Students

Pathways into Financial Services and Regulatory Law

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Tuesday, 25th March from 6pm – non-members welcome

On behalf of the Financial Services Lawyers Association (FSLA) Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, we would like to invite you to attend the “Pathways into Financial Services and Regulatory Law” panel discussion and networking on Tuesday, 25th March, starting at 6pm.

The event will be hosted at the City of London Law School with a panel discussion chaired by Saima Hanif KC of 3 Verulam Buildings, a leading financial services silk. The event will feature panellists with a range of experiences, including:

  • Aleja Isip – Legal Counsel at the Financial Ombudsman Service. Aleja currently works for the Financial Ombudsman Service, within the Legal and Jurisdiction team. Aleja previously worked as a Lawyer at the Financial Conduct Authority, in its Enforcement and Market Oversight division. Admitted as a solicitor in 2022, Aleja was one of the first cohort to qualify via the SQE route. Aleja has had various roles in private practice and in-house where she gained Qualifying Work Experience, which included areas of professional discipline, healthcare, and insurance.
  • Thomas Cave – Solicitor Apprentice at CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang (second year). Tom is currently working within the Financial Services Litigation team. After completing A-levels at a state school in North Yorkshire, Tom opted for a gap year, during which he discovered the solicitor apprenticeship route as an alternative to traditional university education. This decision has allowed Tom to gain invaluable hands-on experience in the legal field while continuing his studies and progressing towards qualification.
  • Holly Girven – Barrister at Farrar’s Building. Holly is a barrister specialising in regulatory and personal injury law at Farrar’s Building. She is a manual wheelchair user and has first-hand experience of the importance of improving access to the legal profession for disabled people. She has previously spoken on Radio 4’s Law in Action and various podcasts about her experiences as a disabled barrister.
  • Dr Rohan Clarke Pupil Barrister at CANDEY. Rohan is a former Jamaican diplomat who started his pupillage in September 2024. During his pupillage, he has undertaken a variety of work in sanctions advisory, insolvency and offshore and general commercial litigation. In addition to being a former diplomat, Rohan is an international consultant on illicit finance, a Fellow at Yale University’s Global Justice Program and a member of the organising Secretariat of the Cambridge International Symposium on Economic Crime.

During the panel discussion, our speakers will discuss their experiences and journeys into financial services and regulatory law. There will be ample time for questions at the end.

Please register to ensure that you have a space – we are expecting this event to be extremely popular, please contact events@fsla.org.uk if you would like to attend.

Following the panel discussion, we invite you to join us for a networking session with refreshments.

Registration will open at 6pm, with the panel starting at 6.30pm, followed by networking drinks from 8pm to 9pm.

Venue: City of London Law School, Faculty of Law, Northampton Square, Sebastian Street, London EC1V OHB

Due to the nature of the event, we are delighted to be able to invite non-members and members alike.

FSLA membership is free for students – for more details please email fslalondon@gmail.com.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Winners of the FSLA Essay Competition 2024

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We are delighted to announce the winners of the FSLA Essay Competition 2024.  The title for this year’s competition was: “With the rise of so-called “finfluencers”, how can the FCA and its international counterparts effectively protect younger consumers from high-risk investments such as cryptoassets and contracts for difference?

Congratulations to Daniel Feltham, our first placed essayist and winner of the Chris Stallard Memorial Prize, and to second-placed Sessi Hundeyin and third-placed Charlie Lam.

We are grateful to our esteemed judging panel, (Professor Eva Lomnicka KC (hon), Travers Smith partner Phil Bartram, and Tracey McDermott, CBE (Group Head of Conduct, Financial Crime and Compliance at Standard Chartered)), who were impressed with the standard of entries across the board. 

FSLA is grateful to all of the individuals who entered their work.

The top three essays are available to read at the link below, with thanks to our winners who allowed us to share them.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Z2V-v7H3PVTovBg57Ee2jBNYZz4tgO8-?usp=sharing

FSLA Essay Competition 2024

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The Financial Services Lawyers Association is pleased to announce its annual essay competition.

The title for this year’s competition is: “With the rise of so-called “finfluencers”, how can the FCA and its international counterparts effectively protect younger consumers from high-risk investments such as cryptoassets and contracts for difference?”

The purpose of the essay competition is to provide students, trainees, and pupil barristers with the opportunity to apply their studies to issues that are of particular relevance to the financial services industry and wider society.

Essays should be no longer than 1,500 words, and the deadline for entries is midnight on Friday 11 October 2024.

Prizes

The Chris Stallard Memorial (First) Prize: £1,500 and a legal internship at the FCA Second Prize: £750 Third prize: £500

We hope to present the prizes at FSLA’s winter social event.  In any case, winners will be notified by the end of 2024.

