LinkedIn sexism row barrister also says her leg was inappropriately “rubbed” during mini-pupillage

Charlotte Proudman has revealed two shocking prior incidents that contributed to her decision to tweet a “sexist” LinkedIn message from a law firm partner.

Appearing on Channel 4 News last night, Proudman — who has become a household name since her explosive tweet of a screenshot of Alexander Carter-Silk’s message last week — told an incredible story about a solicitor who asked her for a bikini photo in exchange for work experience. She recounted:

When I was at university I sought legal experience in a solicitors’ firm, and I was asked by this solicitor to send in a bikini shot of myself before the solicitor would even consider giving me experience. When I asked whether that was a joke, it was laughed off and said ‘who knows?’.

Proudman, whose undergraduate degree is from Keele University in Staffordshire, went on to tell another story about a barrister who felt up her leg during a mini-pupillage. She recalled:

The second instance of sexism in my experience, again when I was between the age of 18 and 19, was with a barrister in a taxi on the way to court — again, another form of work experience. And the barrister in the taxi put his hand on my leg and began to rub it up and down.

Given the Mansfield Chambers junior’s willingness to out Carter-Silk, the lawyers she referenced must be feeling rather uneasy right now…

Since those incidents Proudman said she has “continued to face sexism, but thankfully nothing physical”.

During the interview, the family law barrister, who is currently working on a PhD in political sociology at Cambridge University, also demanded that Carter-Silk, the head of European IP at Brown Rudnick, issue a further, more substantive apology for his LinkedIn message (which, in case you had forgotten, complimented Proudman on her “stunning” profile photo). This is what she said:

The apology I received was an apology for the offense that I had taken, there was no apology for the message itself and no acknowledgment that the message that was sent to me was sexist and highly inappropriate in a professional context.

In response to this, Brown Rudnick has issued a further statement on the matter:

My Carter-Silk and the firm have promptly and sincerely apologised to Ms Proudman. We have also assured Ms Proudman that we are committed to gender equality and do not condone any words or actions that depart from that principle.

Watch Charlotte Proudman’s full Channel 4 News interview below:

The post Charlotte Proudman: Solicitor asked me for bikini photo in exchange for work experience appeared first on Legal Cheek.

“Harry Potter” lawyer filmed delivering submission during double yellow line dispute

Those with a keen eye will have noted that well-known solicitor-advocate Lord Harley of Counsel — otherwise known as Alan Blacker — appeared on yesterday evening’s episode of ITV’s Parking Wars.

The show, which airs every Tuesday at 8pm, documents the struggles between parking wardens and the general public.

While focusing on issues surrounding parking more generally, last night’s episode also depicted footage from inside several parking dispute tribunals.

The appeal hearings — which are held at many locations across the country — allow members of the public to argue why a parking fine is unfair in front of an independently-appointed adjudicator.

Harley, who appears at 1:02, 7:02, and 8:30 minutes in the show (available on catch-up here), is seen entering a tribunal and arguing a case in relation to a silver Chrysler people-carrier that was parked on a double yellow line.

Just prior to Harley’s appearance at 8:30 in the footage, one adjudicator describes briefly the types of people he gets to see.

You get, at the one level, people who really haven’t thought about it, they just turn up and think it’s kind of like a mediation and if they have a nice chat with you they’ll be let off. All the way through to people who do treat it like it’s a High Court hearing.

Cue Lord Harley of Counsel appearing on screen, in a mustard waistcoat and colourful bowtie, arguing a point of law.

Lord Harley of Counsel appears on ITV show Parking Wars

A video posted by Legal Cheek (@legalcheek) on Sep 16, 2015 at 5:58am PDT

Interestingly, during the very brief cameo, Harley — who qualified as a solicitor-advocate via the non-graduate Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEx) route — is referred to as “Mr Blacker” by the adjudicator and not Lord Harley of Counsel. The latter title was a major bone of contention during Blacker’s famous dust-up last year in Cardiff with circuit judge David Wynn Morgan, where has was criticised for, among other things, dressing “like something out of Harry Potter”.

However, judging by Blacker’s continued use of “Lord Harley of Counsel” on LinkedIn, it seems that he is allowed to use the title, despite no one seeming to be quite sure where it came from.

It is not clear from last night’s footage whether Harley is representing himself or is acting in a professional capacity. However, viewers will note that Harley refers to himself in the first person when arguing a point on parking law.

Harley’s moment of TV fame, although very brief, was spotted by a couple of Twitter users.

Lord Harley of Counsel appearing at the Parking Adjudicator on ITV. #InterestingTimes

— StirredNtShaken (@StirredNtShaken) September 15, 2015

Lord Harley is on ITV in a dashing mustard waistcoat #parkingwars

— Dudley A H Beal (@dbgeaunbomb) September 15, 2015

Last month, Legal Cheek revealed that Harley had received a written apology from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) in relation to a miscommunication regarding a lost file.

Despite Harley taking to LinkedIn to claim that the apology was in relation to “racism”, the SRA made clear that these grievances were not upheld by the independent complaints body.

Harley did not responded to Legal Cheek’s request for comment this morning.

You can watch the episode in full here.

