Allen & Overy Assessment Tests

Allen & Overy Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You are a document reviewer. Two colleagues on the review have fallen out over a coding decision and each has now asked you to look at the other’s batches and say who is right. The review has a deadline on Friday and the disagreement is slowing both of them. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Look at both sets of batches and tell each of them privately which of them you think has been coding it correctly, since somebody has to break the deadlock before Friday.
   2. Spread the grievance around the review team, so that they can see how far apart they are and sort it out between themselves before Friday.
   3. Stay out of it and carry on with your own batches, since the two of them are capable of resolving a coding question without a third person getting involved.
   4. Put the coding question to the review lead today with an example of each approach, and tell both of them that the answer will come back from her.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Put the coding question to the review lead today with an example of each approach, and tell both of them that the answer will come back from her.

   Least effective: B. Spread the grievance around the review team, so that they can see how far apart they are and sort it out between themselves before Friday.

   A: Takes on an adjudication you cannot give: your view is not the coding standard, so whoever you side with has won an argument rather than settled how the batch should be coded.

   B: Carries private remarks between colleagues: it turns a disagreement about a coding rule into a disagreement about two people, and neither can unhear what the other said.

   C: Leaves a live obstacle alone: both of them are slowed down and Friday is fixed, and they have already shown they will not settle it, since they have each come to you.

   The most effective response is to put the coding question to the review lead today with an example of each approach, and tell both of them the answer will come back from her. The question is about a coding standard rather than about either of them, and her answer actually binds both. It beats looking at both sets and telling each of them privately who is coding it correctly, because your opinion settles nothing. It beats staying out of it and carrying on with your own batches, because they have already demonstrated they cannot resolve it. The least effective response is spreading the grievance around the review team: it repeats what each said about the other, so a rule question becomes personal. That is a different kind of wrong from the other two, neither of which passes remarks along. The principle: send the rule question to whoever owns the rule, and never relay what people have said about each other.

2. Question 2 of 10

   You are a document reviewer. In a batch you are coding you find a document that appears to be from the other side’s lawyers and looks like it was sent to your client by mistake. The review lead is in a meeting for an hour and the batch is due at the end of the day. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Code the document like any other and mention it to the review lead at the end of the day when the batch goes over, since an hour either way makes no difference to a document already in the set.
   2. Tell your team that the batch may contain something from the other side, so that everybody knows to look out for anything similar while the review lead is unavailable.
   3. Set the document aside without coding it, and get a message to the review lead now saying what you have found and that the batch is due at the end of the day.
   4. Tell the review lead when she comes out that the batch is complete and that nothing unusual came up, since you cannot be certain what the document is and the batch has to go.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Set the document aside without coding it, and get a message to the review lead now saying what you have found and that the batch is due at the end of the day.

   Least effective: D. Tell the review lead when she comes out that the batch is complete and that nothing unusual came up, since you cannot be certain what the document is and the batch has to go.

   A: Treats an unusual document as routine: coding it puts it into the reviewed set as though it belonged there, and the question of what it is gets asked after it has been treated as ordinary.

   B: Spreads it sideways: it puts the document in front of more people rather than fewer, which is the opposite of what an item like this needs before somebody has decided what it is.

   D: Asserts something you have not checked: she is told the batch is clean, which you know it may not be, and the one person who could decide what the document is has been told there is nothing to decide.

   The most effective response is to set the document aside without coding it, and get a message to the review lead now saying what you have found and that the batch is due. You do not know what the document is and she does, so the useful actions are to stop it moving and to reach her now. It beats coding it like any other and mentioning it when the batch goes over, because coding it treats a question as answered. It beats telling your team the batch may contain something from the other side, because more eyes on it is the wrong direction. The least effective response is telling her the batch is complete and nothing unusual came up: she is told it is clean when you know it may not be, which is a different kind of wrong from the other two because both of those at least leave the document findable. The principle: stop the thing you cannot judge and reach the person who can, at once.

