Spotlight on: Peter Stringer

Joining our Manchester office as a senior supervisor in November 2020, 54-year-old Peter supports clients who have suffered a serious injury, specialising in spinal, brain and amputation injuries. A fan of the great outdoors, Peter can often be found cycling, running or on his motorbike.

Why did you join Thompsons?

The ethos of the firm was a big attraction to me – standing up solely for the injured or mistreated seemed quite unique for the legal sector.

Prior to joining last year, I had taken a short career break, running my own business in a different sector, so when I decided to move back into law, I knew the firm had to be the right fit for me. Fortunately, that hasn’t been a concern, as Thompsons echoes my own belief that we should protect and support the rights of everyone.

It has been evident in my short time at Thompsons that this support isn’t just for our clients but for our staff too, which has really helped me as I settle into my new role.

What is the most satisfying thing about your job at Thompsons?

While I am relatively new to the firm, I have worked with seriously injured clients for the majority of my career, which provides me with a great deal of satisfaction.

Sadly, the clients’ injuries are often life-changing, not just for them but for their family and friends. Working on these types of cases can be very difficult as we often must challenge existing laws and even, in exceptional cases, create new laws.

You can never turn back the clock for people who are seriously injured, but it’s amazing just how motivated these people can be in their fight to take back control of their lives. Their sheer grit and determination drives me to secure the funds that enable them to do just that.

How have you found lockdown and working from home?

As I began working for Thompsons during the second English lockdown, I’ve only had the benefit of seeing a handful of colleagues in person for one day – otherwise everything has been virtual.

Fortunately, this didn’t come as a complete shock to me, as I’ve always operated a hybrid system of both working from home and from an office, but having this enforced permanently was still quite unusual.

I have found the IT training, support of colleagues and general ‘home working structure’ at Thompsons Solicitors to be fantastic. My productivity levels remain high and the commute is much easier, but I will look forward to the day where I can properly meet all my colleagues in person.

What do you do in your spare time?

I’ve tried to keep up with cycling and running, despite the winter weather, as I think it’s important to break up the day and get some much-needed fresh air.

Otherwise, I’m trying to work as well as I can around my children and – perhaps most importantly – dreaming about when the village pub can reopen!