Pupillage

Pupillage at 3 Hare Court

Tom Poole QC is the head of pupillage. Chambers’ currently has six full-time pupil supervisors: James Hawkins, Sara Ibrahim, Asela Wijeyaratne, Ben Channer, Rowan Pennington-Benton and Richard Bottomley.

Pupils in Chambers are not in competition with each other. Our aim is to offer all of our pupils tenancy at the end of their pupillage.

The pupillage year is, therefore, designed to equip our pupils with the skills and experience needed to enjoy a successful and fulfilling career at the Bar.

At the start of pupillage, each pupil is assigned a pupil supervisor who will be responsible for their training and supervision for the first two months. Pupils change supervisors every two months. We endeavour to assign pupils to pupil supervisors with differing practices, so that pupils can experience the widest possible range of work. In a typical year, pupils will spend time with up to six separate supervisors.

Pupils spend much of their time drafting pleadings, opinions, skeleton arguments and other documents for their pupil supervisors. In addition, they accompany their pupil supervisors to hearings and conferences, and assist them with legal research or other tasks.

Pupils will experience a broad range of work across all of Chambers’ main practice areas during their first six months in pupillage. In their second six months, pupils can expect to have their own clients and attend court and tribunal hearings multiple times a week.

Pupils have monthly appraisals carried out by their supervisors and a formal assessment at the end of each pupillage ‘seat’.

• The monthly appraisals involve a review of work undertaken, a discussion about any feedback received from other members of Chambers, and any future action / development required. Pupils are given an opportunity at these meetings to raise any questions they may have about their progress and training in general. In addition, there are informal day to day discussions and feedback, and through observation, supervisors are able to constructively highlight any area where a pupil needs a boost in order to develop and meet the required standards.

• The formal assessment involves the pupil’s supervisor undertaking a review of the work produced by the pupil over the course of the ‘seat’ and completing an assessment record in which the pupil is graded out of 4 (1 = standard not met; 2 = standard partially met; 3 = standard fully met; and 4 = standard exceeded)  against Chambers’ five key selection criteria: (1) intellectual ability and legal professional skills; (2) impact and advocacy; (3) interpersonal skills; (4) motivation; and (5) temperament. In addition to grading their pupil in the assessment record, the pupil supervisor will provide concise and constructive comments under each criterion. Pupils are given the opportunity to discuss the assessment record with their pupil supervisor, and to record any comments they might have on the document.

• Through this combination of informal discussion, monthly appraisal and formal assessment, Chambers aims to provide pupils with consistent and transparent guidance on their progress and to maximise their potential to improve during the pupillage process.

Chambers runs a programme of advocacy training during pupillage (the first two sessions of which are not assessed). This involves various mock hearings on the same case, which are tried by senior members of Chambers.

Chambers places an emphasis on business development and self-marketing during pupillage.

Pupils are encouraged to use the knowledge of members, their relationships with clients, and marketing skills to forge their own relationships and ensure their own professional development.

Pupils are encouraged to become involved in contributing to news articles on Chambers’ website and social media platforms and to attend networking events. Pupils are also actively involved in seminars provided by members of Chambers.

In the link below, one of our two junior tenants, Katharine Bailey, discusses her experience of pupillage at 3 Hare Court

Katharine Bailey’s Pupillage Insight.

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Selection for Tenancy

Tenancy decisions are normally made after about 9 months of pupillage – around the middle of July. These decisions are taken by Chambers as a whole and are based principally on the considered views of the pupil supervisors (including the pupil supervisors’ conclusions as captured in the formal assessments completed at the end of each pupillage ‘seat’).

As above, when selecting tenants, we look for evidence of ability in the following areas:

• Intellectual ability and legal professional skills.
• Impact and advocacy.
• Interpersonal skills.
• Motivation.
• Temperament.

Successful applicants will need to demonstrate the ability to identify, analyse and argue the salient points, produce good written work, cope under pressure, and develop a strong practice.

It is our normal practice to recruit junior tenants from those who have undertaken pupillage in Chambers, and we have an excellent record of offering tenancies to our pupils.

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Third Six Pupillages

It is not our usual practice to offer third six pupillages, either to existing pupils, or those looking to move from other sets. However, if Chambers is actively seeking to recruit third six pupils, vacancies will normally be advertised on the Bar Council’s third six pupillage vacancies page.

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Accessibility and Further Information

Chambers will make all reasonable adjustments to accommodate applicants. If you have any particular concerns or requirements about access of any sort, and/or any queries about pupillage at 3 Hare Court, please contact our Chambers Manager, Guy Mitchell, via our dedicated pupillage email address.

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