Hammonds' City corporate head on his own opera hell, ski suits and high regard for John Grisham

Why did you become a lawyer? I thought I would like the subject at university, although in fact I found that to be mixed, but I really enjoyed my work placement in a law firm corporate team which got me going again.

Who has been the biggest influence on your career? The lawyer I have admired most was my former senior partner Alan Bottomley – a really great bloke all round and particularly for his great skills with people at all levels.

What's your proudest professional moment? Receiving a very kind letter from a member of my team which made me feel I was not so bad a people manager after all, despite the fact that the person in question was moving to go in-house at the time.

… and worst day on the job? The death, in a mugging that went badly wrong, of one of our young people.

What's your strongest characteristic… and worst trait? Determination and tending to relax when the pressure is off.

What advice would you give to young deal lawyers starting out? Always make sure you understand the background of what you are doing before starting to tackle the documents or negotiation work.

Aside from your own firm, which lawyer do you most admire and why? John Grisham – for his success, and I am sure my wife pays closer attention to what he says!

What's the best part of your job? Definitely the variety. The job involves dealing with and learning about different businesses and getting to know many people, which I enjoy.

What's the toughest ethical/moral dilemma your job has ever presented you with? Perhaps I have been lucky, but all such dilemmas have seemed straightforward to resolve.

What's your strongest card – technical wizardry or smooth client skills (you can only pick one)? Twist my arm then… I'd say client skills.

What's the worst corporate event you've ever attended? A trip to see the Benjamin Britten opera 'Gloriana'. Even the opera buffs struggled with it and it required triple gin and tonics in the break.

Most memorable deal you ever have worked on and why? A transaction that started as a code offer which we restructured as a pre-pack administration to get a faster, more certain outcome for our client. The circumstances allowing this are rare and it would have been easy to plough on with the offer but, as it was, the client got lots of calls asking how they had pulled this off, which pleased them!

What is the daftest bit of corporate jargon you've heard (and did you smirk)? There are so many, and they're usually spoken late at night. "running an idea up the flagpole and seeing if everyone salutes it" is one. No – I did not say it myself, and yes I did smile – it was very late.

What will be the most significant market trend in terms of your practice area over the next 12 months? For many corporate finance lawyers deal flows will remain at relatively low levels, but there will be opportunities to acquire at relatively low values that will help generate activity.

Do you see yourself having a career outside law? I did at one stage and worked in a manufacturing business for a couple of years but I soon discovered the error of my way and returned to law.

What's your favourite item of clothing? My ski suit.

What's your favourite cheese? With the right glass of wine it would be any one of many but, if pushed, my longest standing favourite is Wensleydale!

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