LAW CAREERS SEMINARS

1. LAW CAREERS SEMINARS for second-year students No. 2, 23rd November 2010 Jenny Keaveney, Careers Advisory Service The slides from this presentation are available at www.kent.ac.uk/careers/slides.htm

2. A TASTE OF THE WORLD OF WORK • Vacation work - including solicitors’ summer schemes; mini-pupillages • The value of vacation work • How to find firms offering vacation work • What past Law graduates from Kent have gone on to - and how they can help you • What else can you do with a law degree? • Postgraduate academic study (a brief look)

3. Why vacation work? • What sort of vacation work experience can I get in law? • Which firms run vacation placements? • When and where are they available? • How much will I be paid? • What will I be expected to do? • How do I find a summer vacation placement? • When should I start applying? • What is a mini-pupillage? • What should I do if I can't get a placement?

4. WHY VACATION WORK? • To look good on future application forms, showing employers: • that you have some knowledge of law in practice • that you are motivated towards a career in law • To help you decide whether or not a career in law is right for you • To earn money • To get to know people within the legal profession and make contacts

5. THE IMPORTANCE OF VACATION WORK • A study of College of Law students showed that: • 92% of students enrolled on the LPC who had not obtained a training contract before the start of the course had no previous legal work experience … • but only 24% of students enrolled on the LPC who had obtained a training contract before the start of the course had no previous legal work experience • Lack of legal work experience can lead to: • Difficulty in making choices; weak focus in applications; • Employers questioning your commitment to the profession and your understanding of law in practice

6. WHAT SORT OF VACATION WORK EXPERIENCE CAN I GET IN LAW? • Summer placements with solicitors' firms • Mini-pupillages • Work for in-house law departments, etc • Work in other jurisdictions WHEN AND WHERE CAN I DO A VACATION PLACEMENT? HOW MUCH WILL I BE PAID?

7. WHAT WILL I BE EXPECTED TO DO ON A VACATION PLACEMENT? • Legal research • “undertaking research on the meaning of ‘damage’ for an insurance shipping case” • “researching the appeals process in Trinidad and Tobago” • “researched the euphemistic use of the term ‘fishing trip’ in revenue cases” • “undertook research on the Bulgarian forced heirship rules” • “put together and circulated the weekly tax update in which I briefly summarised relevant new cases, legislation and articles”

8. WHAT WILL I BE EXPECTED TO DO ON A VACATION PLACEMENT? • Drafting • “writing a letter of complaint on behalf of a client” • “drafting my own confidentiality agreement” • “I drafted letters to major fashion houses and helped to amend agreements” • “letters, emails and even clauses of loan agreements” • “I drafted a detailed email setting out certain terms that the client (a charity) should insist should be included in the loan agreement with their bank”

9. WHAT WILL I BE EXPECTED TO DO ON A VACATION PLACEMENT? • Support work • “proof-reading” • “took and distributed the minutes of a departmental meeting” • “organised the sending out of documentation to the parties of a recently-completed deal” • “I helped organise leases and documents to send to clients and this, while less exciting than other work I undertook, gave me an honest and complete picture of the life of a trainee and was much preferable to being given unnecessary tasks to keep me busy”

10. WHAT WILL I BE EXPECTED TO DO ON A VACATION PLACEMENT? • Project work • “a mock trial was held based on an actual case involving patent infringement and synthetic grass” • “a group exercise where each member took role in a fictional government” • “we were involved in a mock case throughout the two weeks, representing rival clients in a contentious probate matter” • “Each afternoon the four interns came together and worked with an associate on a disputed patent infringement case study” • “preparing a pitch for a meeting – the Pharoah listened to our plans for her new pyramid with great interest!”

11. WHAT WILL I BE EXPECTED TO DO ON A VACATION PLACEMENT? • Visit: • Courts • City institutions – Lloyds, the Stock Exchange etc • Other offices of your firm (Paris and Brussels anybody?) • The House of Lords • Legal advice centres • Clients

12. WHAT WILL I BE EXPECTED TO DO ON A VACATION PLACEMENT? • Have fun! • “I must confess to humming the James Bond theme as we enjoyed a speedboat trip along the Thames” • “an evening at the Comedy Store” • “perfecting our bowling techniques, attending a private film screening and the firm’s summer garden party at Inner Temple” • “A surprise evening that involved designing and making structures from melted chocolate (and eating a bit too)” • Curry nights, pub quizzes, drinks parties, softball, comedy nights, go-karting, treasure hunts, office parties, barbeques ….

13. HOW DO I FIND A SUMMER VACATION PLACEMENT? Some useful information sources: • Law Careers Net www.lawcareers.net and the Training Contract & Pupillage Handbook • Target Jobs http://targetjobs.co.uk/lawand Target Work Experience Law • Chambers & Partners Student Guide www.chambersstudent.co.uk/ Links to all the above from: www.kent.ac.uk/careers/siteslaw.htm

14. WHEN SHOULD I START APPLYING? Many deadlines for summer schemes are at the end of January or February. Applications may be handled on a first-come-first served basis. As we will see next week, application forms for these schemes take time. NOW!

15. HOW MANY PLACEMENTS SHOULD I DO? • No set rules - 3 a good number to aim for • Try and get a variety of experience - inside and outside the legal profession; with solicitors firms and at the Bar • Placements are not only available in summer, or only in vacations ..