3. Question 3 of 10

   You are a client services adviser covering the desk alone. A client is waiting in reception for a meeting that started ten minutes ago and the fee earner is not answering. Two calls are holding and a courier is at the door with a package that needs signing for. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Sign for the courier first because he cannot wait, then take the two calls, and go to the waiting client once the desk is clear enough to leave for a few minutes.
   2. Speak to the waiting client first with an apology and a time, then sign for the courier, then take the calls, telling each caller you will ring them straight back.
   3. Take the two calls first, since callers cannot see what is happening at the desk and the client in reception can see that you are busy and will understand the wait.
   4. Ask the courier to come back later and put both calls through to voicemail, so that you can go and find somebody who can take the client's meeting for you.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Speak to the waiting client first with an apology and a time, then sign for the courier, then take the calls, telling each caller you will ring them straight back.

   Least effective: D. Ask the courier to come back later and put both calls through to voicemail, so that you can go and find somebody who can take the client's meeting for you.

   A: Clears the quickest items first: it produces a tidy desk and leaves the person who can see you ignoring her for longest, which is the one cost the firm will hear about.

   C: Uses a customer's patience as a resource: the client can see you, which makes the wait worse rather than more forgivable, and neither caller knows they are being preferred.

   D: Hands the problem on and drops the rest: it turns away a delivery, sends two callers to voicemail and leaves the desk, all to give somebody else a meeting they have not agreed to take.

   The most effective response is to speak to the waiting client first with an apology and a time, then sign for the courier, then take the calls. Thirty seconds spent on the person who can see you costs almost nothing and removes the only cost that is growing. It beats signing for the courier first because he cannot wait, since his minute is worth less than the client’s ten. It beats taking the two calls first because callers cannot see what is happening, since a visible wait is worse than an invisible one, not better. The least effective response is asking the courier to come back later and putting both calls to voicemail while you find somebody to take the meeting: it clears your own desk by making three other things somebody else’s, without asking any of them. That is a different kind of wrong from the other two, which both keep everything with you. The principle: give the person in front of you a word and a time first, then work the rest in order.

4. Question 4 of 10

   You are a reception coordinator. A journalist calls asking to confirm whether a named company is a client of the firm, saying she already knows it is and just needs it on the record. The firm’s rule is that client identities are never confirmed to anybody outside. She says the story runs tonight either way. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell her the firm does not confirm client identities and end the call there, since anything further risks saying something she can use in the story tonight.
   2. Neither confirm nor deny, but tell her she should assume the story is substantially right unless somebody rings her back before this evening.
   3. Confirm that the company is a client, since she says she knows already and a flat refusal will simply make the firm look evasive in a story that is running tonight regardless.
   4. Tell her the firm does not confirm client identities, take her deadline and her number, and get the call to the person who handles press enquiries straight away.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Tell her the firm does not confirm client identities, take her deadline and her number, and get the call to the person who handles press enquiries straight away.

   Least effective: C. Confirm that the company is a client, since she says she knows already and a flat refusal will simply make the firm look evasive in a story that is running tonight regardless.

   A: Closes the call without passing it on: the refusal is right and nobody in the firm learns that a journalist is running a story about a client this evening.

   B: Confirms by implication: an instruction to assume the story is right is a confirmation dressed as a refusal, and she will report it as one.

   C: Breaches a stated rule about client confidentiality: what she already knows is not the test, and the firm's confirmation is the thing her story needs.

   The most effective response is to tell her the firm does not confirm client identities, take her deadline and her number, and get the call to the person who handles press enquiries. The refusal is not negotiable, and the useful part is that somebody who handles press learns tonight’s deadline while there is still a day to use it. It beats telling her the firm does not confirm client identities and ending the call there, because that leaves the firm unaware. It beats neither confirming nor denying while telling her to assume the story is substantially right, because telling her what to assume is a confirmation. The least effective response is confirming that the company is a client: it gives an outsider the firm’s word on a client identity, which is a different kind of wrong from the other two because neither of those does. The principle: hold the line, and pass the deadline to whoever can act on it.

