Member of the Month - Tetianna Bersheda

1) How did you come to study at Wolfson College?

I have always been interested in international and comparative law. Having obtained my law degree at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland, I started writing a PhD comparing some specific areas of Swiss and English corporate and insolvency law. When choosing a college for my LL.M. studies at the University of Cambridge, I was attracted by the international environment and the community of the graduate students at Wolfson College. Studying at Wolfson enabled me to combine the first-class academic programme with a varied and interesting college social life.

 

2) What is your current occupation and how did you get into this role?

I am currently a practicing independent lawyer based in London and Lausanne, Switzerland. I have practiced international law in Switzerland, Monaco and London for the past fifteen years, starting my career in the first-ranking Swiss firms and then setting up my own international boutique law firm specialised in international arbitration and litigation. I am currently advising clients on global strategy in international litigation and assist them with matters of Swiss and English commercial law. For several years, I also taught company law at the University of Geneva and have been acting as a member of the board of several companies active in sports, entertainment and infrastructure fields. I am the Founder of LexSnap, which is a London based legal tech start-up, aiming at improving access to law and delivering legal advice with the help of cutting-edge AI technology.

 

3) What do you most enjoy about your job?

I am passionate about law and enjoy helping people in finding solutions to their legal problems. Having practiced law for many years, I realised how technology can improve the provision of legal services by making them available to a much larger array of people. I enjoy advising my clients as a lawyer and in parallel working with computer scientists in my legal tech start-up. We are working on finding ways of answering legal questions from an unlimited number of people with the help of AI technology. I believe that AI will not replace lawyers but will rather augment the legal profession. It is fascinating to be part of this evolution.

 

4) How have your studies at Wolfson helped you in your career?

Studying at Wolfson helped me to gain a deep knowledge of English commercial and corporate law. I met many interesting students from different countries and stayed in touch with some of them until now. This allowed me not only to acquire new friends but also to create an international professional network.

 

5) What is your fondest memory of your time at Wolfson?

I very much enjoyed the formal halls where we had an opportunity of meeting other students from Wolfson and guests from other colleges studying the most varied subjects. It is difficult to identify one single fondest memory as there are so many of them. Flamenco classes at Wolfson with our fantastic teacher and a guitarist playing live music for us are definitely one of them.

 

6) What is the best piece of advice you've ever been given?

To always stay curious – to find out more about each new piece of knowledge you come across.

 

7) Which book has had the greatest impact on you?

Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman.