The A&O Shearman partner also talks transitioning from a full-service firm to something of a startup
Jackson Allen entered the legal profession because of his liking for a good argument – but that’s not why he stays. The Perth-based energy expert has worked across Asia, Africa and Australia on oil and gas projects; in May, he was promoted to partner at A&O Shearman, working with the firm’s ENRI team.
In the first part of this June interview, Allen discusses the global nature of the energy sector and looks back on what it was like to transition from a large firm to what he says was a start-up in some ways.
What made you choose a career in law, and what's your favourite part of the job?
Very cliché, but I got into law because I like to argue – but that is not why I have stayed in law! A lot of my work is in project development, and I really enjoy putting all the pieces of the puzzle together to make the project work legally (and consider how that fits into the other commercial and operational puzzles that need to be solved).
This allows me the opportunity to get involved in my other favourite part of the job – meeting and collaborating with a really wide range of people. By this, I mean people from many different places - energy really is a global sector and I’m lucky that I have been able to travel and work on projects all over the world - but also a variety of roles - working on large projects means exposure to finance, commercial, operations and technical experts.
What in your opinion has been the most memorable event of your career to date?
Moving to (what was then known as) Allen & Overy soon after it established in Australia. It was quite the shock to go from a large, full-service firm to what was, in some ways, a start-up [back in 2010]. Back then we had no Australian precedents and were focused on particular specialist areas - we didn’t even have a disputes team. Now, as we celebrate our 15th year in the Australian market, it is incredible to look back on where we've come from.
What has been your proudest accomplishment in the last year or so?
It would be hard to say something other than being promoted to partner as my proudest recent accomplishment, as it has taken the culmination of so many things (both inside and outside of work) to achieve.
One piece of advice that really helped me to get there is to be genuinely open to all feedback – you don’t have to action (or even agree) with all of it, but you need to be thankful for it and consider it. It’s natural that we often take unsolicited (or even solicited) advice as criticism – you need to get out of that mindset to really improve and succeed.
If you could relive one day in your life, which day would it be and why?
I think it would have to be attending Soundwave 2013. Australia will never see a music festival line-up like that again.