Previously:

Solicitors Regulation Authority says sorry to Lord Harley for ‘causing distress’ [Legal Cheek]

The post Lord Harley in Parking Wars TV appearance appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Other big name to boost graduate hiring is Ashurst with 12.5% increase; five mid-tier outfits also offering more training contracts

Global titan White & Case has revealed that it will boost its London trainee intake for the 2015-16 recruitment round from 30 trainees to 40.

Ashurst too has posted an improved trainee recruitment target — albeit a slightly more modest one — of 45 for 2015-16. Up from 40, it represents a 12.5% rise.

Though the firms are similar in ambition and City presence, their enhanced trainee figures are indicative of two differing approaches.

In 2011, Ashurst stepped-up its efforts to expand in Asia by merging with Aussie firm Blake Dawson, itself already a major player in the Asian market. Ashurst’s graduate recruitment partner, Hammad Akhtar, indicated to Legal Cheek how this tie-up has informed the firm’s decision to bring in more rookies, explaining:

The increase in the number of training contract vacancies reflects both the increasing strength and globalisation of our business. This has increased the need for trainees and international opportunities for them.

White & Case has a long-standing London presence, which dates back to 1971. Like other US firms in the UK, it’s in growth mode, using its scale to muscle in on the English City mid-tier. Earlier this year the New York-based behemoth swelled its NQ salaries by 20% to £90,000 — one of the biggest NQ pay hikes seen in the City this year. And now it wants more graduates to fill its trainee pipeline.

Following a narrative of contrasting fortunes for training contract numbers in 2014-15, there was concern earlier this month that 2015-16 may not be such a vintage year when CMS Cameron McKenna shocked the market by announcing a 34% reduction in its trainee intake. But the White & Case and Ashurst TC increases have steadied nerves.

And they are not the only firms to boost trainee numbers. Five further top 60 firms have each unveiled impressive trainee hiring targets for 2015-16. Anglo-US firm Squire Patton Boggs, which has a number of UK regional offices, and national firm Bond Dickinson, also big outside London, both see their intakes improved by five to 25.

Meanwhile, Taylor Wessing and Watson Farley & Williams will welcome two additional future trainees in 2016 — taking their numbers up to 24 and 18 respectively — while Mishcon de Reya boosts its target from 12 to 15.

Trainees recruited in the 2015-16 recruitment round don’t actually start their TCs until 2018, so it will take a while for these numbers to trickle through. But the rises at seven firms, no less, show that the City law graduate recruitment market retains some vigour, despite well-documented outsourcing and paralegal trends impacting on junior-level work.

The post Trainee recruitment bonanza: Firms up TC numbers — led by White & Case with 33% rise appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Trying to be humble on social media is so last year

The time of year is upon us again. In the wake of the release of the new Legal 500 directory yesterday evening, lawyers across the country have wasted no time in taking to Twitter to brag about their success.

In this sense it has been a marked contrast from 2014, when humblebrags were all the rage.

Giving a sense of the prevailing 2015 mood is Littleton Chambers’ barrister John Mehrza, who simply tweeted the new directory’s gushing comment about him.

UK Bar 2015 @thelegal500 directory on Sport: ‘He knows the law, but equally importantly he knows how sport works.’ #L500UK2015 #legal500

— John Mehrzad (@JohnMehrzadLaw) September 17, 2015

Others, such as PwC Legal head of global immigration Julia Onslow-Cole and Eversheds’ Paul Verrico, tempered their brags with words like “delighted” and “proud” as they sought to give a vague nod to the concept of humility.

Delighted to be named as a 'Leading Individual' & proud @AndreaAlsLegal Sapna Patel Lyudmyla Davies & Kelly Whiter also mentioned #legal500

— Julia Onslow Cole (@JuliaOnslowCole) September 17, 2015

Vproud to be in @legal500's @eversheds health & safety first-class team 'proactive and conscious of the risks and benefits to clients’

— Paul Verrico (@paulverrico) September 17, 2015

Meanwhile, a few supposedly top lawyers revealed themselves to totally misunderstand the concept of the humblebrag as they delivered straightforward boasts which they juxtaposed with the #humblebrag hashtag. Wait a second, fees for pro bono work..?

"He always pitches his fees just right when doing pro bono work" #legal500 #humblebrag

— Caspar Glyn QC (@CasparQC) September 16, 2015

And finally, there were the handful of lawyers still humblebragging like it was 2014.

Apparently new Legal 500 say I'm "A strong advocate who delivers" – hoping rest of quote wasn't "pizzas on his moped"

— PJ Kirby (@kirby_pj) September 16, 2015

Legal Cheek will forgive all if they donate generously to Sean Jones QC’s billable hour appeal, which currently stands at an unbelievable £185,177.02.

Want to brag about your #L500UK2015 ranking? Worried people will judge you? Donate https://t.co/rriO6jLlWF and use #BHHB and brag away!

— Sean Jones (@seanjonesqc) September 17, 2015

Congratulations to all those who featured this year.

The post Humblebrags give way to outright brags as latest Legal 500 hits shelves appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Is “earn-while-you-learn” set to become the new training contract?

The dean of one of the nation’s biggest vocational legal education providers has revealed that magic circle firms are eyeing the new government-backed Trailblazer apprenticeships.

