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Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. The BVC is the final qualification needed to become a Barrister in the UK and is a practical course designed to ensure trainee barristers (pupils) have the knowledge and skills they need. The course is offered at eight institutions located throughout England and Wales and takes one year (full time) or two years (part-time). The main skills taught on the BVC are casework; written and interpersonal skills. The main areas of knowledge taught on the Bar Vocational Course are: Civil Litigation & remedies; Criminal Litigation & sentencing; Evidence; Professional Ethics and two optional subjects, selected from a choice of at least six. Applications for full and part-time courses are completed online via BVC Online. Applications open from October in the year prior to you requiring a place with first round applications closing in January. For example, to start the course in September 2008 you must make your application by January 2008 (first round). See also
Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. Barristers usually qualify into and practice in a specialist area but unlike solicitors will spend most of their time researching the law and practising advocacy at the courts. Much of a Barristers work will involve court work and highly developed presentation and interpersonal skills are essential. Barristers operate from Chambers which are essentially a collective of barristers much like a firm, although barristers are self employed and pay a proportion of their earnings to the chambers for space etc. See also
Certificate of Academic Standing Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. If you hold a degree from an overseas university or do not have a degree you should apply to the Solicitors Regulation Authority for a Certificate of Academic Standing . This is the process by which the Law Society confirms your eligibility to attend a law course in England and Wales and is evidence that your qualifications meet the minimum requirements for admission - usually equivalent to a lower second class honours or above and competency in the English language.
Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. Before entering for the Qualified Lawyers Transfer Test, you must first obtain a Certificate of Eligibility from the Law Society of England and Wales. Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. When studying the LPC you are required to complete an Elective component. Elective means that you must study three subjects offered at your institution from a range of corporate and private-client topics. If you already have a training contract, your firm will give you guidance about which ones to take. For those without a training contract, tailoring your electives to the type of firms you are applying to is important for future applications. At institutions such as BPP Law School corporate and firm specific electives such as Private Acquisitions and Advanced Commercial Property are offered which, because of these electives commercial specialism and preference by some of the larger commercial firms, have been called 'City' electives. See also Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. The 'City' LPC referred to the LPC studied at Nottingham Law School, BPP Law School and the Oxford Institute of Legal Practice. These three institutions provided trainee solicitors to eight of the country's top law firms and thus offered students a commercial law focused LPC with relevant specialised electives. This commercially focused course was nicknamed the ‘City' LPC. From 2008 however this changed with BPP Law School being the preferred LPC provider for the five-strong City LPC consortium comprising Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Herbert Smith, Lovells, Norton Rose and Slaughter and May. BPP are also the preferred provider for Jones Day, Addleshaw Goddard, CMS Cameron McKenna, Macfarlanes, Simmons & Simmons and SJ Berwin. BPP's main rival, the College of Law, counts Allen & Overy, Baker & McKenzie, Barlow Lyde & Gilbert, Berwin Leighton Paisner, Clifford Chance, Cobbetts, Halliwells, Linklaters, Stevens & Bolton, Wragge & Co and Weil Gotshal & Manges as clients. Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. When studying the LPC you are required to complete an Elective component. Elective means that you must study three subjects offered at your institution from a range of corporate and private-client topics. If you already have a training contract, your firm will give you guidance about which ones to take. For those without a training contract, tailoring your electives to the type of firms you are applying to is important for future applications. Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading.
Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. The Inns are centuries old institutions for barristers. They are in effect societies which enable barristers to access assistance and a community of other barristers through regular events and dinners. Join an Inn as soon as you decide you would like to become a barrister. You can join an Inn whilst on the GDL or BVC and you may benefit from their financial assistance. Above all, the Inns are a great source of advice and information. Which Inn you join does not matter, it is down to personal preference, look around each one and talk to the student officer or as the old saying goes: "Gray's Inn for Walks, Lincoln's for your call, The Inner for a garden, And the Middle for its Hall." There are four Inns in the UK
Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. It is normal, especially in the larger firms, as part of your training contract for you to spend blocks of six months in different departments (eg, six months in four departments, or twelve months in one department and six months in another two) these are usually called 'seats'. One of these seats can be overseas in either one of the firms branch offices or with a “best friend” firm or a firm they have close working relationship with. All trainees are asked to state their preference for where they would like to go and having experience or language skills related to your intended destination will help you to gain the seat over other applicants. Once you have qualified there are also opportunities for secondment to overseas offices and even clients. These client secondments are an excellent opportunity to view things from the client perspective and gain a better understanding of their business. Lawyers with language skills and experience of a number of legal jurisdictions are much more likely to be seconded than those without.
Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. Law Degree (LLB – Bachelor of Laws) the course must cover all seven foundations of legal knowledge: contract and tort, criminal law, equity and law of trusts, law of the European Union, property law and public law. The course is offered at institutions across the country and takes approximately three years (full time).