16. PLACEMENTS IN SMALLER FIRMS • Less likely to be advertised • More flexible – may range from a couple of days to a couple of months • Often unpaid • Do not usually offer a structured programme – may be lots of general office work! • “Small” does not have to equal “high-street” there are plenty of small (or “niche”) commercial firms • Make speculative approaches to firms – usewww.solicitors-online.comto find local firms

17. WHAT IS A MINI-PUPILLAGE? • Work experience in Chambers, normally lasting up to one week • Usually unpaid • May be assessed or unassessed • Usually work-shadowing • Some structured mini-pupillages provide a programme of experience, project work and social activities

18. WHAT HAPPENS IN A MINI-PUPILLAGE? My first encounter was sitting in on a conference with clients. I had twenty minutes to read the case papers, which is normal for a mini-pupil. Luckily the point is to let you know what everyone will be talking about, and not to test your knowledge! Like every other mini-pupillage experience, the conference itself was a chance to see the professionals in action, and hopefully notice some of the methods used to get the information they need or to explain the situation to the clients. Following other members of Chambers to court is one of the highlights of anyone’s mini-pupillage. It’s the ideal chance to see varying styles of advocacy. Plus, mini-pupils usually get to hear what is said between the barristers and their clients before, during and after the proceedings.

19. WHAT SHOULD I DO IF I CAN'T GET A PLACEMENT? 1) Other ways to gain an insight into law - in term-time as well as vacations • Work shadowing • Open Days and law fairs • Law Clinic, Citizens’ Advice Bureau, etc • Marshalling • Personal involvement in legal issues

20. WHAT SHOULD I DO IF I CAN'T GET A PLACEMENT? 2) Non-law vacation work is useful too! • Industrial, commercial or financial employers • Voluntary organisations • Work with children • Work abroad • Anything!

21. WHAT WILL FIRMS THINK? “If you have been employed scrubbing pots in a hot sticky kitchen we can see that you have resilience” (Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft) “We are aware that students can’t always afford to spend a month doing unpaid work experience or shadowing, therefore we value other activities like stacking supermarket shelves”(Stevens & Bolton)

22. WHAT ELSE CAN I DO WITH A LAW DEGREE?

23. WHAT DID 2009 LAW GRADUATES DO? Some were working in a legal role or in the legal profession …. Hesling Henriques Paralegal Gopal Gupta Solicitors Legal Assistant MA Solicitors Legal Secretary Rapid Response Solicitors Litigation Executive  Weightmans Paralegal Camlinoglu Law Office Trainee Ministry of Justice Case Work Analyst

24. WHAT DID 2009 LAW GRADUATES DO? … and others weren’t – or were they?? PKF (UK) LLP Company Secretarial Trainee European Parliament Stagiaire Swale Domestic Violence Support Officer Eurogroup Management Trainee Shell Gas Direct Marketing Assistant JET Programme English Teacher (Japan) NHS Financial Management trainee Affinity Sutton Graduate Management trainee Ministry of Defence Civil Servant Parliamentary Health Ombudsman Business Support Assistant Kent Police Communications Officer

25. THE LAW COMMISSION LEGAL EXECUTIVE PARALEGAL LICENSED CONVEYANCER TAX ADVICE TEACHING INFORMATION WORK LEGAL PUBLISHING POLICE WORK PROBATION WORK PERSONNEL WORK SOME CAREERS USING LAW without needing to qualify as a solictor or barrister For more ideas and information, see the booklet "Careers for Law Graduates outside the Legal Profession“ www.kent.ac.uk/careers/pdf/lawalternatives.pdf

26. HOW USEFUL IS A LAW DEGREE OUTSIDE THE LEGAL PROFESSION? "The ability to digest a large volume of numerical and written/verbal data in order to be left with only the relevant information is invaluable in most business disciplines and is developed within a law degree" Business Analyst: Telecomms Company "I rely strongly on my degree, especially my knowledge of case law and employment law. I find that new developments in law, such as the Disability Discrimination Act, are easy to understand and follow and I am confident in giving advice" Human Resources Officer, Textiles Manufacturing Co.

27. HOW USEFUL IS A LAW DEGREE OUTSIDE THE LEGAL PROFESSION? "My degree has been very useful … it means I have experience of looking at legislation and interpreting it. Tax involves lots of legal issues and requires referring frequently to statute law and case law" Trainee Chartered Accountant "My degree has helped in being able to communicate with lawyers in finding out residents' rights, which I feel I can research comfortably, and agencies take me seriously because of the letters after my name" Project Worker, Womens' Refuge "We need people with the ability to argue their case well and the sense to know when to stop arguing - lawyers are very good at this!" Recruitment Manager, large blue-chip company

28. POSTGRADUATE STUDY

29. POSTGRADUATE ACADEMIC STUDY • Different types of postgraduate study • You can continue your study of Law in more depth or move into a new area • Funding is usually difficult • Apply at the beginning of your final year • Think about why you want to do PG study and its implications in future

30. TAUGHT MASTERS DEGREES • Higher degrees by taught course & dissertation • MA, LLM, etc • Length: one calendar year (September - September) • Seminars, coursework and exams over the academic year • Followed by a dissertation prepared over the summer • May focus on a specific area of law (or other subjects) or may allow considerable choice of options

31. POSTGRADUATE RESEARCH DEGREES • M.Phil or PhD • Length: from one year for Masters to at least three for PhD • Work independently to prepare a thesis • Your supervisor will advise and guide - who you choose is very important • Original research expected

32. FINDING OUT MORE • Prospects Postgradwww.prospects.ac.uk/links/PGdbase; • www.postgrad.com • www.llmstudy.com • Careers Advisory Service websitewww.kent.ac.uk/careers/postgradmenu.htm • Careers Advisory Service presentation –Postgraduate study in humanities and social sciences Tuesday 30 November, 1.00 pm, KLT5

33. SEE YOU NEXT WEEK! For advice on making successful applications for vacation work and training contracts Careers Advisory Service Opening hours: 9am - 5pm Monday - Friday http://www.kent.ac.uk/careers