Elizabeth Blankendal Called To Bermuda Bar
Elizabeth Blankendal is the latest young Bermudian lawyer to be Called to the Bar. The ceremony took place at the Supreme Court on Friday before Chief Justice Narinder Hargun.
Ms Blankendal has recently completed a year of pupillage at Conyers Dill & Pearman, where she is now working as a newly-qualified associate in the corporate department.
In front of family, friends and colleagues, Ms Blankendal thanked her parents for their unreserved support, her ‘pupil masters’ at Conyers and the five people she credits as being her key mentors: Conyers Director Sophia Greaves, Kimberley Caines-Best of HSBC, Christa Schweizer of Ascendant Group, Barclay Simmons of ASW Law and Wanda Armstrong of KPMG.
“The guidance from people experienced in the industry was really helpful and has made my progression to this point very smooth,” she said.
“We are very pleased to welcome Elizabeth as an associate at our firm and we congratulate her for reaching this milestone in her career,” said Sophia Greaves. “Elizabeth is a talented, young Bermudian woman. I have no doubt we can expect great things from her in the future.”
Ms Blankendal recalls at age 10 wanting to be a paediatrician, but a career in law began to appeal when she found she did not really enjoy science. She left Berkeley Institute at age 16 to do A-levels in the UK and went on to obtain her law degree at University of Bristol in 2016.
Having worked as a legal intern at various local firms in her summer vacations, experiencing family, criminal and corporate practices, she determined that corporate and commercial law was the best fit for her.
After completing a postgraduate diploma in law at BPP University in Bristol in 2017, she joined Conyers’ pupillage program.
“After six years in the UK, I’d had enough of the climate,” she joked. “I was lucky to be able to join the top firm in Bermuda where I could get exposure to high quality work without remaining in dreary London weather.”
During the past year, she has completed four-month rotations in Conyers’ Corporate, Litigation and Private Client & Trusts departments where she has had the opportunity to work on a variety of corporate and commercial transactions under the guidance of directors Chiara Nannini, Ben Adamson, Stephanie Bernard and Karen Corless.
She says her next challenge is to complete a Master’s of Business to expand her skill set and better engage with clients.
More lawyas bringing joy to the world, just what we need.
Perhaps it should be more teachers, you know, to help you with your spelling.
Very proud of you young lady
Congratulations on your success . But true success is when you open your own practice .
You couldnt just end ya comment on success?
A perfect example of crab in the bucket mentality, would you have made that comment if she came from the undeserved privilaged community that you support.
You go girl, regardless what this man says you earned your True Success.
That is ridiculous, Rodney. So using your analogy, a physician who practices at Johns Hopkins hasn’t achieved true success because they aren’t running their own practice, even though Johns Hopkins is a prestigious university hospital?
While we’re at it, I get really annoyed with you bleating on about single mothers should be able to own their own homes because you know single mothers who have done so. You are talking apples and oranges. My friend raised her daughter as a single mother while holding down a $750,000 a year exempt company job so yes, she owned her own home and employed a nanny as well. That’s vastly different from the single mother who barely makes $20,00 a year. The single mothers you refer to are probably in a much better situation than the average single mother. I hope you read this because it really gets my gall when you say those things.
This is an example of excellence coming out of our public school system. I get so tired of people running the public school system down. Yes, there are areas where it falls short but if it was that bad every single student would be a failure and that is simply not the case. Many students leave public school and go onto higher education. If the student is prepared to put in the work and with the backing of supportive parents, they will succeed even if they’re being educated in a tin shack-and that literally does happen in many places in the world.
I was at a PTA with a friend last night and let me tell you, even the teachers can’t speak English properly. What’s worse, the students mimic. If the teachers would speak in proper sentances instead of “Bermudian” vernacular, the students would also.
Well done. Impressed. Best wishes. Thanks for coming home.
Congratulations Elizabeth! I’ve alwags known you to be a smart young lady. All he best and I wish you continued success and happiness. yes Berkeleyite. Respice Finem, “Keep The End in View.”
Çongratulations ! Your accreditation for your hard work is well deserved! Keep up the good work !
Watch out for the kool-aid . No matter who’s mixing n pouring !!
Congrats Lizzy we’re proud of you!