Young and assistant attorney in Bruun & Hjejle: "The working conditions are providing security and the courage to perform"

Morten Lundby Pedersen joined Bruun & Hjejle in 2017 when he was a year and a half into his studies. He has worked his way up from being a student assistant to his current position as an assistant attorney in the Real Estate department, where he has worked since joining the firm. 

Meeting a passionate and committed external lecturer made Morten take an interest in Bruun & Hjejle. 

He was invited to a job interview shortly after that, and the decisive factor for Morten was the genuine interest he was shown by the people he met at the interview. They were interested in who was a person and where he would fit in based on his skills and background. 

“As the grandchild of a shopkeeper, I have always been inspired by commerce and trade, which has naturally evolved into an interest in real estate. As a result of the personal focus at the job interview, I landed in the right place in the firm – right from the beginning when I was taken on as a student,” Morten explains. 

The 27-year-old assistant attorney has been employed with Bruun & Hjejle for almost five years. He completed his law studies in 2021 and has now worked as an assistant attorney for six months. He enjoys the assignments, the responsibility and the challenges that come with the title. 

Driven by team spirit

Some may experience the transition from student assistant to assistant attorney as drastic. However, for Morten – due to his experience and knowledge of the firm – the transition was not so drastic. 

Also, Bruun & Hjejle is highly committed to creating a healthy and community-based foundation for new assistant attorneys and commercial law associates. 

He emphasises, among other things, the solidarity among the new assistant attorneys and commercial law associates who all work towards the same goal. 

“I am strongly driven by our team spirit. As a new assistant attorney or commercial law associate, you need to first calibrate and build up confidence, but you quickly learn how extremely skilled your colleagues are and how willing they are to share their knowledge. The solidarity among the new assistant attorneys and commercial law associates also provides room for professional development and social interaction that helps you move forward,” says Morten. 

The ‘team before ego’ philosophy is reflected in the day-to-day collaborative interaction among assistant attorneys, commercial law associates and their other colleagues across all levels of seniority, including the partners.

“Assistant attorneys and commercial law associates are taken good care of, and in many ways we feel like apprentices among countless talented colleagues who are all forthcoming and willing to share their knowledge and experience,” he explains.

Courage to change

Morten feels part of a modern and not least courageous law firm that is not afraid to take the lead when it comes to change and development.  

“I am in a profession that’s probably regarded by some as fairly conservative and locked in tradition, but assistant attorneys and commercial law associates are encouraged to be curious and view structures and processes critically. Knowing that we can contribute to developing the firm gives us confidence – and, more importantly, I feel that my opinion matters,” he says. 

Morten looks forward to embarking on the Orbit programme in 2022. Orbit is Bruun & Hjejle’s brand new training programme, which is focused on both professional and personal development. 

According to Morten, the assistant attorney programme at Bruun & Hjejle promotes a steep learning curve built on trust, security and responsibility. 

“The energy and focus invested in giving assistant attorneys and commercial law associates a thorough basic training that prepares them for tackling new challenges and manoeuvring in a large law firm are invaluable,” Morten concludes. 

See the article on Morten and many more articles in Bruun & Hjejle’s annual report 2021 here (in Danish).