5. Question 5 of 10

   You are a disclosure assistant. Your team records the number of documents each person reviews per day and reports the totals to the client each Friday. You have been slower this week because a batch you were given is unusually complex. Your team leader asks you for your figures before she sends the report. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Give her the number and tell her why it is lower this week, so that whatever she sends the client carries the reason along with the figure.
   2. Record a higher figure for the last two days than you actually reviewed, since you will make the difference up next week and the client only ever sees the weekly total.
   3. Give her the number without comment, on the basis that she has the same view of the batches as you do and can see for herself why the week looks like this.
   4. Ask her to leave your figures out of this week's report until the complex batch is finished, so that the client sees a fair picture rather than an unusual week.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Give her the number and tell her why it is lower this week, so that whatever she sends the client carries the reason along with the figure.

   Least effective: B. Record a higher figure for the last two days than you actually reviewed, since you will make the difference up next week and the client only ever sees the weekly total.

   B: Alters a record: it puts a number into the client's report that describes work nobody has done, and it does so in the one system anybody would later use to check.

   C: Assumes the context is obvious: she is about to send the figure onwards and may not have looked at what was in your batch, so the reason travels only if you send it with the number.

   D: Removes the awkward data: a report with a person missing invites exactly the question it was meant to avoid, and it treats an unusual week as something to be hidden rather than explained.

   The most effective response is to give her the number and tell her why it is lower this week, so whatever she sends the client carries the reason along with the figure. It beats giving her the number without comment because she can see the batches herself, since she is the person sending it on and cannot supply a context she has not been given. It beats asking her to leave your figures out of this week’s report, because leaving a name out is more conspicuous than a low number with an explanation. The least effective response is recording a higher figure for the last two days than you actually reviewed: it changes what the record says happened, which is a different kind of wrong from the other two because both of those report a true number badly and this one reports a false one. The principle: send the number with its reason, and never make the number say something else.

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are a compliance assistant. Each file opened must carry a completed check before work starts, and you log the date each one is completed. A fee earner asks you to log yesterday’s date for a check you are finishing this morning, because the file was opened yesterday and he does not want it showing as out of order. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Log today's date because that is when the check was done, and tell him you will note on the file that the file was opened before the check and why.
   2. Log today's date and say nothing further to him or to anybody else, since the record will then be accurate and there is no point in making more of it than that.
   3. Ask him to put the request in writing, so that if anybody queries the date later there is something on the file showing whose decision it was.
   4. Record the check as completed yesterday, as he asks, since the file will then read consistently and the check itself has been done properly.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Log today's date because that is when the check was done, and tell him you will note on the file that the file was opened before the check and why.

   Least effective: D. Record the check as completed yesterday, as he asks, since the file will then read consistently and the check itself has been done properly.

   B: Leaves the real problem unreported: the date is right and the thing the date reveals, a file opened before its check, is left for nobody to look at, which is the part that could happen again.

   C: Documents the wrong thing: it treats an improper request as a decision that can be authorised in writing, and it leaves you doing what was asked while collecting cover for it.

   D: Enters a date you know is wrong: the log exists to show when checks were done, and a log that has been made to read tidily no longer shows anything about any file.

   The most effective response is to log today’s date because that is when the check was done, and tell him you will note on the file that the file was opened first and why. The date is a fact and it stays a fact, and the awkwardness he wants removed is dealt with by explaining it rather than hiding it. It beats logging today’s date and saying nothing further, because the sequence problem is the thing worth somebody knowing about. It beats asking him to put the request in writing, because a written request does not make an inaccurate entry accurate. The least effective response is recording the check as completed yesterday as he asks: it puts a date in the log that describes nothing that happened, which is a different kind of wrong from the other two because both of those record the truth and handle it badly. The principle: the record says what happened, and anything untidy about what happened is explained beside it.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You are a costs assistant. A fee earner asks you whether a client’s payment on account has cleared, because he wants to instruct counsel today. The bank feed shows a payment received but the accounts team has not yet confirmed it as cleared, and they are not back until tomorrow. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Tell him the payment is showing on the feed but is not confirmed as cleared, and that accounts are back tomorrow, so he can decide whether to wait.
   2. Tell him it has cleared, and assure him of it, since the money is showing on the feed and payments of that kind have always cleared by the following morning.
   3. Tell him the payment is showing but not yet confirmed, ring the bank this morning to establish whether it has cleared, and come back to him with an answer before the end of the day.
   4. Tell him he will have to wait for accounts tomorrow, since clearance is their call and nothing you can find out will change what they say when they look at it.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Tell him the payment is showing but not yet confirmed, ring the bank this morning to establish whether it has cleared, and come back to him with an answer before the end of the day.