The school-leaver scheme — which combines a part-time LLB with on-the-job paralegal-level work — “could be big”, says BPP Law School chief Peter Crisp, adding that magic circle firms are among a host of top City legal outfits to be interested in the route which leads to qualification as a solicitor in just five years.

Speaking after the announcement that Trailblazer apprenticeship will be offered by BPP from September next year in conjunction with firms including Eversheds, Crisp told Legal Cheek:

I think they could be big, but obviously it’s early days. There has been a huge amount of interest. We have been in to see many firms, including magic circle ones, and they have expressed an interest.

Since legal apprenticeships appeared on the scene in 2012, propelled by a wave of publicity designed by the government to assuage anger at the trebling of undergraduate fee rises, their take up has been largely restricted to firms outside the top tier.

In many cases, these apprenticeships — which come with a bewildering array of different tag lines — don’t allow students to qualify directly as solicitors, instead resulting in a less prestigious chartered legal executive qualification. As a result, they have been met with sceptism by wannabe lawyers.

But the Trailblazer scheme — which is government-backed and includes a state subsidy for the employer towards training costs that can be spent with any law school — is different in that it includes an LLB degree and leads to direct qualification as a solicitor. In this sense it is very similar to the six-year earn-while-you-earn programme launched this month by the London office of global law firm Mayer Brown in conjunction with BBP’s rival, the University of Law.

Significantly, once Mayer Brown apprentices reach their final year they are put in the same stream as the firm’s second year trainees and earn the same £45,000 salary. This contrasts with the approach taken by the likes of DWF, which keeps its trainees separate to its legal apprentices — and pays the latter group much lower salaries as they are shepherded towards legal executive careers.

Time will tell which policy becomes the norm. Right now no one knows exactly what will happen, with Eversheds — which has committed to running Trailblazer apprenticeships next year — declining to divulge pay details when asked for this information by Legal Cheek.

The magic circle firms which Legal Cheek contacted for this article are also remaining tight-lipped on their plans. But it’s worth noting Crisp’s further observation that “for a larger firm that is transactional in nature the apprenticeship model is more challenging because they want to be able to plan their resource so that the people they take on can do a certain level of work”.

Still, with top firms in the old days hiring many of their new recruits straight from school via the old “articled clerk” route, there is no reason why structures of working could not be changed to accommodate school-leavers — and create a genuine rival to the training contract.

Previously:

Mayer Brown ups intake on earn-while-you-learn training contract alternative [Legal Cheek]

The post Magic circle considers new ‘Trailblazer’ apprenticeship that combines LLB with paralegal work appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Escaping corporate law

This image depicting an abseiler making their way down the Gherkin appeared recently on the Facebook page of hipster magazine Made in Shoreditch.

It would be remiss of us not to point out that the London office of US firm Kirkland & Ellis is situated on the 20th, 22nd, 23rd, 24th and 25th floors of Britain’s leading pickled cucumber-shaped building.

Kirkland associates are expected to bill a whopping 1,900 hours per year, one of the highest hours targets in the City.

Have a pop at the caption competition in the comments below: absolutely no prizes for the winner …

The post September picture caption competition appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Qualifying trainees at square mile trio Travers Smith, Simmons & Simmons and Fieldfisher experience contrasting fortunes

Silver circle outfit Travers Smith has revealed a strong retention figure of 94%, keeping 17 of its 18 autumn new qualifying (NQ) lawyers.

The firm, which offers around 25 training contracts annually, will place five of its new associates in corporate. Finance and tax will take three a piece while two NQs will be based in the firm’s commercial department. The remaining junior lawyers will be split across dispute resolution, pensions, real estate, financial services and markets.

Travers — which has only two offices, one in the City (pictured above) and the other in Paris — also posted a 94% retention figure this time last year, when it kept 16 of its 17 trainees.

In contrast, London-based international firm Simmons & Simmons has posted a disappointing autumn figure.

The firm, which revealed an encouraging 80% spring figure earlier this year, announced that only 22 of a cohort of 28 actually completed their training. Of those 22 NQs, 19 offers were made, of which 18 were accepted, giving the Moorgate-based outfit an autumn retention figure of just 64%.

It was slightly better news for one of the City’s smaller international firms. Fieldfisher, which offers around 12 training contracts each year, has posted an autumn retention figure of 77%.

The firm announced it would be retaining ten out of a training cohort of 13 NQ lawyers post September. Three trainees will be heading to Fieldfisher’s technology, outsourcing and privacy practice. Competition and corporate will gain two a piece, while real estate, IP and IT/IP litigation will receive a trainee each.

The news follows several pay boosts for lawyers across the City in the past week. Those opting to remain at Fieldfisher will benefit from an improved NQ salary of £62,000, up from £58,0000, while Simmons has increased its NQ pay from £63,000 to £68,000. While last week, Legal Cheek revealed that NQs committing their future to Travers post-qualification would be taking home £70,000, up from £64,000.

Previously:

City law pay bonanza — three firms boost junior wedge by as much as 9% [Legal Cheek]

The post Mixed autumn retention results announced by three City firms appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Story of Stephanie Charbine becomes headline news as glut of law students leaves nearly a third jobless

A wannabe lawyer stuck in paralegal purgatory managed to get a full page spread in the Sunday papers yesterday — after she revealed her training contract heartache.

The national interest in the story of Bristol Uni grad Stephanie Charbine (pictured above) comes as new figures from the ‘Good University Guide’ (£) show that 29% of law students will be in “neither a professional job nor further study six months after graduation”.

It is thought that a glut of aspiring lawyers — law is the third most popular course in British universities, behind nursing and psychology — is behind the problem.

Charbine — who is currently working as a paralegal at niche London family law firm Hughes Fowler Carruthers despite getting a 2:1 in her prestigious LLB — told the Sunday Times (£) about the classic work experience problem she and thousands of other law students face, asking:

It’s a vicious cycle. No one will give you a job without work experience, but how can you get experience if you can’t get a job?

The Rupert Murdoch-owned newspaper went on to quote Charbine’s mum, Carolyn, who, like many out of touch parents, expressed shock that “a good law degree is not a golden ticket”.

A look at Charbine’s LinkedIn profile shows her to have spent a year working in non-law jobs after graduating in 2013 before bagging a mini-pupillage at Fourteen, the family law barristers’ chambers. Off the back of that she landed a paralegal job at London litigation shop Hausfeld, where she did three months, before getting her current role in June this year.

That seems like a tough run, but it looks like Charbine is moving in the right direction. As such, her pledge to “carry on” despite “being rejected at most turns” makes sense. Who knows, maybe Charbine’s evident media savvy will give the folks at Hughes Fowler Carruthers a jolt to offer her a TC?

The post Bristol Uni law grad goes public with training contract rejection pain appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Relax kids, putting your penis in a dead pig’s mouth breaks no law

In response to an incident now being dubbed #piggate across social media, top lawyers are claiming that David Cameron’s alleged placement of his penis in a dead pig’s mouth may have been bizarre but it probably wasn’t illegal.

News broke late last night that the PM may have been a bit of a wild child during his time at Oxford.

In a unauthorised tell all biography entitled “Call me Dave” written by Lord Ashcroft and co-authored by Isabel Oakeshott, it is alleged that Cameron performed an obscene act with a dead pig during a bizarre initiation ceremony at the top university.

Taking to his blog earlier today, self-proclaimed sexual freedoms lawyer Myles Jackman argued that what our Eton-educated PM apparently did was probably within the law.

Jackman — known in social media-circles as “Obscenity Lawyer” — runs through a number of potential offences that could have applied to Cameron’s alleged act, including “intercourse with an animal” and “sexual penetration of a corpse”.

The lawyer, who has regularly advised in matters relating to extreme pornography, rules out Cameron being prosecuted for having “sex” with an animal. He explains that “since the animal in question was not living and nor was its vagina or anus penetrated” no offence has been committed.

Jackman proceeds to rule out “sexual penetration of a corpse” as well, explaining that a pig cannot constitute a “corpse” because “animals are not granted legal personhood at law”.

However Cameron could be on shakier ground when it comes to the offence of “outraging public decency”. Jackman says more information is needed regarding the incident itself — but if Cameron decided to pop his penis in the pig’s mouth in a place where members of the public could see him, then he could well be in trouble.

Finally, with the explosive autobiography revealing that a photograph of the act may be in existence, Jackman points out that the person who has the snap in their possession may also be committing an offence. The lawyer points out the image could constitute possession of extreme pornography.

Finishing his “ham fisted legal analysis”, the self-employed obscenity law guru points out that under European mediaeval law the punishment for bestiality was death. Rather unfairly, this sentence was apparently also applied to the poor animal.

Continuing the bestiality theme, barrister Matthew Scott was also keen to flag up the law relating to #piggate, dredging up on an old blog post of his written about cow-admirer Paul Lovell.

An old post. With a living pig, vaginal or anal sex is illegal but oral sex is legal. Anything goes with a dead pig. http://t.co/L23PlH7i5r

— Matthew Scott (@Barristerblog) September 21, 2015

For those unfamiliar with the 2014 case, Lovell was arrested after a couple spotted him trying to initiate oral sex with cows near Tottenham Hotspur FC’s training ground on the outskirts of London. After that failed, Lovell turned his attention to the sheep, attempting — without success — to penetrate them.

The IT worker, from Enfield, north London, was found guilty of the common law offence of outraging public decency — not bestiality — and was subsequently handed a four-month custodial sentence suspended for 18 months.

Scott’s detailed analysis of the case and the relevant law suggests that Lovell’s major problem — unlike Cameron’s, as far as we know — was that he attempted to perform the sexual act in a public place.

So unless anyone can prove that members of the public spotted Dave committing his alleged act, then it looks like our beloved leader is in the clear.

The post Lawyers rush to claim that David Cameron’s alleged sex act with a pig was legal appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Trolling: Supreme Court Judge-style

Twitter has erupted in anger at comments made by Supreme Court judge Lord Sumption warning of “appalling consequences for justice” if more women are rushed into the judiciary.

Blackstone Chambers‘ Dinah Rose QC is leading the charge against Sumption — who used to work at rival commercial set Brick Court before being fast-tracked into the nation’s highest court in 2012 — with support from former Court of Appeal judge Sir Henry Brooke.

But first more on those crazy Sumption comments — which are so out there and provocative that they almost seem like deliberate trolling from the Supreme Court man.

In an interview in yesterday’s Evening Standard, Sumption urged the legal profession to stick to the glacial pace at which it is increasing female representation in its senior ranks.

To do otherwise, said the top judge who is also famous for penning history books, would be to misunderstand the very nature of time itself. He explained:

These things simply can’t be transformed overnight, not without appalling consequence in other directions. One has to look at the totality of these problems and not simply at one of them. The lack of diversity is a significant problem, but it isn’t the only one. It takes time. You’ve got to be patient. The change in the status and achievements of women in our society, not just in the law but generally, is an enormous cultural change that has happened over the last 50 years or so. It has to happen naturally. It will happen naturally. But in the history of a society like ours, 50 years is a very short time.

If this wasn’t calculated to annoy, then Sumption must be, well, just a naturally very annoying person. Anyway, Twitter went wild — led by Rose:

Lord Sumption knows nothing about the lives of women at the Bar.

— Dinah Rose (@DinahRoseQC) September 21, 2015

Here's what fascinates me: what does Lord Sumption think qualifies him to make these comments? Social scientist as well as a historian?

— Dinah Rose (@DinahRoseQC) September 21, 2015

At her side was former Court of Appeal judge Sir Henry Brooke:

@DinahRoseQC I used to teach judges that if they said silly things people would say that "they all think like that". They don't.

— Henry Brooke (@HenryBrooke1) September 21, 2015

Too many other top lawyers to mention also piled in…

Here is an example of a Judge with (apparently) brain power but absolutely no judgement or wisdom… pic.twitter.com/2UbtGF9rJj

— Mukul Chawla QC (@MChawlaQC) September 21, 2015

Funny how any over representation of women is unacceptable to Lord Sumption but it’s ok that women should wait another 50 years for equality

— anya (@anyabike) September 21, 2015

By the way, the prize for best tweet in the Twitter storm goes to One Crown Office Row barrister Adam Wagner.

Lord Sumption also said he thought Charlotte Proudman looked 'stunning' in her LinkedIn pic #joke #justabout http://t.co/a0yDMfFKxI

— Adam Wagner (@AdamWagner1) September 22, 2015

In the Evening Standard interview, Sumption also said that he backed female equality and wanted to see “hidden barriers to the progress of women” removed, while warning about the “difficult” high attrition rate of female lawyers at partner and QC level. He put this down to “frankly appalling working conditions” that men are more likely to tolerate.

Sumption went on to predict that in the future gender would one day be “a wholly random matter, so it will be either 50/50 or somewhere round there.”

Currently 21 out of 106 High Court judges are female, and just eight of the 38 Court of Appeal judges are women. The 12-strong Supreme Court, meanwhile, has just one female member, Baroness Hale.

The post Lawyers are furious about Lord Sumption’s claim that more women judges ‘could have appalling consequences for justice’ appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Wisdom of regulator’s commitment to inclusivity questioned

The might of the City of London’s finest law firms are lining up for battle with the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) over a proposal that could massively dilute the prestige of the solicitor brand.

To the alarm of top global megafirms who rake in millions in the capital partly thanks to the esteem in which the English legal profession is held, the SRA is considering a new route to qualification that would allow people to qualify as solicitors without completing a qualifying law degree or the Legal Practice Course (LPC). Under the radical plan, the training contract requirement would also be waived for these non-graduates.

So, with the right on-the-job training basically anyone could call themselves a solicitor.

On one hand, this seems progressive — after all, who uses much of what they learnt at university and law school (which of course cost a lot more than they used to)?

But on the other, scrapping all the traditional hoops that wannabe lawyers have to jump through would leave the English legal profession looking rather flimsy in comparison to its counterparts in other countries.

In the US, lawyers must complete a four year liberal arts degree followed by a three year stint at law school. OK, so American law graduates don’t do training contracts and can practice straight out of law school, but their seven years of academic study more than makes up for this.

In Australia, another country without a strict traineeship requirement, time spent at law school is also much greater than on these shores, while in Germany aspiring solicitors have to do a whopping nine years of study.

As such, City of London lawyers feel justified in arguing for the preservation of the training contract. In a response to the SRA, issued via the Law Society, one Square Mile chief summed up the mood, writing:

In the international sphere, UK lawyers are already considered less academically trained than other lawyers. If the SRA’s proposals go ahead, you are totally undermining the position of English law as a qualification. If you take away the training contract, what are you left with?

Legal Cheek caught up with one of these lawyers, Skadden’s Allan Murray-Jones, who stressed that he and his City law pals weren’t against initiatives like Trailblazer apprenticeships and earn-while-you-learn degrees that cut costs for students. Rather, Murray-Jones says that they just want to ensure that solicitor training continues to be of a sufficient length to main credibility. He explained:

Mayer Brown and ULaw’s combined degree and work programme is an excellent development. With it taking place over the course of six years there is clearly no need for a defined training contract to take place within that. Government-backed Trailblazer apprenticeships will also offer great opportunities for firms outside London to reduce training costs. What we take issue with is shortening the necessary period of training to an extent that is too great.