There is no requirement that entrants be FSLA members; however, free membership is offered to all students.  Please email fslalondon@gmail.com for further details. The full rules for the competition, including submission details and terms applying to the prizes, can be found here.

What can ED&I deliver for financial services?

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A FSLA panel discussion at Travers Smith LLP on Thursday 23 May 2024 at 6:30pm

On behalf of the Financial Services Lawyers Association (FSLA), we invite you to attend a panel event which seeks to examine the impact that equality, diversity and inclusion (ED&I) initiatives can have on financial services, and the advisors which service the sector.

We are grateful to the experts who will contribute to the event, including:

Sophie Hulm – CEO, Progress Together 

Progress Together is a not-for-profit membership body which aims to create equity of progression for individuals in the financial services sector, levelling the playing field and ensuring equal access to senior level roles for all, regardless of socio-economic background.

Sarah Minor-Massy – Director – Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, PwC

Sarah Minor-Massy is a trained behavioural scientist with 15+ years of management consulting experience. Sarah helps clients to refine their understanding of their current DE&I challenges, and develop DE&I strategies that are aligned with overall business strategy. Sarah has extensive experience in inclusive leadership development, working with leaders to deepen their understanding of DE&I, connect to the topic on a personal level, increase their confidence and competence to engage with stakeholders, and role model inclusion throughout their organisation.

Rupert Allen – Barrister, Fountain Court

Rupert has a broad commercial and civil practice, and frequently acts for and against regulators in professional disciplinary and regulatory investigations (particularly in relation to solicitors, accountants and matters concerning financial services), including where there are allegations of discrimination and/or offensive communications.    

Natalie Lewis – Partner, Travers Smith LLP

Natalie leads the Fintech, Market Infrastructure and Payments Group at Travers Smith, and is the executive sponsor of the firm’s Gender Balance Group.

Michael Raymond – Partner, Travers Smith LLP

Michael is a partner in the Financial Services and Markets Group at Travers Smith, and an active member of the firm’s LGBTQ+ Group.

A panel discussion will be followed by networking drinks and is open to any lawyers with an interest in financial services and/or ED&I within financial services (including students, private practice lawyers and in-house lawyers).  The event is not restricted to FSLA members.

The event will be hosted by Travers Smith at their offices at 10 Snow Hill, London EC1A 2AL.

The event will start at 6pm and the panel discussion will start at 6:30pm.

You can register to attend at this link.

If you have any queries or special requirements, please contact us at events@fsla.org.uk

We look forward to seeing you on 23 May 2024.

FSLA – Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Working Group

Essay Competition 2023: Winners

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Winners of the FSLA Essay Competition 2023

We are delighted to announce the winners of the FSLA Essay Competition 2023.  The title was: “Can the risks and opportunities of AI in financial services be managed by fine-tuning existing regulation, or is a new approach required?“ 

Congratulations to Ella Higgs-Sharrock, our first placed essayist and winner of the Chris Stallard Memorial Prize.  Ella will receive £1,500 and a legal internship with the FCA.

Many congratulations also to second placed Francesca Jackson (winning £750), and third placed Hubert Florianczyk (winning £500).

We are grateful to our esteemed judging panel, (Professor Eva Lomnicka KC (hon), recently retired Upper Tribunal Judge Tim Herrington, and Tracey McDermott, CBE (Group Head of Conduct, Financial Crime and Compliance at Standard Chartered)), who were impressed with the standard of entries across the board. 

FSLA is grateful to all of the individuals who entered their work.

The top three essays are available to read at the links below, with thanks to our winners who allowed us to share them.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/12Ufb8Kzx9238I8GclbEBwDDUb0_dphTO?usp=drive_link

FSLA Essay Competition 2023

By | Junior Lawyers, Students | No Comments

The Financial Services Lawyers Association is pleased to announce its annual essay competition.

The title for this year’s competition is: “Can the risks and opportunities of AI in financial services be managed by fine-tuning existing regulation, or is a new approach required?

The purpose of the essay competition is to provide students, trainees, and pupil barristers with the opportunity to apply their studies to issues that are of particular relevance to the financial services industry and wider society. 

Essays should be no longer than 1,500 words, and the deadline for entries is midnight on Friday 6 October 2023.

Prizes

The Chris Stallard Memorial (First) Prize: £1,500 and a legal internship at the FCA

Second Prize: £750

Third prize: £500

We hope to present the prizes at FSLA’s winter social event.  In any case, winners will be notified by the end of 2023.

There is no requirement that entrants be FSLA members; however, free membership is offered to all students.  Please email fslalondon@gmail.com for further details.

The full rules for the competition, including submission details, can be found here.