   Least effective: B. Tell him it has cleared, and assure him of it, since the money is showing on the feed and payments of that kind have always cleared by the following morning.

   A: Hands the decision back without helping: it is accurate and it leaves him choosing between waiting a day and taking a risk, when the bank could confirm the position this morning.

   B: States as fact something you have not confirmed: he will instruct counsel on the strength of it, and the only team who can confirm clearance has not looked at it.

   D: Treats one team's absence as the end of it: the bank is a source of the same fact, and a day's delay to instructing counsel is being accepted without anybody trying.

   The most effective response is to tell him the payment is showing but not yet confirmed, ring the bank this morning to establish whether it has cleared, and come back before the end of the day. He needs the fact rather than the paperwork, and the bank can supply it today even though accounts cannot. It beats telling him it is showing but unconfirmed and that accounts are back tomorrow, because the uncertainty is removable. It beats telling him he will have to wait for accounts, because an absent team is not the only route to the answer. The least effective response is assuring him the money has cleared because payments of that kind always do by the following morning: clearance you have not established is confirmed, and counsel will be instructed on it. That is a different kind of wrong from the other two, both of which are honest about what is confirmed. The principle: when the usual confirmer is away, find the other source rather than filling the gap or accepting the delay.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You are a document reviewer. You raised with a colleague that a batch he had coded was inconsistent, and he took it badly and said you had gone over his head. He now shares the coding queue with you and has stopped telling you which batches he has started. Two of you have picked up the same batch twice this week. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Start at the other end of the queue so that the two of you cannot collide, which removes the duplication without anybody having to talk about what happened last week.
   2. Tell your team leader that he has stopped sharing what he is working on, and ask her to remind the team how the queue is meant to be used.
   3. Ask him for five minutes, say the duplication is costing both of you time, and agree how the two of you will mark a batch as started from now on.
   4. Stop telling him which batches you have started, after the way he reacted, and leave him to work out for himself why the two of you keep landing on the same one.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Ask him for five minutes, say the duplication is costing both of you time, and agree how the two of you will mark a batch as started from now on.

   Least effective: D. Stop telling him which batches you have started, after the way he reacted, and leave him to work out for himself why the two of you keep landing on the same one.

   A: Works around the person: the collisions stop and nothing else changes, so the first time the queue is not neatly divided the same problem comes back with the same silence behind it.

   B: Escalates a two-person problem: a general reminder to the team is aimed at one person who will know it, and it arrives without you having asked him anything.

   D: Withdraws information after a disagreement: it answers his silence with your own, so the duplication doubles and the review pays for a quarrel between two reviewers.

