From my early days at Freshfields, I saw it was a truly international law firm - I went on training courses in the UK and worked closely with my colleagues in London and across Europe.
I joined the Madrid office in 1996 when it was still small and relatively new. It was yet to split into separate practice groups. As the firm grew, I specialised in employment law. Last year, I became a partner - an ambition I've held since I started.
If you walk around our offices, you'll notice we have certain traits in common: we're all team players and highly professional. But what really makes it interesting are the differences: people are from all different backgrounds and nationalities and many different cities. Mixing with this diverse range of people is a learning experience in itself. When I spent time on secondment in London, I gained knowledge of the law in another jurisdiction - of course - but the cultural understanding I gained added a new depth to my legal thinking.
When you're working with clients, you have to understand the cultural and commercial context in which they operate. We don't tell our clients what they can and can't do - instead we work together to help them achieve their goals. We always think about the bigger picture and how our decisions affect every part of their business, not just the area we are dealing with. And above all we concentrate on giving people practical advice, not a 60-page answer they won't use.
That's what sets Freshfields apart. That ability to really put yourself in your client's shoes. It's rarer than you might think.
