Ian Gilbert, qualified Costs Lawyer at Irwin Mitchell

Ian discusses his how his interest in law and numbers led to his career in costs law

I studied law at university, but on completing the course wasn’t entirely sure which direction to go in. I had always enjoyed working with numbers and so when an opportunity came up to work as a Costs Draftsman and combine the two things it was something that piqued my interest.

I joined Irwin Mitchell as a trainee over 20 years ago. I joined the old Association of Law Costs Draftsman (ALCD) as soon as I had the requisite length of experience, qualifying as an Associate and then progressing to be a Fellow before converting to be a Costs Lawyer. During my time at Irwin Mitchell I have progressed from being a trainee, to qualified, to being a Senior Draftsman setting up my own team in a new office, to Team Leader, Associate, Team Manager with over 40 people reporting to me and finally to my current position as a Senior Associate Technical Specialist.

It’s fair to say that the qualification gave me a brilliant start in costs and gave me a breadth of understanding that I would have struggled to get from just on the job training. I also find that having the `Costs Lawyer` job title not only gives me confidence in myself and those I am dealing with, but also gives a certain amount of gravitas when I am in court and when I am negotiating. It’s a badge of knowing what you’re doing and on that basis alone I can’t recommend the course enough if you want to have a career in costs.

Added April 2023