Legal Education

Singapore appoints committee to guide third law school development

By Elizabeth Broomhall in Hong Kong | November 26, 2013

Singapore's Ministry of Law (MinLaw) has selected a 12-member steering committee to guide the development of its third law school. The school, to be located at the Singapore Institute of Management's SIM University, was approved earlier this year in response to a perceived shortage of lawyers in the region, particularly those specialising in family and criminal law.

1 minute read

Stars at the Bar 2013 – the up-and-coming barristers making their mark

By Legal Week | November 14, 2013

From Fountain Court to 4 New Square, Ben Rigby profiles 10 of the most acclaimed young barristers making their mark in a fiercely competitive arena...

1 minute read

Davis Polk launches City trainee scheme with £100k NQ rate

By Anna Reynolds | November 13, 2013

Davis Polk has introduced a London trainee scheme for newly qualified lawyers in a bid to build its English-law capability. The US firm will use its English law partners and senior associates to provide the training, with trainee lawyers set to receive a salary of £50,000 in the first year and £55,0000 in the second.

1 minute read

Interns can bring benefits but law firms must be alert to the pitfalls of placements

By Legal Week | November 7, 2013

Internships are on the rise. This should not come as any surprise to us: an experienced intern can be a fantastic and cost-effective resource for any organisation. Law firms and professional service providers offering this form of on-the-job training will stand a good chance of attracting high-quality candidates. For this reason, we have found more and more employers incorporating internship programmes into their workforce planning and recruitment processes over the past few years. And not just for the traditional 'intern season' over the summer: increasingly, firms are taking them on throughout the year.

1 minute read

SRA says 'one size fits all' approach to legal training must end

By Alex Newman | October 15, 2013

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has set out a series of proposals to overhaul the UK's legal education and training system, in response to a major review of the sector, which concluded in June. In a policy statement published today (15 October), the SRA said it wants an end to what it called the "one size fits all" approach to the solicitors' qualification, including the development of more "flexible" routes that are "tailored to specific markets and needs".

1 minute read

Emerging markets foist language demands on firms but English remains lingua franca

By Legal Week | October 10, 2013

English may be the language of business, but law firm partners agree that Chinese is the language of the future. Nearly 50% of respondents to Legal Week's latest Big Question survey believe that over the next decade, Chinese will become the most important language to speak aside from English, replacing the current domination of Western European languages.

1 minute read

In-house lawyers aiming for top company roles must gain business experience outside of legal, says CEO

By Alex Newman | October 3, 2013

Senior in-house lawyers aspiring to top corporate jobs need to work in business areas outside of legal, according to United Biscuits chief executive Martin Glenn (pictured). The former head of PepsiCo in UK and Ireland made the comments at Legal Week's Corporate Counsel Forum last month.

1 minute read

Lack of language skills leaves UK in-house lawyers off the pace in emerging markets

By Alex Newman | October 3, 2013

A shortfall in non-Western language skills among UK lawyers is failing to meet the needs of business and leading to an over-reliance on external support, with just 24% of FTSE 250 lawyers speaking a foreign language...

1 minute read

Not a lot of polyglots – cultural understanding lost through lack of linguists

By Charlotte Edmond | October 3, 2013

As recently as a decade ago it would have been pretty easy to count the number of countries where top UK law firms had set up international offices. Now, as their client base becomes ever-more global and competition for work at home intensifies, this is no longer the case. If school level French, Spanish or German could ever have got you through your dealings with international counterparts, they certainly can't now as clients look further afield to Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

1 minute read

International Edition

Not a lot of polyglots – cultural understanding lost through lack of linguists

By Charlotte Edmond | October 3, 2013

As recently as a decade ago it would have been pretty easy to count the number of countries where top UK law firms had set up international offices. Now, as their client base becomes ever-more global and competition for work at home intensifies, this is no longer the case. If school level French, Spanish or German could ever have got you through your dealings with international counterparts, they certainly can't now as clients look further afield to Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

1 minute read

Law.com

Some JDs Will Be Able to Attend Harvard Law Tuition-Free for the First Time Starting This Fall

By Christine Charnosky | February 2, 2024

"HLS does not award merit aid (or 'full-ride' scholarships, which are not typically need-based) because doing so would decrease the resources available for need-based aid, and significantly increase the debt burden of every student with financial need," according to its website.

4 minute read

Law.com

17 of the Top 20 Law Schools Have More Women Enrolled

By Christine Charnosky | February 2, 2024

"The decline in male enrollment and the increasing number of students who choose not to disclose their gender present new dimensions in the evolving narrative of gender diversity in legal education," the Enjuris report states.

4 minute read

Law.com

Does Finding the Bar Difficult Make You Less Competent? Some Lawyers Think So.

By Christine Charnosky | February 1, 2024

The majority of respondents to a recent survey of practicing lawyers across the U.S. said they would question a lawyer's competency if they had a difficult time passing the bar or if they never sat for the bar.

5 minute read

Law.com

NextGen Exam to Be Administered Via Surpass Assessment Software in All Jurisdictions

By Christine Charnosky | January 31, 2024

Currently, different jurisdictions are able to use different platforms when administering the bar exam, explained Sophie Martin, director of communications at the NCBE.

4 minute read

New York Law Journal

Oral Argument: High School Debate Teams Are Teeming With Future Legal Talent

By Michael Siller | January 30, 2024

The skills that debaters must master to succeed are, by and large, the same skills that make attorneys successful. By getting involved with speech and debate programs, experienced lawyers can share with debaters insight into a potential career path.

6 minute read

Law.com

Dean Developments: 2 Law Schools Appoint New Leadership, ABF Elects New Fellow

By Christine Charnosky | January 30, 2024

The latest in law dean news across the U.S.

4 minute read

Law.com

In Condemning UPenn's Response to Antisemitism, House Committee Chair Calls Out 'Double Standard' in Treatment of Law Professor Amy Wax

By Christine Charnosky | January 29, 2024

"Penn has demonstrated a clear double standard by tolerating Antisemitic vandalism, harassment and intimidation, but suppressing and penalizing other expression it deemed problematic," Virginia Foxx wrote in a letter last week.

3 minute read

Connecticut Law Tribune

'Illegal and So Awful': Yale Law Students Turn to Court Over Transgender Policy

By Emily Cousins | January 26, 2024

"We don't know, frankly, why they're dragging their feet," law school student Alex Johnson said.

4 minute read

New York Law Journal

Brooklyn Law's Business Boot Camp Trains Students To Be Business Savvy

By Christine Charnosky | January 25, 2024

"Law schools are well known for training students to think like lawyers, but there are times when practicing lawyers need to reach outside the traditional legal toolkit and think like a businessperson, and that is where our Business Boot Camp comes in," Michael Gerber, a professor of law at Brooklyn Law and co-founder of the boot camp, said in a statement.

2 minute read

The Recorder

How Schools Fared on California's July 2023 Bar Exam

By Cheryl Miller | January 23, 2024

Statistics provided by the state bar this week reveal that more women than men took the 2023 summer exam, but a higher percentage of men passed among first-time test-takers.

2 minute read