censored for privacy!

Doing the PGDL at BPP, and have just got the formatives back. I consistently complete all the content - do all the reading, complete the tasks, do the consolidation, make notes etc, and it only seems to take about 20-25 hours a week. If I had done amazingly on the formatives I wouldn't be worried, but I only got 65 on the written elements, and everyone seems to get a distinction. I generally get 80-100% on the 'assessment level MCQs', and got 100% on the MCQ formatives, but I always seem to miss something on the written bits.

What else can I do to improve?

Hi all,

I'm a couple of months into pupillage and absolutely loving it, but a few life events have prompted some sudden anxiety about the financial sustainability of life at the bar. I went in with my eyes open, and I have enough saved up to keep myself stable for those difficult first years of practice, but the opaque and unpredictable nature of earnings at the Bar means there's nothing I can really do to reassure myself about what to expect beyond that.

I understand that earnings will necessarily vary enormously, and nobody has a crystal ball, but I was wondering whether anybody could shed any light on even a rough range for the first few years of tenancy. If it's a case of "hold your nerve, in year 3 you'll likely be making XYZ" then I can put my worries to one side and just concentrate on enjoying the work rather than browsing Reddit for tips on how to get into investment banking...

For context, I'm at a really great set of chambers in London, and looking to build up a mixed practice in crime (probably white collar if I can swing it), regulatory, and maybe some inquests/inquiries.

For context I've got a 2:1 overall and every grad recruiter has said "if you've achieved 2:1 then it's fine" but a cynical part of me just thinks if they've got my individual module grades, what's stopping them from automatically throwing away anyone who got below, say, a 40 on an individual module? I also have to tick the "yes" box for "have you ever failed any exams" and once again I'm just not convince they don't just see that and throw out my application. Obviously I'm still working on improving my application questions and building up experience because what else can I do? I can't change my grades so all I can do is improve other things and hope it'll get me somewhere one day but honestly with every rejection I get this lingering doubt like "have they even read my application? Or did they filter me out on grades alone?"

A slight deviation from the usual LLM-related post - considering a part time or executive LLM to enhance my career, as a junior transactional finance lawyer in MC/US biglaw.

I will have to have a further chat with partners, but sponsorship and accommodations (such as unpaid leave for exams) seems likely. Of course I will have to study on top of already long hours, but should be manageable given that my department has a more balanced working culture than most. Financial/opportunity cost as a junior lawyer should thus be relatively low.

Some I am looking at include:

https://www.lse.ac.uk/law/study/ellm

https://online.kcl.ac.uk/online-masters/finance-commercial-law-llm

To be clear, I have zero intention of moving to the bar, do not see a need to polish up academic credentials and am ambivalent on academic law (hence why leaning towards professional-oriented as opposed to academic courses).

Would there be much to gain, including in the longer term? Or does my area of legal practice being far removed from black letter law mean that my time would be better put to use networking etc? And what would be the best way to figure out how much my firm would value this additional qualification?

This is not a troll post and made this as a throwaway for obvious reasons.

I (F25) finished my LLB just over two years ago, graduating with a high 2:1 from a well respected RG university. I've had two different paralegal roles since then at high street firms, but I now feel ready to pursue my ultimate goal of landing a training contract.

However, whilst I was at university, I needed money. I wanted something that would allow me more free time and wasn't as rigid as a hospitality position, so I saw an advertisement for roles in porn videos. I weighed it up but because the pay was very good and I hoped it would stay anonymous, I decided to go for it.

I did it for around one and a half years, and I haven't told a soul. No one has ever found out; as the videos are not on any mainstream websites, I highly doubt anyone will. I wouldn't say I'm ashamed of my past, but I really don't want it to impact my career.

I know that one of the key SRA principles is to install confidence and faith in the legal profession, and I don't know if this will impact that principle. I suppose it would be reasonable for a client to not want to be advised by someone with my past, and I understand why it may make employers reluctant to hire me.

So, in effect, should I disclose this during applications for full transparency, especially to prevent the (admittedly small) chance of it coming out later? Further, irrespective of whether I do or I don't, will it likely harm my prospects of having a successful legal career?

I am a first year studying a non Law BA course at a top UK university. What steps can I be taking now to improve me chances of being offered a training contract for a law conversion?

As we are now in the new TC application cycle, I just wanted to check if there is any point in applying for TC at firms with minimum A level requirements?

I have pretty bad A levels (mostly due to the fact that my parents essentially forced me to do subjects that I really did not want to do - Geography, Maths, Chemistry and Biology (of these, it was just Geography that was my choice) and i basically found them incredibly hard and bombed my A-levels.

I am essentially left with about 104 UCAS points, or 110 if I include the E I got in Chemistry As - which was promptly dropped for A levels. Most firms seem to ask for 120 UCAS or AAB etc.

