Legal Education

Law Student Report 2013 - the long and dwindling road

By Legal Week | May 9, 2013

2013 has been another year of change in the law student body. The number of law students wanting to become solicitors has fallen again for the third year in a row. Now just 60% of law students want to pursue a career as a solicitor, compared to 80% in 2010. There has been a fairly steep decrease in just 12 months and a depressing trend over three years, perhaps reflecting the difficulty prospective lawyers are finding in getting a training contract. The number wanting a career outside law altogether has also gone up from 6% three years ago to 16% this year.

1 minute read

BPP's free courses: a boost to law student prospects or just a marketing gimmick?

By Alex Newman | May 9, 2013

It's a tough time for law graduates. For those who emerge from the legal practice course (LPC) without a training contract, the wave of job cuts currently sweeping through the market means prospects for aspiring lawyers look bleak. So, at first glance, BPP Law School's offer of a free qualification worth up to £16,500 for its LPC students who have failed to secure a legal job six months after graduation sounds like a fantastic deal.

1 minute read

BPP to offer free qualifications to its LPC grads without law jobs

By Alex Newman | May 1, 2013

BPP Law School is to take the unusual step of offering a free qualification worth up to £16,500 to any of its Legal Practice Course (LPC) graduates failing to secure a job in the legal sector within six months of graduating. The offer - which will apply to any students starting the LPC from September 2013 - will see free qualifications available in a number of areas, including subjects outside the law.

1 minute read

Magnificent sevens - balancing law and captaining the HK rugby sevens team

By Elizabeth Broomhall in Hong Kong | April 18, 2013

Trainee lawyer Rowan Varty had a starring role at last month's Hong Kong Sevens tournament. But as the captain of the Hong Kong team and a player for the region's national squad, it was his rugby skills rather than his legal ability that had fans cheering. Despite spending the day in the office and evenings on the pitch, Varty is rather modest about his sporting achievements. In fact, he spends a lot of his time making up for them, conscious of gaining the respect of his peers and colleagues through hard work and fair treatment.

1 minute read

Watson Farley offers £5,000 for trainees to defer TC start dates

By Alex Newman | April 5, 2013

Watson Farley & Williams has offered £5,000 to a number of its trainees to defer the start of their training contracts by one year. The move, first reported on RollOnFriday, was confirmed by Watson Farley partner and training principal Christina Howard, who denied that the firm's trainees were being under-utilised.

1 minute read

Learning by doing

By Legal Week | April 4, 2013

The Kalisher Trust was set up in 1996 in memory of Michael Kalisher QC to help talented students with financial constraints who would otherwise be lost to the criminal Bar. The Trust funds four students through the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC) every year, and provides a number of bursaries. It also offers a series of substantial internships, giving students practical experience in leading legal organisations such as Justice, the Criminal Cases Review Commission and the Centre for Capital Punishment Studies.

1 minute read

Linklaters hikes trainee maintenance grants by up to 40%

By Alex Newman | March 13, 2013

Linklaters is raising the maintenance grants it pays its future trainees by up to 40% from this year, as part of a push to attract a more diverse range of students. Prospective trainees sponsored by the magic circle firm currently receive a grant of £5,000 towards the cost of completing the seven-month Legal Practice Course (LPC), which Linklaters currently requires students to complete at the University of Law in London. This will rise to £7,000 from 1 April 2013.

1 minute read

BSB confirms introduction of mandatory £150 Bar aptitude test

By Alex Newman | February 21, 2013

All aspiring barristers will have to pass a £150 aptitude test from April this year, with the Bar Standards Board (BSB) yesterday (20 February) confirming its formal introduction following a lengthy consultation. The Bar Course Aptitude Test (BCAT) will now be a mandatory requirement for all students looking to qualify as a barrister, with students applying for the bar able to register for the BCAT from 1 March 2013, and take the test from 3 April 2013.

1 minute read

CC and Thomson Reuters team up for online anti-bribery training initiative

By Pui-Guan Man | February 20, 2013

Clifford Chance (CC) has teamed up with Thomson Reuters to launch an e-learning programme focusing on competition, antitrust, anti-corruption and anti-bribery. The joint initiative has seen the magic circle firm and the information provider work together to draw up online courses for financial services firms and corporates, which can be monitored on a real-time basis by HR and compliance staff.

