Heather Gaffney, who is a Partner and Head of Residential Property gives us some insight into a day in her life. As legal finance and management professionals one of the high-risk areas of law is conveyancing and it’s great therefore, to get some insight into our colleagues who are practising the law. 
Lewis Denley, an ILFM member firm, explains about our membership:
‘Membership to the ILFM is invaluable to Lewis Denley, we use it to keep up to date with relevant industry topics, expert advice articles and understanding more how to look after the wellbeing and mental health of our team. In addition, being part of the ILFM community and ensuring our COFA and legal finance team receive the most up to date resources and training is essential. It’s a great resource and focuses on what’s important in the legal provision for our people and our finance team.’
A typical day from start to finish – in a law firm
My day usually starts with my toddler, Noah, waking me earlier than I would like, followed by a very large coffee!
After dropping Noah to my mum (who is paramount in supporting me to juggle motherhood and work) or to nursery, I usually come to the office (working from home one day a week) and check in with my team to ensure they are feeling supported.
As well as managing the team I have my own caseload of clients and property transactions, so I spend my morning working on my task list to ensure that matters are being progressed, along with the support of a paralegal. I try to dedicate my afternoons to management tasks, such as forecasting billing and updating company policies, or assisting team members with challenging transactions.
When working from home on a Thursday I try to spend less time on my day-to-day cases and more time on other elements of my role, as well as taking part in webinars or other developmental courses to keep my knowledge up to date, including ILFM training events.
I always try to make sure I take a lunch break to get away from my desk and try to finish work by 6pm to ensure I can spend time with Noah before he goes to bed, sometimes logging on again in the evening.
Career start and experience background – residential lawyer
I qualified as a solicitor in March 2014 and moved to a firm in Guildford, where I became a team leader and then a director. I joined Lewis Denley as a partner and Head of Residential Conveyancing in July 2018.
My specialism lies in all areas of buying and selling properties, working with individual clients and companies on leasehold and freehold transactions, as well as lease extensions, transfers of equity and remortgages.
Local shared ownership companies is an area I have been working on too, and have been appointed to their board of preferred conveyancers for them to recommend to buyers purchasing a share of a property.
Becoming a Partner at Lewis Denley
I previously worked with Natasha Lewis, Managing Partner at Lewis Denley, previously. When she set up Lewis Denley in 2017 she introduced me to Colin Secomb (co-owner), and as they were looking for someone they could trust to help build the residential property team, I fitted that bill and was offered the role of head of department and partner.
My priorities throughout the day in residential property law
It’s extremely important to be organised within my role as a conveyancer, as well as in my role as head of department.
There can often be several of my own matters that need prioritising, as well as the needs of the company and my team. I work well with a task list, knowing what I must achieve each day and which things need to happen first. My priorities have had to change slightly since having Noah, as I now need to make sure I am out of the office on time.
Looking after my team
Looking after my team and knowing that they feel supported is a key part of my role.
My team consists of lawyers with different levels of experience, as well as support staff who are just starting out in their legal career. It is important that they feel supported and that they constantly grow in knowledge and confidence – having an excellent team allows me to focus on other areas of my diverse role as well as helping to maintain our excellent customer service levels.
As well as being available for them to speak to every day, I also have regular catch ups and 1-2-1s with all team members to ensure they are progressing and are happy. As a firm we also offer ‘personal development plans’ so we know where team members plan to be in 1-5 years’ time and can help them to achieve this.
My greatest achievements as a residential property law
To name but a few, at this present time I would say that these are my greatest achievements in my career so far:
- Building the residential property department, particularly during challenging times such as Covid and the current cost of living crisis,
- Becoming a partner in my 20s, and
- Juggling motherhood and a successful career
Relaxation and down time
Spending time with my friends and family helps me to switch off from work. I also use yoga and read a lot of books to wind down – it’s really important to me to put my health and well-being first.
My dog, Murphy, also helps me get fresh air every day!
The Institute of Legal Finance & Management is grateful to all our members and we appreciate their stories that they share with us, our members and wider audience! If you would like to write a piece for us as a member, please contact our Head of Communications, Elaine Pasini via her email which is HERE
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