David Ford WS is a Senior Associate in Brodies’ Disputes Resolution and Risk Team and a Writer to the Signet.
What or who encouraged you to consider law as a career?
As the first lawyer in the family, a career in law was a new path to tread. Growing up I had always been inquisitive and would want to understand why something was the case. That naturally led to many debates and arguments around the dinner table. As the time came to apply for University I could have followed the immediate family and pursued further studies in the sciences. It was my dad that suggested that I might find law an interesting degree to pursue and, eager to explore something different, I was delighted to be accepted by Edinburgh Law School.
I didn’t start Law School with my heart set on pursuing a career in law. One of the great attractions of the degree was that it would serve as a useful foundation for a variety of possible careers. That swiftly changed. Quickly becoming involved with the Law School’s mooting society, I realised that I had a real interest in both the law, and in applying it to try and solve whichever problem you were presented with – of course, the aim always being to persuade a decision maker that any argument should be resolved in favour of whichever side I was on.
Through this, I quickly developed a keen interest in the law and its application, and was grateful to the many members of the profession (both solicitors and advocates) who generously took time out of their busy days to spend time with students, passing on pearls of wisdom and letting me see law at the sharp end. After finishing my law degree, I was fortunate to train at Brodies LLP (where I still work today). Finally making it into practice, I thankfully found that I enjoyed law in the real world as much as I had during my studies. Brodies was a fantastic place to train, with lots of opportunity to become involved in significant complex litigations from an early stage. I was also lucky enough to spend six months on secondment at the Scottish Government Legal Directorate in its Litigation Division.
You are a Solicitor Advocate, specialising in real estate litigation, and ranked as a leading Associate for Property Litigation by Legal 500. Please tell us about your career and highlights, to date.
I was fortunate to find that my interest in litigation - and appearing in court – aligned closely with Brodies’ aims. As a result, I was swiftly put on a career path towards qualification as a solicitor advocate, which I achieved in 2022.
To build up to this milestone, my trainee seats had been in real estate litigation, on secondment to the Scottish Government Legal Directorate, and then working closely with the solicitor advocates at Brodies, assisting with litigation and conducting appearances in the Sheriff Courts. After qualifying into the real estate litigation team, I’ve continued to focus on that area whilst also working with colleagues across Brodies’ Disputes Resolution and Risk Team.
In terms of career highlights, it’s very easy to fall back on the “big cases” which you have been involved in and in which a successful outcome was achieved. I have been very lucky to have been involved as a solicitor – and latterly as a solicitor advocate – in significant litigations in the Scottish Courts on interesting points of law.
The highlight of my career has undoubtedly been the people with which I have been able to do this – the clients, my colleagues, the advocates with whom I have worked, and the wider professional teams that all contribute to the best possible outcome.
You were a WS Society Summer Scholar and now a Council member. How did you first come to hear about the WS Society and what were your first impressions?
I had a passing awareness of the WS Society but must confess it wasn’t something I knew a great deal about.
Between my third and fourth years of University I had secured a summer placement with Brodies for six weeks. That was when I saw the advert for the WS Summer Scholar Scheme (then the Summer Internship). It looked like an interesting opportunity and was something a bit different from the usual summer placement schemes working within a firm of solicitors.
Having been successful with my application, on arrival one cannot help but be in awe of the Society’s library and wider building, which at that time had recently been redecorated. As well as opportunities to carry out legal research, and to prepare a presentation on the potential impact of the Taylor Review on the recovery of costs in commercial litigation, James Hamilton, the Society’s Research Principal, very generously gave up his time to show us some of the Society’s treasures and to learn more about its history. Highlights of that included the chance to view the Society’s 19th century graffiti, as well as unearthing many historic items that had been locked in deed boxes for decades.
The history of the Society, and the fascinating treasures within its archives, are something that have greatly interested me since I first became involved. I would encourage anyone with an interest in Scottish history, or indeed history more generally, to spend time in the library. There’s something of interest almost everywhere you look.
In what way has the WS Society played a role in your career?
After the Summer Internship, I joined the Society as a student member. The University’s Law Library filling up (not always with Law Students!) the Signet Library soon became the base for my own studies.
Becoming a Writer in 2022, the WS Society has since played a significant role in my appreciation of the profession as a whole. Having first become involved as a student, it was an excellent way to open the door to the wider profession, to meet solicitors from a variety of backgrounds and to hear about their experience and the issues of the day that are of interest to them.
Through the Society I have also attended various events and conferences, all of which have given me a chance to converse with fellow members of the profession in a more informal setting. The Society is also an invaluable research resource – especially when a quiet spot is needed before or after a court hearing, or some research is required.
What would you say to any lawyer considering WS membership?
The WS Society has a wonderfully rich history, which it maintains to this day.
It is an inspiring venue in which to meet and exchange ideas, to learn, and to study. It is a place in which solicitors from a wide variety of firms, backgrounds and practices can meet, where there is a community of comradery, respect and an opportunity to engage with each other that typically doesn’t arise in day-to-day practice. Throughout the year there are a variety of events that will give you the opportunity to engage with fellow members of the profession – be that at conferences forming part of the Society’s CPD programme, through the various Special Interest Groups, at various ad hoc events that take place throughout the year (always on an interesting topic) and at what I would argue is the highlight of the year for the Society – its Annual Dinner. Whenever you arrive you can always expect a warm welcome and a good cup of coffee!