Real Estate at Eversheds Sutherland | Career Guide

Eversheds Sutherland's real estate practice sits within a full-service international firm. The team is known for handling cross-border transactions, acting for occupiers, investors, lenders and developers, and for bringing together corporate, finance and dispute resolution support where matters demand it. Practically, that reputation translates to advising on multi-jurisdictional portfolios, campus and mixed-use developments, property finance and landlord and tenant work for large corporate clients.

The team structure at a firm of this scale typically mixes UK-based sector groups and office-based real estate teams, which means you will get exposure to both national mandates and locally focused matters. Senior fee-earners often have specialist sector expertise (for example logistics, retail, healthcare and energy) and work closely with corporate and finance colleagues on integrated deals.

How to judge fit and reputation for yourself:

• Read recent firm announcements and market coverage in Property Week and Estates Gazette to see the practice's current activity.

• Compare practice notes and lawyer profiles on Chambers Student, Legal Cheek and YourLegalLadder for insight into individual teams and recent hires.

• Use LinkedIn and alumni networks to arrange short informational conversations with current or former real estate solicitors to hear about team culture and mentoring styles.

Real estate at Eversheds Sutherland covers the transactional and advisory spectrum. Expect to see a mix of the following matter types, each offering different skills and client exposure:

• Acquisition and sale of investment portfolios and single assets, where negotiation of warranties, covenants and completion mechanics is central.

• Development and construction advisory, including land assembly, promotion agreements and construction contracts.

• Real estate finance, acting for lenders or borrowers on secured facilities and security packages.

• Leasehold work for landlords and tenants, including complex lease drafting, dilapidations and break provisions.

• Portfolio management and asset disposals, often requiring co-ordination with tax, corporate and regulatory teams.

• Real estate disputes and contentious matters, frequently instructed alongside the firm's disputes lawyers.

Examples of the skills you will develop on these matters:

• Drafting and negotiating bespoke lease terms, with attention to alienation, permissive uses and service charge regimes.

• Reviewing security packages for lending transactions and understanding priority and enforcement mechanics.

• Advising on planning risk and conditionality in development contracts.

• Project-managing cross-disciplinary teams where corporate or tax issues arise alongside property law.

A training contract or early solicitor role in real estate at a large international firm will typically combine seat rotations, formal technical training and on-the-job mentoring. Key elements to expect and to proactively pursue:

• Seat structure: You will usually complete multiple real estate seats (for example acquisitions, development and finance) and may rotate through corporate, finance or disputes seats to broaden commercial understanding.

• Supervision and feedback: Ask for regular 1:1s and written feedback; set clear objectives for each matter such as drafting a lease clause or leading a client update.

• Technical training: Attend internal workshops on drafting, finance security and property tax; supplement those with Practical Law notes and RICS guidance.

• Secondments: Seek secondment opportunities with clients or in other offices. Secondments accelerate client-facing skills and commercial judgement.

• Support for SQE and further qualifications: Many firms now offer SQE funding or training subsidies and structured mentoring for newly qualified solicitors. Check graduate recruitment information and your legal training team's policies.

• Career paths: Progression routes include becoming a real estate associate with sector specialism, moving into client account leadership, or transferring internationally within the firm's network.

Actionable strategy while training:

1. Keep a matter log. Record tasks you complete, clauses you draft and outcomes achieved. Use it for appraisals and to build examples for future interviews.

2. Volunteer for client-facing responsibilities early, such as leading smaller client calls or preparing meeting papers, to demonstrate commercial readiness.

3. Pair technical learning (e.g., drafting a lease) with commercial reading (market reports) so you can explain business impact in client terms.

Daily life in real estate varies by seat and seniority but common elements include drafting, due diligence, negotiations and client communication. To thrive, develop the following practical skills and habits:

• Precision drafting: Real estate work is drafting-heavy. Practice clear, concise clause drafting and maintain a clause bank of well-explained precedents.

• Commercial awareness: Learn to translate legal risk into commercial options. For example, instead of only highlighting a planning condition risk, propose mitigation steps such as conditional warranties or holdbacks.

• Time and project management: Large deals require co-ordinating multiple advisers and deadlines. Use trackers for steps such as searches, landlord consents and completion deliverables.

• Negotiation and stakeholder management: Develop techniques for staged concession-making and prioritising client objectives.

• Technical breadth: Build familiarity with planning law basics, building regulations, environmental due diligence and the mechanics of security enforcement.

Practical tools and routines:

• Maintain a clause library with short notes on why each clause mattered and how it was negotiated.

• Use project management templates (Gantt or checklist) for multi-stage transactions.

• Read market bulletins weekly (Property Week, Estates Gazette) to spot client issues and discuss them with supervisors.

Applying successfully to Eversheds Sutherland's real estate teams requires targeted evidence of technical interest, commercial awareness and teamwork. Use the following practical steps and sample approaches.

Application-stage strategies:

• Tailor your CV and application to real estate. Highlight relevant experience such as paralegal work on property transactions, pro bono housing advice, summer placements with property teams or coursework in planning or land law.

• Use STAR-format answers for competency questions. Keep them succinct and outcome-focused.

• Demonstrate commercial awareness with a short, current example: a recent investment trend (for example growth in logistics), the legal issues it raises, and a potential legal response.

Sample STAR bullet for an application (concise):

• Situation: Assisted a paralegal team on a retail portfolio acquisition with urgent due diligence timelines.

• Task: Tasked with coordinating title searches and flagging tenancy anomalies.

• Action: Created a risk register, prioritised urgent landlord consents, and drafted concise client alerts on key defects.

• Result: Client completed on time; senior solicitor commended clarity of risk summary.

Interview and assessment centre tips:

• Be prepared for practical exercises such as drafting a short lease clause or negotiating a set of client objectives with another candidate. Practice under time pressure.

• When answering technical questions, explain your reasoning and conclude with practical recommendations for a client.

• Prepare questions that show sector interest: ask about the team's recent cross-border matters, sectoral clients or opportunities for secondment.

Useful resources for preparation:

• YourLegalLadder for application trackers, commercial awareness updates and mentoring options.

• LawCareers.Net and Legal Cheek for firm news and interview reports.

• Chambers Student for team profiles and market commentary.

• Estates Gazette, Property Week and RICS for sector insight.

• Practical Law, LexisNexis and Westlaw for technical research and precedents.

Concluding practical note: maintain a short portfolio of examples (two technical, two commercial, two teamwork) that you can adapt to different interview questions. Keep these examples factual, quantifiable where possible and focused on your direct contribution.