The SRA has not yet given its backing to the proposal to relax training requirements — although it has already allowed a handful of solicitors to qualify via its new “equivalent means” route (dubbed the “paralegal shortcut”). A final decision will be made after a formal consultation expected in December. But it is a measure of how concerned City lawyers are about the regulator’s mood that they have gone on the offensive at this relatively early stage.

In response to the move, SRA education and training boss Julie Brannan commented:

We have not yet made any decisions about the future training of solicitors and all contributions to the debate are helpful. We are pleased that firms welcome the clarification around standards for solicitors and have expressed their cautious support for a centralised assessment.

The post City firms’ horror at plan to let people with no law degree or LPC qualify as solicitors without doing a training contract appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Mid-tier pair bid adios to high proportion of new qualifiers

More evidenced has emerged of the difficult position some mid-tier firms find themselves in as Olswang and Osborne Clarke have revealed retention rates of just 50% and 67% respectively.

Holborn-based Olswang — whose reputation for being a hip place to train has subsided in recent years as its foray beyond media work has proved challenging — has offered newly qualified roles to just five out of its ten trainees qualifying this autumn.

Meanwhile, Osborne Clarke has failed to hang onto three of its nine qualifying trainees, leaving the firm with just six newly qualified associates starting this month.

Interestingly, Olswang has indicated that the decision to lose the trainees was its own, issuing a statement to the media that pledges to “continue to support them in their search for a new position”.

Whereas Osborne Clarke’s departing trainees’ seem to have orchestrated their own exit. A spokesperson for the firm told Legal Cheek:

We’ve retained six great young lawyers and have said goodbye to three from this September’s qualifying group. Congratulations to those who’ve joined us and best of luck to those who have decided to pursue their careers elsewhere.

Of those who’ve decided to hang around, London Wall-based QC revealed that just three associates would be based in the firm’s London headquarters, with the remainder in Bristol, where pay is nearly £16,000 per year less than in the City.

It is not known where the new qualifiers at Olswang — which has a big Reading office alongside its London headquarters — will reside.

As Legal Cheek has noted previously, outfits in this category are increasingly finding themselves being raided by better paying US firms’ London offices as they bid to bulk up in the capital. This may explain why OC has this year upped London NQ pay from £60,000 to £62,500.

Still, that remains a long way short of what the Americans offer.

The post Olswang and Osborne Clarke hit by trainee exodus appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Highest court moves to quell Twitter storm

The UK’s top court has been forced to come to the defence of one of its own, stating that controversial comments made by Lord Sumption regarding female judges “appear to have been misunderstood”.

During an interview given to the Evening Standard yesterday Lord Sumption — who is one of 12 Supreme Court justices — suggested that there would be “appalling consequences for justice” if more women are rushed into the judiciary.

Naturally — as Legal Cheek reported earlier today — it all then kicked off on Twitter, with many legal heavyweights quick to point out just how wrong they thought Sumption’s views were.

Here is an example of a Judge with (apparently) brain power but absolutely no judgement or wisdom… pic.twitter.com/2UbtGF9rJj

— Mukul Chawla QC (@MChawlaQC) September 21, 2015

With comments gaining widespread media coverage, the Supreme Court has moved to clarify where Sumption stands by issuing a statement. In the tweet posted from the court’s official Twitter account it mentions “apparent misunderstandings”:

A response to some apparent misunderstandings around focus of Lord #Sumption diversity comments https://t.co/IX295OJEYD

— UK Supreme Court (@UKSupremeCourt) September 22, 2015

The statement in full reads:

Some of Lord Sumption’s comments appear to have been misunderstood. The full quotes make clear that he believes that increasing diversity at all levels of the profession is important, and that the range of hidden barriers to improving diversity – particularly of the judiciary – present a very complex problem. Nowhere did he try and reduce this to a simple question of ‘lifestyle choice’. The concern he expressed was against introducing any form of positive discrimination to the judicial appointments system without careful analysis of the full range of potential consequences.

Straight to bed with no supper for his Lordship tonight.

Previously:

Lawyers are furious about Lord Sumption’s claim that more women judges ‘could have appalling consequences for justice’ [Legal Cheek]

The post Supreme Court says some of Lord Sumption’s comments ‘appear to have been misunderstood’ appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Duo both keep 85% of new-qualifiers — hanging onto a combined 34 trainees out of 40

Well-known London private client firm Mishcon de Reya and self-styled northern powerhouse Addleshaw Goddard have both announced trainee retention rates of 85%.

Mishcon has today revealed that 11 of their 13 strong qualifying trainee cohort will remain with it upon qualification.

The firm, which began life in a one-room office in Brixton, south London, seems to be in good health. Earlier this month, Legal Cheek revealed that it was upping its target trainee intake from 12 to 15 — part of a wider City trend that has seen graduate numbers increased by a host of firms, including White & Case, Ashurst and Squire Patton Boggs.

Meanwhile, Addleshaw Goddard has revealed that it is hanging onto 23 out of 27 trainees.

The firm told Legal Cheek that 13 of the newly qualified solicitors would remain at Addleshaw’s City of London headquarters, while the Manchester office would receive eight rookies and Leeds would gain six.

Both Mishcon and Addleshaw have improved on their autumn 2014 retention figures, when they kept, respectively, 72% and 82% of their trainees.

