Following a period as a senior law lecturer, Simon returned to private practice and spent 10 years as a litigation lawyer and partner in two leading City law firms. During the latter period he was a lead partner responsible for the resolution of litigation in the UK and overseas, the magnitude of which posed an existential threat to Lloyds of London.
It was this commercial experience coupled with his teaching skills that led to him becoming sought after to provide training and coaching to other lawyers. As a consequence, Simon left full time practice to focus on training to help lawyers sharpen their advocacy skills. Subsequently, Simon widened his client base and began to provide coaching and training to ‘non-lawyers’, who wished to develop their communication skills. His tailored workshops and coaching sessions have now been used by politicians, PR professionals, and others in the private and public sectors, including the NHS.
Simon is passionate about the role of advocacy and enjoys exploring ways in which he can create or enhance existing training interventions. His popular ‘Argue like a Lawyer’ workshops – based on some of the key points in his book of the same name can be configured to meet the needs of those with ambition to develop their communication skills.
He also enjoys helping and coaching non-native English speakers, and those who lack confidence, resilience, and or suffer from nerves.
When not working he can be found playing football, visiting art galleries, or walking his dog.