1 minute read

Shake-up of legal education faces new delay as review report is pushed back

By Alex Newman | February 19, 2013

The Legal Education and Training Review (LETR), the long-awaited investigation into standards of legal education in the UK, has been further delayed, with the research team's report now not expected to be released before this May. The review, billed as the most fundamental examination of legal education and training since the Ormrod report of 1971, is looking at the pros and cons of the removal of certain elements of the current system, citing the issue of the 'bottleneck' created by current qualification paths such as the training contract.

1 minute read

New York Law Journal

When A Witness Seeks to Hide Behind Context

By Joel Cohen | December 21, 2023

The presidents of Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania and MIT and the lawyers who prepared them certainly recognized that they would be roasted by at least one or two members of the Congressional committee. And they were undoubtedly correct that hate speech on campus would depend on the "context" in which it was made, a Law Journal columnist writes. But would any intelligent, well-prepared, witness, even testifying truthfully, want to hand a loaded gun to her interrogator, enabling her to aggressively question her as U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik so ably did?

9 minute read

The Recorder

LMU Loyola Law School Appoints 19th Dean: First Woman, First Black Person

By Christine Charnosky | December 20, 2023

"I chose LLS as my professional home because of its mission to advance academic excellence, promote social justice, and increase access to legal education," Clark said in a statement. "I am honored that LMU and the LLS community have entrusted me with this opportunity to further our mission and increase our impact."

4 minute read

Daily Report Online

Greenberg Traurig's Blum, Author of 'Calculated Risks,' Reflects on a Lawyer's Duty in Light of Israel-Hamas Conflict

By Mason Lawlor | December 20, 2023

"I feel that my skills as a counselor are called upon to stand up against antisemitism today," Ted Blum said.

6 minute read

Legaltech News

LexisNexis to Offer Free Lexis+ AI Access to Law Students in 2024

By Stephanie Wilkins | December 20, 2023

Lexis+ AI will be available to law students at ABA-accredited law schools starting as early as this week.

2 minute read

Law.com

Already Rocked by Scandal, George Mason Law Now Found Out of Compliance With ABA Financial Standard

By Christine Charnosky | December 19, 2023

At its November meeting, the Council considered the status of GMU Law, concluding it was not in compliance with Standard 202(a), which pertains to resources generated by the law school, according to the Dec. 6 notice.

4 minute read

Law.com

Greenberg Traurig's Ted Blum, Author of 'Calculated Risks,' Reflects on a Lawyer's Duty in Light of Israeli-Palestine Conflict

By Mason Lawlor | December 19, 2023

"I feel that my skills as a counselor are called upon to stand up against antisemitism today," Ted Blum said.

5 minute read

Law.com

American University Washington College of Law's Fairfax to Become Dean of Howard Law

By Christine Charnosky | December 19, 2023

Howard University has "shaped the trajectory of my family's journey from slavery to where I proudly stand today as the dean of the American University Washington College of Law," Roger Fairfax said in a statement. "My family's strong legacy of Howard alumni, staff and faculty makes this a particularly compelling opportunity to lead one of the most impactful institutions in the nation and honor those who have come before me."

5 minute read

Delaware Law Weekly

Bayard Director Presents at Family Law Update

By Victoria Pfefferle-Gillot | December 19, 2023

Curtis P. Bounds, director and senior attorney in Bayard's family law group, presented at the annual Family Law Update sponsored by the family law section of the Delaware State Bar Association on Dec. 14.

2 minute read

The Recorder

Bar Exam Alternative Proposal Goes to the Supreme Court—Along With Questions

By Cheryl Miller | December 18, 2023

The state bar's top executive said "100%" of the so-called portfolio bar exam's startup costs would be covered by a philanthropic group. But questions remain about who might pay the bills and what the bar will have to do to get the money.

4 minute read

Law.com

CA Bar Exam Alternative Proposal Goes to State Supreme Court — Along With Questions

By Cheryl Miller | December 18, 2023

The state bar's top executive said "100%" of the so-called portfolio bar exam's startup costs would be covered by a philanthropic group. But questions remain about who might pay the bills and what the bar will have to do to get the money.

4 minute read