Wards welcomes new trainees across the firm

At the start of the new academic year, Wards has welcomed four new trainees into the firm. They will be learning with different departments in the firm, having seats across multiple areas of law.

Gabriella Shinwell will start her first seat with the Wills and Probate team, based in Portishead and being supervised by Laura Jakeways.

Grace Riley will start her first seat with the Wills and Probate team, based in central Bristol and being supervised by Andrew Wareham.

Noor Khashaba will start her first seat with the Crime team, based in central Bristol and being supervised by Mike Gupwell.

Izabela Jahn will start her first seat with the Conveyancing team, based in Henleaze and being supervised by Rebecca Stuart.

To get to know them, we asked them a few icebreakers…

What’s your favourite thing to do when you’re not at work?

Grace: My favourite thing to do when I’m not at work is to spend time with my friends, family, and my dog, Sully!

Gabriella: In my spare time, I love meeting my friends and family and having a little chinwag. The people I surround myself with mean so much to me and love spending as much time with them as possible! Apart from the people I already have in my life, I love meeting new people, this extends into my passion about travelling and seeing new places and learning about different cultures!

Izabela: Outside of the office, my favourite thing to do is spend quality time at home with my family and our dogs.  Whenever the nice weather rolls around, you can usually find me outdoors tending to my garden, where I grow a variety of fruit and vegetables which I then use in homemade recipes.

Noor: When I am not working, I love spending time with friends and family trying out new restaurants and cafes around Bristol. I love to travel and explore new countries.

What are you most excited for working at Wards?

Grace: I’m most excited to experience all the different departments and learn all the different skills and meet all the teams.

Gabriella: The people! Staff and clients! Everyone I have met so far at Wards have been very welcoming, two days in, and I already feel comfortable. I am eager to develop my learning through practise and working with the Wards team.

Izabela: Joining Wards is an incredible milestone, and I am most excited to work alongside such an experienced team of professionals while gaining exposure across a variety of different departments.  I can’t wait to dive into practical, hands-on casework, build meaningful relationships with clients, and contribute to the fantastic work being done here at the firm.

Noor: I am very excited to start my training contract at Wards, to put the studying behind and begin learning from different teams and supervisors to put everything I have learned into practice.  I ‘m particularly looking forward to developing my skills and becoming a part of the Wards team.

A little something about yourself.

Grace: A little something about myself is that I love to go on hikes with my friends and I love an iced coffee!

Gabriella: I Irish danced for 7 years when I was younger. It is a great skill to whip out and my go to party trick! I love to dance and currently, I am learning salsa after having learnt it in Cali, Colombia!

Izabela: I have always been a detail-orientated person who is naturally curious about how things work, people’s situations and life experiences.  That natural curiosity, paired with wanting to help others navigate life’s challenges, is what initially drew me to a career in law.

Noor: I studied law at the University of Bristol. I am originally Egyptian but grew up in Canada, so I always love meeting people from different background. I can speak Arabic and French but I am a bit out of practice.