Pay at the two outfits varies. At Lincoln’s Inn Fields-based Mishcon, trainees start on what is a relatively modest — by London commercial law firm standards — £34,000. However the firm prefers not disclose what it pays its newly qualified (NQ) associates. Please feel free to enlighten us in the comments.

Like many firms with a presence in the regions, there is a big discrepancy between what Addleshaw pays its junior lawyer in and outside London. Trainees in the capital start on £37,000, but those up north get just £25,000, while newly qualified rates are £62,000 in the Square Mile but a mere £40,000 in Leeds and Manchester.

The post Mishcon de Reya and Addleshaw Goddard post encouraging autumn retention results appeared first on Legal Cheek.

It’s all about the quality of the deals — and the on-site pool

Following the shock news of the tragic death of Matrix Chambers’ pet fish, Legal Cheek is back with some more hard-hitting aquatic legal news.

Magic circle giant Clifford Chance has announced that it is swimming lesson season for its lawyers.

Somewhat bizarrely, the Canary Wharf-based firm placed a paid-for advertisement (pictured below) on Facebook to mark the news. It seems to have been a not-so-subtle way of reminding the nation’s wannabe lawyer that, unlike its rivals, CC has an on-site pool (pictured from different angles above and below).

Certainly, the megafirm seems proud of its swimming bath, which is apparently situated on the fifth floor of Clifford Chance’s Upper Bank Street HQ. On its website the firm trumpets:

There is a 20 x 8 metre swimming pool which, like the gym, features floor-to-ceiling windows with views out over Canary Wharf.

Nice. But surely the high-calibre types who apply to Clifford Chance aren’t so superficial that they are swayed by promises of a swim overlooking Canary Wharf in a questionable atmosphere of “back to school vibes”?

Still, the promise of a “free” splash in CC’s pool is undoubtedly an interesting one…

Yet when Legal Cheek enquired about the possibility of improving on its breaststroke, the corporate behemoth told us that the pool is only available to employees.

The local leisure centre it is, then.

The post Surely future magic circle lawyers aren’t sufficiently superficial to be swayed by the promise of a free swim? appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Inaugural Commercial Awareness Question Time takes place at London office of global firm

Three solicitors at Norton Rose Fulbright have helped students to develop their commercial awareness at a free event covering hot topics in the financial and legal news.

Banking partner Dan Metcalfe, competition law associate Amanda Town and asset finance newly qualified solicitor Tom Capel fielded questions on, among other things, the Chinese slowdown, the Greek debt crisis and innovation in the legal market.

The 40 strong audience was made up of wannabe lawyers who submitted their CVs and two questions each for the panel about topical issues. Legal Cheek editor Alex Aldridge chaired the discussion — about which some reflections can be viewed in the video below.

Highlights included Metcalfe’s tales from the frontline on the rock bottom oil price — and how it wasn’t, as some of the audience had expected, leading to a boom in renewables investment. He explained:

With energy being one of our headline key industry strengths, we advise not only on oil and gas work but also renewables projects. The falling oil price has created both challenges and opportunities, but it hasn’t had a particular impact on renewables, which tend to be quite expensive to develop and are driven more by social and environmental factors rather than the price of oil or gas.

Meanwhile, Town provided some fascinating insights about working on EU competition law at a time of European political upheaval. Would her job change if there was a “Brexit”? This is how she responded:

Initially I suppose there would an influx of advisory work as companies adjust to the new legal and commercial landscape, but beyond that on a day-to-day level it might not change as much as you would think. After all, if a UK company sold products into Europe they would still be subject to EU law. The only thing that will immediately change is that the UK would remain subject to the burdens of compliance with EU laws and regulation and lose the benefits of having a say on those laws. Certainly, though, there would be wider implications which would only become fully apparent over time.

Finally, Capel explained how it was important to understand that commercial awareness is vital for providing a proper service to a client, but also to spotting new opportunities for the practice. He noted that it is particularly important to demonstrate you understand these two layers of commercial awareness at interview. Discussing Norton Rose Fulbright’s increasing focus on Latin America, he told the audience:

On one level, it is about understanding the regulatory and business environment facing our clients in a jurisdiction, but on the other you need to understand that the practice is a business in itself and think about why it is looking to enter a particularly market. Ultimately the two work together: to realise our commercial goals we have to help clients achieve theirs.

Keep an eye on the Legal Cheek Hub for details of our next Commercial Awareness Question Time.

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The post Norton Rose Fulbright lawyers field financial and legal news questions from 40 students appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Luke Holland, who was with magic circle firm until 2013, killed outside nightclub

A former Freshfields rookie lawyer who quit the firm two years ago to launch a tech start-up has been shot dead in Berlin.

Luke Holland, 31, was shot in the stomach as he left the Del Rex nightclub in the Neukolln area of the German capital by a man reported to have been angered by noise from the venue.

Holland, who did his training contract at the magic firm’s London office between 2009-2011 before working for two years as an associate, moved to Berlin last year to launch a mobile phone music start-up after quitting the law in 2013.

The ex-private equity specialist was found at 6am on Sunday in a pool of blood by a passer-by and died on his way to hospital. News of the death only reached the media yesterday. It soon emerged that Holland was a former Freshfields lawyer.