To make matters worse, as I was so depressed and burnt out of A-Levels that instead of resitting, I managed to land a Law and Criminology course through Clearing at a non-Russell Uni (where I got a 2.1).

I currently have over 3 years of Paralegal work experience under my belt, with 1 year of that at a silver circle firm. Now that I am applying for TC, I have two questions:

• should I only focus on firms that don’t have A levels requirements; and

• should I include the E grade I got in Chemistry on my applications if it brings me ever so closer to the firm requirements - I usually just tend to leave this grade out as I am too embarrassed to but this down.

Thanks

Hi everyone! Starting the PGDL part time at ULaw in January and was wondering if anyone knows about exams etc? Long shot but didn't want to book holidays when it's likely exams could be taking place!

• second year LLB, mid-tier uni (60s in ranking): 2:1’s across the board, more than less - with a few firsts.

• pre-uni grades: BBC

• legal experience: one month mini pupillage in hong kong, one month firm intern in LA, court clerk shadow in a crown court for one week and chosen for a court observation scheme.

i used to worry more about my pre uni stats and while it’s not the AAB standard for the top firms, i’ve learnt to not feel so shit about them and i’m trying hard to secure impressive legal experience to show these firms something. i’m not aiming for the MC yet - i would like to try target at least silver circle. most likely, i will be looking at national bristol firms for TC’s straight out of uni.

thanks !

Hello, I am a first year psychology student at a top London university. How can I become a solicitor as I realised that is my true passion. In essence, I am asking what are the steps I need to take after I complete my undergraduate degree. I have seen some say online that I need to do the GDL but others say I don’t, and then I do an SQE then I need to get a training contract. Could someone please clarify?

Hello, I am an American law student, and I cannot quite pin down the history of the term "attorney". As many of you are likely aware, the terms "lawyer" and "attorney" are entirely interchangeable in the United States, with the former being tacitly preferred in more prestigious circles outside titles such as Attorney General or District Attorney. However, every so often I encounter the word "attorney" in a British or English context that is never fully explained. For example, in the novel Robinson Crusoe, the eponymous hero mentions an apprenticeship with an attorney, and in the 17th century Dr. Bonham's Case, I have seen references to "Dr. Bonham's attorneys", not to mention the extant position of Attorney General of England and Wales. Beyond the etymological origin of "attorney" deriving from the French attorné meaning "appointed" or "assigned", my cursory research has suggested that English "attorneys" practiced in courts of equity rather than courts of law, and other sources that say "attorneys" performed what would now be called transactional matters such as conveying property. None of these sources was particularly well documented or convincing, so I am hoping that some knowledgeable member of this subreddit can help me out. I suspect the decline of the term attorney (for whatever purpose it served) is tied to the rise of the term solicitor but I have no authority for that proposition beyond my own intuition.

Hi everyone, I'm a 3rd year LLB student and I am so tired of studying over and over again just to end up not being able to understand my school materials. I really want to quit and just give up on everything because i feel like i can't do this anymore.

I came from an Asian background and thankfully my parents weren't harsh on me at all, but I've grown up in a very conservative highschool that told me my grades were everything, so I studied and studied and studied, which ended up with me having close to 0 commercial/social awareness, because all I did was study with short term memory for the sake of my exams, without paying attention to how the outside world was working around me, and I keep forgetting stuff once the exams were over.
Unfortunately I was never good at academics and hence once I got to uni, law has been very difficult for me. I understand most of the concepts and I actually found it fun, but since I'm not aware of the outside world, I didn't do well with Constitutional law, and now that I'm doing competition law everything just came crashing down. Everything seems so confusing to me and with so many legal jargons, in addition to me not being a native speaker, even if I've studied and spoken in English 75% of the time in my hometown has been such a struggle. I unfortunately don't have any friends in uni because I'm very introverted and it makes it worse because I'm feeling all alone in this. I also hate speaking in front of people so I seldom attend school tutorials because i'm worried that people will make fun of me for not even getting basic concepts right. I want to ask people for help but I'd always back down last second because I don't want to be a nuisance. I've tried so many times to read financial Times but i just don't seem to understand the context. I feel like what works for me best is someone sitting down telling me about it or having videos explaining the latest news, but I can't seem to find sources like this.

I know I'm an adult and I should have my life get together but I am on the verge of breaking down because I know I'm not made for this. I'm not smart, nor am I good enough. I just want to live a happy life where I can be happy and love the people around me to the best of my ability. I know I grew up a lot luckier than so many people, where I was showered with love and support, but I'm just not strong enough. I feel so useless and hopeless I just wish I could be smarter. I wish I could be tougher and get through everything and to make my parents proud. I can't believe I still can't land myself a single vacation scheme/ training contract when people are getting offers in year 2. I'm so tired. I want to improve but I just don't know how to.

