THE LAWYER
23 MARCH 2009
THE WORK-LIFE QUIZ PAUL KITSON
What was your first-ever job?
Cleaning boats on the
Norfolk Broads. My first
self-employed job was as
an ice-cream salesman.
What was your worst
experience as a trainee?
In the conveyancing
department I successfully
completed on a house
purchase, but failed to
complete on the
corresponding sale. For a
couple of days my client
was unexpectedly the
owner of two houses.
Where’s the best place to go if
you want to find out what’s
really going on in the office?
The finance department.
What time do you usually
leave the office?
7pm-ish.
What do you do at weekends?
On Saturdays I ferry
my sons to parties. On
Sundays I coach mini
rugby.
What’s your favourite
restaurant?
San Remo in Barnes.
Unpretentious, quality
Italian cuisine.
If you weren’t a lawyer,
what would you have been?
An architect.
Who’s your hero and why?
Sir Ernest Henry
Shackleton. Exceptionally
courageous, supreme
leadership skills and a truly
remarkable life.
What’s the best thing about
your job?
Recovering compensation
for severely injured
accident victims.
What’s the toughest thing
about your job?
Often the legal process
fails to deliver fair or
adequate compensation.
What’s your biggest
work/career mistake and
what did you learn from it?
‘Overegging the pudding’
on a catastrophic injury
claim and seeing the case
unfold in court. This was
an extremely wounding
experience. I learnt a
lesson the hard way.
What car do you drive?
Embarrassingly, a
Vauxhall Zafira. At least
it’s practical.
What book are you currently
reading?
#WWW.THELAWYER.COM
MANAGING CAREERS 13
Can we Have our Balls
Back, Please? by Julian
Norridge. This is a
fascinating history of how
the British invented sports.
What’s on your iPod player at
the moment?
The Best of Nick Cave
& The Bad Seeds.
What’s your favourite
children’s book?
War Horse by Michael
Morpurgo.
What’s the most exciting
deal/case you’ve worked
on and why?
CV
Name: Paul Kitson
Firm: Russell Jones & Walker
(RJW)
Title: Joint head of personal
injury
Lives: Barnes, London
Education:
1977-80: Hewitt School, Norwich
1981-84: University of Essex
1984-85: College of Law, Chester
Work history:
1985-87: Trainee, Prettys, Ipswich
1987-92: Assistant, RJW
1992-2005: Partner, RJW
2005-present: Joint head of
personal injury, RJW
Taking Wells v Wells [1998]
and Page v Sheerness Steel
[1998] (the multipliers
cases) to the House of
Lords. This case introduced
fairness and precision to
the calculation of future
losses. Until then damages
for future losses were
severely undervalued.
If you were stranded on a
desert island, what two
luxury items would you take?
An iPod and a good book.
What’s the worst partner
conference location you’ve
attended and why?
A December partners’
weekend at the Slough
Marriott. The location
says it all.
What’s the longest you’ve
worked without sleep?
Fortunately, as a personal
injury lawyer, I don’t have to
work through the night, but
occasionally my job does
give me sleepless nights.
If a movie was being made
about your life, which actor
would play you and why?
Tim Roth. Some people
have commented that I
bear a resemblance to him.
Who would you least like
to be stuck in a lift with
and why?
Robert Mugabe. It makes
my blood boil just to hear
his name.
#Send your Work-Life Quiz to
tom.phillips@thelawyer.com
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