   The most effective response is to ask him for five minutes, say the duplication is costing both of you time, and agree how a batch gets marked as started. It is a shared cost with an easy fix, and putting the fix rather than last week in front of him is what makes the conversation possible. It beats starting at the other end of the queue so the two of you cannot collide, because avoiding him leaves the coordination broken. It beats telling your team leader he has stopped sharing and asking her to remind the team, because a team reminder is a way of not speaking to him. The least effective response is stopping telling him which batches you have started: it matches his silence with yours, so the only thing keeping the queue straight is removed entirely. That is a different kind of wrong from the other two, both of which try to keep the work moving. The principle: when a disagreement has broken the coordination, fix the coordination first and directly.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are a paralegal. A client emails asking for an update on a matter that has been quiet for two months. The fee earner who runs it has been off sick for three weeks and no cover was arranged. The file shows nothing since a letter in June. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Reply that the fee earner is away and that you will ask her to contact the client as soon as she is back, since the matter is hers and she will know where it stands.
   2. Read the file, reply with what has happened up to the letter in June, and say that nothing has moved since and that you are finding out who will pick it up.
   3. Read the file, take it to the department head today asking who covers it, and reply to the client the same day with a named contact and a time for a proper update.
   4. Treat it as not yours to chase, on the basis that the department will pick it up, since a matter that has been left unattended is a supervision question rather than something a paralegal should be answering the client about.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Read the file, take it to the department head today asking who covers it, and reply to the client the same day with a named contact and a time for a proper update.

   Least effective: D. Treat it as not yours to chase, on the basis that the department will pick it up, since a matter that has been left unattended is a supervision question rather than something a paralegal should be answering the client about.

   A: Waits for the absent owner: nobody knows when she is back, and the client is asked to wait on an event with no date after two months of silence.

   B: Tells the client before finding out: it is honest and it announces that the matter has no owner before anybody in the firm has been asked to be one, which leaves the client worse informed than before.

   D: Assumes somebody else has it: no cover was arranged for three weeks, which is precisely the evidence that leaving it with the department will produce nothing, and the client hears nothing at all.

   The most effective response is to read the file, take it to the department head today asking who covers it, and reply to the client the same day with a named contact and a time. The client needs a name and a time, and both exist only once somebody senior has assigned cover. It beats replying that the fee earner is away and that you will ask her to make contact when she is back, because an unknown return date is not a plan. It beats replying with what has happened up to the June letter and saying you are finding out who will pick it up, because telling a client their matter has no owner, before it has one, helps nobody. The least effective response is treating it as a supervision question rather than yours to chase: it hands the problem back to the arrangement that has already failed for three weeks and leaves the client unanswered. That is a different kind of wrong from the other two, both of which at least reply. The principle: get the matter an owner, then give the client the name and the date.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You are a client services adviser. A caller mentions in passing that he has been told by somebody at the firm that his hearing has been moved, but he cannot remember who told him or when. Nothing on the file mentions a new date. The hearing on the file is in six days. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Note what he said on the file and carry on with his original enquiry, and do not tell anybody about the possible change to anybody, since the file is what the firm works from.
    2. Tell him the file still shows the original date, say you will check with the fee earner today, and agree that you will ring him back whichever way it turns out.
    3. Tell him the file shows the original date and that he should treat that as correct, since anything he was told informally cannot override what the file says.
    4. Ask him to find out who told him and to ring back once he knows, so that the firm can check with the right person about the date he was given.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: B. Tell him the file still shows the original date, say you will check with the fee earner today, and agree that you will ring him back whichever way it turns out.

    Least effective: A. Note what he said on the file and carry on with his original enquiry, and do not tell anybody about the possible change to anybody, since the file is what the firm works from.

    A: Withholds information somebody needed: if the hearing really has moved the firm is working to the wrong date, and if it has not the client is, and nobody has been told either way.

    C: Settles it on the file alone: the file may simply not have been updated, and telling a client to disregard what he was told closes the question rather than checking it.

    D: Puts the work on the client: he has already said he cannot remember, and the firm has a fee earner who can be asked directly in far less time.

    The most effective response is to tell him the file still shows the original date, say you will check with the fee earner today, and agree to ring him back either way. Six days is close enough that a wrong date matters to both sides, the file is not proof it has not moved, and the fee earner can settle it today. It beats telling him the file shows the original date and that he should treat it as correct, because a file that has not been updated looks exactly like a file with nothing to update. It beats asking him to find out who told him and ring back, because he has already said he cannot remember. The least effective response is noting what he said on the file and carrying on with his original enquiry: a possible date change goes unreported six days out, which is a different kind of wrong from the other two because both of those at least tell him something. The principle: a date somebody has heard differently is checked, not filed.