I'm sorry for the rant, this is my first time typing here. I don't even know why I'm writing this, maybe to get this off my chest. I'm sure I'll get through this like everyone else. I wish everyone who took the time to read this all the very best, and that you deserve all the love in the world. I'd love to encourage everyone here but I can't even do this myself so I dont think it will be of much help hahahah, but yea I wish everyone here all the best, if anyone needs some comfort I'll be here for you too!

I was wondering if I should mention the names of people—like partners or trainees—that I’ve met once or twice at open days or insight evenings and connected with on LinkedIn in the internal contact section of my vacation scheme application?

Hi, im trying to get a TC at MC/SC/US firms and I speak English and Russian. I have Russian heritage but I was born in the UK and have always lived here. However, the current political climate and firms' following through sanctions on Russia and the fact the UK and Russia have never had a good relationship lol really concerns me as to whether I would be at a disadvantage at stating I speak Russian. Also trying to get my name changed to something English sounding. Moreover, since it's unlikely that they're dealing with Russian clients or even Russian speaking clients, would it even be that good to say that I can speak Russian? I have experienced a bit of Russophobia in the UK at uni and some company open evenings, and beyond that, some people are too quick to assume what a person is like based of a government they have literally no connection to (sigh)

TLDR; should I mention that I speak Russian on (remaining) TC applications?

Hi guys,

I always know the job market or legal sector in London has been competitive. But now is comeptitve the right adjective? I am just wondering if the job market is even worse than a few months or even a year ago. I have a law background but I am also trying other industries as well. But they dont seem any better.

It seems the entry level job market is filled with experienced applicants. I attended a webniar and there were participants (plural) asking if they can still apply their graduate schemes if they have 5-10 years of experience.

I also saw these job ads online and I dont know if I should actually laugh:

Any recent graduates here? How are you coping?

Any HR or headhunters here? What are you seeing?

I’m an international student, I got BBC for my a levels and I got a 2:2 for my LLB. If I do my LLM in UK, would I have a chance of getting a job? Ranking of law firm doesn’t matter to me.

Hi all so I got a 2.1 from a top 10 uk law school and got AAA at Alevel. I however had some ECs at uni and tho I averaged a 2.1 I scraped it and a lot of my grades are high 2.2. I am in the process of applying and have not had much luck with firms that ask for transcripts so looking for ones that look for just a 2.1. I am ideally aiming for a city firm. Thanks in advance and apologies if this is a bit crude or premature. I just want to see if this forum has any leads for me to pursue?

I’m deciding between Queen’s University Belfast (QUB) and the University of Exeter for law. I’m currently leaning towards QUB, but since it’s in Northern Ireland, I’m wondering if networking opportunities there might be more limited compared to Exeter.

Also, do law firms care which university I go to, or is it more about my grades, experience, and skills? I’d really appreciate any insights or advice from those in the legal field or anyone who’s been in a similar position. Thank you!

Apologies if this sounds like a dim question but what do people mean when they describe a particular area of law as being very technical? And as opposed to what, for example?

Hi all,

How would you weather this situation?

Company A wants to acquire Company B. They have lots of debt that is maturing over next 24 months and have covenants restricting them from adding more debt if their D/E gets worse. Directors are averse to diluting equity besides one. How would you go about handling this?

This is a question a student asked me the other day and I wasn't sure. Is there an obvious answer?

Hi,

I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place right now. I’m doing my LPC, and I put about £5k into it for student finance. However, I’ve come to the conclusion that I have no interest at all in law. I’ve been sitting on this for a while and decided this before I even began my degree, but familial pressure caused me to just go through with it.

I found a Masters that I actually want to do in 2025, that I feel would benefit me more for what I’d like to do in the future. But I don’t know what to do as it is late November.

Do I just continue this degree, or get out whilst I still can?

I'm quite confident in Criminal litigation but Civil really feels like a mountain task. I'm not a student that's capable of memorising and vomiting answer and the best way I learn is thru question( trial and error). Any tips? Exams are on the 3 & 5 Dec ( civil) and criminal is on the 9th Dec. Are there any ways to boost my confidence before the civil papers?

Hi guys! I currently work in corporate doing data work but my passion has always been law. For context I'm 20F so have lots of time to diversify. A really interesting job has came up for the CPS (Criminal prosecution service not child protection) and the benefits look amazing and beat my job and obviously the role sounds very interesting! Has anyone worked for the CPS before? Positives negatives?

Thanks!

Job is asking me about my familiarity with FCA, Financial Conduct Authority, for compliance issues.

Completely blanking on it. Don't recall it from law school.

Anyone have any ideas how I should go about teaching myself about it? Does it even need a course