting out.
Here Orla shares her own route into conveyancing and what drives her passion for developing the next generation of lawyers.
Q. Conveyancing wasn’t your original plan – how did you end up in the industry?
I wasn’t originally drawn to conveyancing at all. After my law degree I did a Master’s in Criminology and Criminal justice – my initial interest was in becoming a criminal practitioner. But I did conveyancing as one of my seats during my training contract, and I found I had a flair for it. What’s kept me here is that conveyancing is ever evolving – no two transactions are the same. I love the collaboration between clients, lenders, and referrers, working as a team. The landscape has changed enormously since I qualified in 2003, and that definitely keeps things exciting and fresh.
Q. What do you find most rewarding about working with trainees?
The most rewarding part is remembering that I started as a trainee myself. I had a two-year training contract before I qualified, albeit 22 years ago, so I always remember that everyone has a starting point, and that everyone learns at a different pace. Making sure that learning is supportive is really important to me.
But the great reward is seeing those training steps pay off – watching people progress in their careers, arriving at a point where they’re making their own decisions, developing both their technical ability and their soft skills. Being able to deal confidently with clients, referrers, and estate agents – becoming a well-rounded lawyer. That’s what it’s all about.
Q. How do you approach your own style as a trainer?
Approachability is very, very important to me. I think it’s really important to be clear in my communication back to the people I train, and making sure my feedback is constructive.
Q. What excites you about where training and development at LPL is heading?
We are continuing to evolve, and that genuinely excites me. I started here in September 2023, so as of this September I’ll have been here three years, and even within that time the training department has grown and expanded.
Looking ahead, it’s about how we continue to develop what we offer – adapting training materials, keeping on top of updates in the law, and making sure we’re always forward thinking and future focused.
Thinking about your training contract?
At LPL, you’ll have the support of people like Orla from day one. Find out what a future in conveyancing at LPL could look like for you.
Read more real-life stories from across the business, including how one colleague progressed from Conveyancing Assistant to Trainee Solicitor and how Laila Abbas advanced from Conveyancing Assistant to Deputy Head of Conveyancing.
