At the bar - Alison Shaw-Lloyd tells Chris Hewer

Alison Shaw-Lloyd tells Chris Hewer why she decided to go it alone

GO placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly. And listen to others, even the dull and ignorant. They too have their story.

Not a bad life plan, that. It is to be found in a framed copy of the poem Desiderata, on the wall of Suite 435 of the London Fruit Exchange, just a costermonger's call from London's Petticoat Lane market. They don't exchange fruit there any more, but lots of people have moved in from the more fashionable parts of London.

Suite 435 is occupied by Shaw-Lloyd & Co, a firm of solicitors started in April last year by Alison Shaw-Lloyd and Panos Toumbas. Alison and I settle into a comfortable, quiet alcove in the City Limits wine bar, just down the road from Alison's office. We have met twice previously. On the first occasion, last year, we found ourselves sitting next to each other at the London Maritime Arbitrators Association annual lunch, seemingly the only smokers in the room. Then, earlier this year, our name cards were placed next to each other at the LMAA annual dinner. Serendipity, or just drawn together by tobacco?

Alison learnt her trade at the feet of Professor Cadwallader at UWIST in Cardiff. She has great respect for the intellect and academic skill of the fabled professor, who kindled her interest in shipping law.

After UWIST, Alison did her articles at Ince & Co before going to work for Horrocks in London. She then moved on to Holmes Hardingham, at that time a new and developing law firm in London. Next stop was Lewis Moore, and it was from there that Alison decided to launch out on her own.

Desiderata urges, "Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career. It is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time." Alison is living the advice. She is a person who visibly enjoys her work, which takes in a variety of wet and dry. There are lots of charter party disputes, and lots of cargo work. "There can be so many problems with cargo," says Alison. " Not just shortages, but condition as well."

There is also a lot of arbitration work. Alison acknowledges the value of arbitration, and the role that London plays in it, but she says the process is too often too slow and too expensive. And she would like to see awards made available for wider publication. "None of us is above being able to learn from others," she says.

There is lots of work for Greek interests, too. Alison enjoys working with her Greek clients. She finds them knowledgeable, and animated, with a strong sense of justice. "They are open, and they say what they mean," she explains. "I like that. You know where you stand. And of course it helps that Panos is a great communicator. Being on the same wavelength as your clients is a real bonus."

Starting up your own law firm is not something to be undertaken lightly. And let's be honest, especially not if you are a woman. But Alison felt she could provide a service, she had worked with Panos for six years, and she had a clear idea of the kind of personal service they could offer.

Shaw-Lloyd & Co was set up in three weeks flat, complete with a fully functioning electronic office, a mountain of case files, and some green plastic chairs from Alison's garden. The green plastic chairs are still there, but more out of sentimentality than necessity. Alison's office still has lino on the floor, too, while the rest of the suite is fully carpeted, as if to emphasis that her feet are firmly on the ground. The emphasis is not necessary.

Alison wants the business to grow, but she doesn't want it to get bigger at the expense of her happiness and enjoyment of the job. "I never want to be so busy that I don't have time to listen to what people say," she says. "So many people don't listen. I want to look after my clients. I want to provide a service. And I want to be happy."

Alison enjoys her job, but it would be stretching the truth to say that she enjoys some of the more tedious duties it imposes on her. The Woolf reforms, she says, have created work for lawyers. And she says the White Book is "like a tax return in small print. Does any lawyer really know his or her way round all the rules?"

It was believed for a long time that Desiderata was an anonymous poem found in Old Saint Paul's Churchyard in Baltimore in 1692. In fact the poem was written in 1927 by Max Ehrmann, a lawyer from Indiana. Among other things, Ehrmann urges, "Be yourself ... Be careful. Strive to be happy. " Alison has her own take on that - "Work hard and have fun." She's certainly doing that.