CMS partner Steven Billingham reflects on his route into law, his long-term career, and what aspiring solicitors should know about training, culture and working life
CMS partner Steven Billingham knew from around the age of 12 or 13 that he wanted to become a lawyer. Growing up in Liverpool, his first instinct was to pursue the bar, an ambition reinforced by summer work experience at a barristers’ chambers in the city. That changed while he was studying law at the University of Leicester, when a placement at a solicitors’ firm introduced him to a different way of working. “It opened my eyes to a different side of the profession,” he says. In particular, the camaraderie of being part of a wider team “really spoke to me”, and the solicitor route began to feel like the better fit.
Billingham went on to train at Nabarro, one of the legacy firms involved in the CMS merger, completing six four-month seats. A stint in commercial litigation quickly confirmed that contentious work was not for him. “In my general life, I don’t like confrontation,” he laughs, recalling how early drafts would come back covered in red pen for being a little too diplomatic. “Transactional work proved a more natural match, offering greater scope for collaboration and working towards a shared outcome”.
Real estate itself was not an obvious choice at first. Billingham admits land law had not been a particular favourite at uni, but seeing the subject applied in practice during his training changed his perspective. What appealed was the tangible nature of the work and the chance to see the outcome of a transaction take shape in the real world. “There’s a buzz to being able to see what you’re working on,” he says, “whether that means visiting a site, watching a development progress or following a building through its wider life cycle, from acquisition and redevelopment to letting and eventual sale”.
That enthusiasm has been reinforced by the opportunities Billingham has found at CMS, where he is now a real estate partner and head of London transactions. He points to the firm’s strength in the sector, its client base and the scale of its work as major reasons he has remained there throughout his career. “We are acting on the biggest deals, shaping the law and involved in critical landlord and tenant cases,” he says, describing CMS as the “Mount Everest of real estate”. Just as important have been the people around him, with Billingham highlighting colleagues across real estate, tax, planning and construction, both in London and across the firm’s wider UK network.
That “people-focused culture”, he says, has remained important as CMS has evolved. He is particularly positive about the support the firm offered during the pandemic, both practically and in terms of wellbeing. “I felt strangely proud to be part of CMS during the pandemic,” he says. “Colleagues made a real effort to stay connected and check in on one another while we were working remotely, and that made you feel very supported.” He also points to the firm’s continued presence in Kyiv and its support for Ukrainian colleagues as another example of a culture that, in his view, goes beyond policies on paper.
As Billingham has progressed into partnership and taken on leadership of CMS’s London real estate transactions team, his role has increasingly focused on managing and developing others. His approach reflects the collaborative style that first attracted him to transactional work. “I want junior lawyers to learn and feel excited about their work,” he says, adding that creating an environment where people feel comfortable asking questions is crucial. “There is no such thing as a stupid question!”
That philosophy also shapes the way he views training at CMS. Billingham points to the support available within real estate, including professional support lawyers, knowledge lawyers and dedicated trainers, while stressing that development goes well beyond formal sessions.
“A training contract is effectively a two-year interview, but it works both ways,” he says. “Trainees are showing us what they can bring to the firm, but it works both ways. We’re also showing them what a longer-term career at CMS could look like, through the work they’re given and the associates, supervisors and partners they work with.”
For Billingham, the trainees who stand out are proactive, collaborative and willing to engage with the people around them. He encourages juniors to make their availability known, ask to sit in on meetings and look for opportunities to support the wider team. How trainees work with one another matters too. “It comes across loud and clear when trainees work well together and help each other out,” he says. “In an increasingly digital and AI-driven working environment, personal interaction will remain central to becoming a successful lawyer.”
As lawyers progress, Billingham believes the ability to build personal relationships becomes increasingly important. “Ultimately, personal relationships are what enable you to win work,” he says. That might mean picking up the phone instead of sending a long email, grabbing a coffee with a client or simply getting up to speak to a colleague. For Billingham, those everyday interactions are a key part of developing into a well-rounded lawyer.
For trainees in real estate, that emphasis on engagement sits alongside the day-to-day technical work. Billingham says a typical day could involve reviewing and amending documents, taking instructions, speaking with the other side and helping senior lawyers with reporting, as well as attending client meetings and site visits. “I’ve never gone on a site visit without thinking of a question I wouldn’t otherwise have asked,” he says, stressing the value of seeing first-hand how a property and the issues surrounding it fit together.
When it comes to applications, Billingham encourages candidates to look beyond surface-level research and build a detailed understanding of the firm. “You have to understand the firm, its strengths and weaknesses, its international outlook, placement opportunities and areas of expertise,” he says. Rather than submitting a generic application, candidates should think carefully about CMS’s strategy, culture and direction, and how their own interests and motivations fit with what the firm is trying to achieve.
That same thoroughness applies to researching the career itself. Billingham recommends making use of open days, careers fairs, social media and platforms such as Legal Cheek to get a clearer sense of what training at a firm actually involves. For CMS in particular, he says candidates should understand the firm’s emphasis on being future-facing and acting as a trusted adviser to clients, and consider whether that approach genuinely aligns with the kind of lawyer they want to become.
Steven Billingham will be speaking at ‘What does a career in real estate law look like? — with CMS’, taking place in person on Friday 2 October. The event is now fully booked, but you can explore Legal Cheek’s other upcoming events here.
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