Financial services: How can it deliver on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

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A FSLA panel discussion at Norton Rose Fulbright on Wednesday 3 May 2023 at 6:30pm

On behalf of the Financial Services Lawyers Association (FSLA), we invite you to attend a panel event which seeks to examine the role of, and challenges faced by, financial services firms and practitioners in the Equality, Diversity & Inclusion space.

The event panel will include:

  • Elise Sabran (Chair) (UK Head of Governance and Culture & Conduct, Societe Generale)
  • Sharon Blackman OBE (Managing Director & General Counsel, EMEA Head of FX & Local Markets Legal, Citi)
  • Peter Curtis-Valino (Manager, Governance and Cross-Cutting Standards team, FCA)
  • Anna Jernova (Senior Policy Manager Governance, Remuneration & Controls team, PRA)
  • Daniel Winterfeldt MBE KC (Managing Director and General Counsel for EMEA and Asia, Jefferies)
  • Khasruz Zaman (former Global Head of M&A Legal, Barclays Bank and partner of Simmons & Simmons, now Secondary School Maths teacher)

The discussion will be followed by networking drinks and is open to any lawyers with an interest in financial services and Equality, Diversity & Inclusion within financial services (including students, private practice lawyers and in-house lawyers).

The event will be hosted at Norton Rose Fulbright in their Terrace Suite, 3 More London Pl, London SE1 2AQ.

You can register to attend the event at the link below. Please do not register again if you have registered before.

Registration will be open from 6pm and the panel discussion will start at 6:30pm.

If you have any queries or special requirements, please contact us at events@fsla.org.uk

We look forward to seeing you on 3 May 2023.

FSLA – Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Sub-Committee

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FSLA Essay Competition 2022

By | Junior Lawyers, Students | No Comments

The competition is now closed. Thank you everyone for your entries.

The Financial Services Lawyers Association is pleased to announce its annual essay competition.

The title for this year’s competition is as follows:

Laundromat, police state or somewhere in between: has the correct balance been struck between anti-money laundering, anti-fraud, and anti-corruption aims on the one hand and the benefits of free enterprise and a global financial market on the other?
If not, explain one legislative or regulatory change which could make a significant difference.

The purpose of the essay is to provide students with the opportunity to apply their studies to issues that are of particular relevance to the financial services industry and wider society.

Essays should be no longer than 1,500 words. The full competitions rules can be found on the FSLA website through the link below.

Please submit your essay by Friday 15 July 2022 to essay@fsla.org.uk.

Prizes will be presented at a reception hosted on a date to be confirmed.

The Chris Stallard Memorial Prize (first prize) is £1,500 and an internship with the FCA.

The runner up prize is £750. Third prize is £500.

Entrants are not required to be FSLA members, though free membership is offered to all law students.

FSLA Essay Competition 2022 Rules

FSLA Junior Lawyers Training: Recording of Introduction to Market Abuse session with Herbert Smith Freehills

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On Tuesday 19 April 2022 the Financial Services Lawyers Association and Herbert Smith Freehills invited our junior members to attend a training session on market abuse led by FSLA Advisory Board member and HSF Partner Chris Ninan.

The session provided an overview of the civil and criminal market abuse regime in the UK and do a deeper dive into some of the key concepts, and will finish with a look at the regulators’ enforcement action in this area.

The event was very informative and would be of great interest to our junior members who were unable to attend.

Registered FSLA members can view the recording of the session below. If you wish to become a member or need to confirm your username, please contact secretary@fsla.org.uk.

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FSLA Junior Lawyers: Introduction to Market Abuse – training session with Herbert Smith Freehills and junior networking

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A FSLA Juniors Lawyers’ training session and networking drinks at 6:30pm at Herbert Smith Freehills and online on Tuesday 19th April 2022

On behalf of the Financial Services Lawyers Association (FSLA) and Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF), we invite our junior members (students and those with less than 5 years’ post-qualification experience) to attend an introductory training session on market abuse conducted by Chris Ninan, Natasha Stevens, and Alexandra Fitzgerald from HSF.

The session will provide an overview of the civil and criminal market abuse regime in the UK and do a deeper dive into some of the key concepts, and will finish with a look at the regulators’ enforcement action in this area.

The presentation will be followed by drinks and canapés, giving our junior members the chance to re-connect in an informal and relaxed setting.

The event will take place at HSF’s offices (Exchange House, Primrose Street, EC2A 2EG) on Tuesday 19 April. Registration will be open from 6pm and the presentation will start at 6:30pm, followed by drinks at 7:30pm. The presentation will also be available to view live online – please see the below RSVP options.

If you wish to attend, whether in-person or virtually, please register via the applicable link below. If you select virtual attendance, you will be sent a link a few days beforehand. Please provide your RSVP for in-person attendance by Monday 11 April. If you have any queries or special requirements, please contact us at events@fsla.org.uk.

We look forward to seeing you on 19 April.

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