According to a witness at the scene, the suspect was wearing a cowboy hat and long black leather jacket. He apparently ran into a nearby apartment block that was later raided by police who found an arsenal of weapons.

It is understood that Holland — who studied law at Sheffield University, graduating in 2006, before doing his Legal Practice Course at BPP after a year teaching English in Japan — lived in the same block as the suspect. A neighbour told newspapers that the suspect “regularly spends the morning banging on the windows [of the adjoining nightclub] if the party sounds were too loud”.

Tributes have been pouring in on Facebook to Holland, who has been described as “amazing”, “talented” and “a true inspiration”.

The post Former Freshfields junior lawyer, 31, shot dead in Berlin appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Crumbling justice system sees solicitor forced to take on pet-sitting duties

After a particularly stressful day, a legal aid lawyer has taken to Facebook to give a first-hand account of life on the front-line — and has seen his post go viral with, so far, over 4,000 shares.

Phil Mahoney, a solicitor specialising in criminal defence work, wrote earlier this week on his personal social media page a diatribe about the crumbling justice system in which he heavily criticised — among other things — the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and the government.

So bad have things become, explains the Usmani King Solicitors lawyer, that he has even been forced to look after an imprisoned client’s pet cat. In the post, Mahoney writes:

When I left the office I didn’t go home. Instead, I added an hour to my journey by driving in the opposite direction to go and feed a client’s cats. He got remanded a few days ago. The police suffered one of their frequent not-my-job-can’t-be-arsed attacks and left his cats in situ. It’s not my job either, but the RSPCA and Cats Protection will only take them if he signs them over for permanent re-homing, which seems a bit harsh as he hasn’t been convicted of anything yet, and even if he was agreeable, he can’t do anything right now because he’s in prison. So I went and fed the cats, because no one else was willing to.

Elsewhere in the lengthy status (which is reproduced in full below), the Leighton Buzzard-based solicitor — who has been practising for 12 years having graduated from Sheffield University — claims that the latest round of legal aid cuts will cause firms which do their jobs properly to go bankrupt. He writes:

The only way to stay in business will be deal with a large number of cases and pressure all your clients into pleading guilty. If you think that is a result which the government has achieved by accident, then you’re a fucking idiot.

In the post Mahoney also lambasts the CPS for allegedly failing to serve evidence in a case he was dealing with that day, which he says was a “breach” of its disclosure obligations.

When contacted by Legal Cheek, the CPS was unable to comment on this allegation due to the lack of information regarding the trial itself.

Mahoney — speaking to us yesterday — also declined to comment further as the case is still ongoing. Of the Facebook post in general, he said:

I must admit to being a little taken aback by the amount of interest which my Facebook post appears to have attracted. I post these things for the interest of my friends and it has come as quite a shock to see the number of times this has been shared.

Mahoney’s Facebook status in full:

The post Legal aid lawyer’s Facebook status about feeding client’s cat goes viral appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Taking the piss

Management at Gloucester and Cheltenham County Court and Family Court have been forced to close the toilets in their advocates’ lounge — due to what they describe in an official notice as “continued misuse”.

A sign (pictured above) has appeared recently on the toilet door informing lawyers that they can no longer be trusted to use the facilities.

The notice — from the court’s delivery manager, Mrs L. Overbury — directs lawyers to use the public toilets in the court’s foyer from now on.

A crafty cigarette, a financially-strapped pupil using it as a bedsit, or even a dirty protest over impending legal aid cuts, Legal Cheek can only speculate as to what “continued misuse” refers to…

The post Lawyers at Gloucester County Court have toilet privileges withdrawn over ‘continued misuse’ appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Latham & Watkins now offering more training contracts than many mid-tier City outfits

Californian-heavyweight Latham & Watkins has revealed that it’s to boost trainee intake in London for the 2015-16 recruitment round from 20 to 24.

The move marks a chunky 20% increase — and comes hot-on-the heels of a substantial pay rise given to the firm’s junior lawyers in the capital.

Over the summer Latham upped its newly-qualified (NQ) lawyer pay to a staggering £101,000. The cash injection saw the global powerhouse surpass big-paying US counterparts Akin Gump and Davis Polk, which — despite having smaller trainee intakes — both pay NQs a mere £100,000 a year.

But Latham isn’t the City’s top NQ remunerator. Leading the junior lawyer pay table — as Legal Cheek exclusively revealed back in August — is white shoe stalwart Sullivan & Cromwell.

The firm’s London office sent a powerful message to its City competitors by raising first year associate pay to an eye-watering £101,500. The increase left the nearest English firm, magic circle player Allen & Overy, languishing £23,000 behind.

Today’s news about Latham’s graduate intake increase follows a number of similar recent moves by other top firms.

Earlier this month global titan White & Case revealed that it will boost its London intake from 30 trainees to 40, an increase of 33%. Meanwhile silver circle firm Ashurst revealed a graduate recruitment target increase of 12.5%. The silver circle firm hopes to hire 45 aspiring solicitors for the 2015-16 recruitment round.

The post US firm that pays London newly qualified lawyers £101k boosts trainee intake by 20% appeared first on Legal Cheek.