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Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. Magic Circle is a term which is used to refer to the top five UK law firms: Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Linklaters and, sometimes, Slaughter and May. Last year, The Lawyer reported that the magic circle accounted for 32 per cent of billings of the entire The Lawyer 100. A broader term such as City or commercial firm is applied to most large commercial firms. Large commercial firms - according to The Lawyer as of 2007 the top ten firms based in the UK were*:
*Rankings based on turnover, visit www.thelawyer.com for more information See also
Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. In a moot, two pairs of 'advocates' argue a fictitious legal appeal case in front of a 'judge'. To win, you do not necessarily have to win the legal case, but must make the best presentation of your legal arguments. Mooting competitions are usually organised by Law Schools or the Inns of Court. Very little knowledge of law is required, although it is useful to know basic legal principles. Mooting is useful for developing your legal skills of analysis and interpretation, but also personal skills of argument and public speaking. It is a great addition to any potential lawyers CV. Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading.
In the context of law pro bono can be defined as "legal work done without charge"; essentially it is legal advice and representation given free to members of the public with limited means, as well as charitable and other non profit making organisations. Examples of pro bono activities include:
Pro bono work is useful for developing your legal skills of analysis and interpretation, but also personal skills of argument and public speaking. It is a great addition to any potential lawyers CV.
Professional Skills Course (PSC) Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. The Professional Skills Course (PSC) is a modular course which aims to ensure that you have reached the appropriate level of skills and knowledge during the Legal Practice Course and the training contract. The five modules are: Advocacy and Oral Communication Skills, Accounts, Investment Business, Personal Work Management, Professional Conduct There is a written exam for the Accounts and Investment Business modules, but no formal assessment of the others. Many of the larger firms will run the PSC in-house as part of the training contract.
Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. Pupillage begins after completion of your BVC and is the final stage of qualification for a career at the Bar as a barrister. A pupillage involves a 12-month period of practical supervision under an experienced barrister and can be in chambers or in industry or with organisations such as the Government Legal Service. The first six months is non-practising with pupils shadowing their pupil master. The next six months is spent practising with pupils undertaking their own cases. There are also opportunities to use other external training such as marshalling to satisfy, with the prior approval of the Bar Council, all or part of the practising six months of pupillage. The process of looking for a pupillage should begin as soon as you decide that the Bar is for you, applications to some chambers and authorised pupillage training organisations (the Employed Bar) can be up to two years in advance.
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Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. It is normal, especially in the larger firms, as part of your training contract for you to spend blocks of six months in different departments (eg, six months in four departments, or twelve months in one department and six months in another two) these are usually called 'seats'. In smaller firms the training will not be so structured, although the Law Society does require that you cover at least three areas of work during your training contract. These areas should encompass both non-contentious and contentious work, and an ‘appreciation and understanding' of litigation.
Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. A solicitor's role is to give specialist legal advice and help. Solicitors are the main advisers on all matters of law to the public. There are over 60,000 solicitors practising in England and Wales and their work varies enormously. Generally, Solicitors deal with all aspects of legal practice from conversations with a client and drafting letters, to researching cases and providing legal advice. They usually qualify into and practice in a specialist area i.e. family, commercial or media law. High street firms - these are usually small firms dealing with individuals with housing, employment and immigration problems. Medium sized firms - these firms may offer specialist advice on a niche area e.g. media, family or IT but others will offer a huge spectrum of services from Corporate Finance to Private Client. Large commercial firms - Magic Circle is a term which is used to refer to the top five UK law firms: Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Linklaters and Slaughter and May. Last year, The Lawyer reported that the magic circle accounted for 32 per cent of billings of the entire The Lawyer 100. Opportunities also exist outside private practice in the Government and charitable organizations as well as with some large companies.
Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. The training contract, which includes the Professional Skills Course, is the final stage on the path to qualifying as a solicitor. The training contract is a two-year period of practice-based training. The format of the training contract can vary, with larger firms tending to have a more structured programme in place than smaller firms. Law Society guidelines stipulate that whichever firm you train at you must be allocated a ‘training principal' who will be responsible for providing sufficient, balanced and useful work, to answer your questions and to give guidance and feedback on your performance. The training principal will also keep training records to ensure that your training matches the Law Society's requirements.
Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. A trainee solicitor currently undertaking a training contract with a firm.
Click Back on your browser to return to previous reading. Many firms offer Vacation Placements or work experience for two or three weeks duration giving you the opportunity to find out more about life as a solicitor and also the firm Schemes can run during the Summer, Easter and Christmas vacations. As a general rule applications for summer placements 2006 close winter 2005. Contact firms direct or visit our useful websites for specific deadlines. There is no better way to explore a legal career or to demonstrate your commitment and knowledge of a career or particular firm than to spend some time in a law firm. Competition for vacation placements is fierce and many firms are use such these schemes as a test for future trainees. If you are lucky enough to gain a vacation placement make sure you seize the opportunity to find out as much as you can about the firm. Ask the trainees and supervisors about their career choices: why they chose their career, what keeps them at the firm, how they chose their practice area and so on. Once you have completed your placement take some time to reflect, ask yourself questions to be absolutely certain that any decision you make about a training contract offer or application is an informed one. Vacation placements are useful for developing your legal skills of analysis and interpretation, but also personal skills of argument and public speaking. It is a great addition to any potential lawyers CV.
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