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When I applied for pupillage, I thought my route to becoming a barrister was not a typical one. I hadn’t studied undergraduate law and didn’t have much interest in working in dusty courtrooms or in what I perceived to be an ‘ultra professional’ occupation that wasn’t particularly interested in people like me (queer, half-Irish women from Stoke-on-Trent).
While living in Russia in my early 20s, I became increasingly aware of the fragility of my own rights and those of others. Back in the UK, I began to realise how inaccessible the law is for the majority of people and how broken the justice system is in some important respects. One day, I found myself having to represent a young client of mine at a Magistrates’ Court because there was no duty solicitor to do so, and that’s the moment I decided to become a barrister.
Nine years on, I am working in human rights and civil liberties and that makes sense to me. It makes sense because I love working for and with people who are disenfranchised by poverty and discrimination and I am not motivated by a lavish lifestyle. Like many others at the human rights and civil liberties Bar, I am driven by a value system in which I believe that every person should have access to good quality legal advice and representation that is free, or at least affordable, at the point of access.
I have taken time to spell out my motivation for becoming a barrister because it is so important when applying for pupillage. The criminal barristers’ strike action in 2022 re-emphasised the dire pay and conditions under which legal aid barristers sometimes work. If you are determined to become a human rights and civil liberties barrister, the first thing you need is to interrogate within yourself, and articulate on paper, your motivation for doing so. It is not only essential for your application but is also essential to carry you through your first years of practice.
If you are applying to a chambers that has a motto, try to understand what it means and tailor your application to it. You can find out more by looking at members’ profiles or notable cases, and social media. Don’t worry about understanding everything about the human rights and civil liberties Bar because that’s impossible before you start but do understand that it comprises many areas of law; for example, housing (including housing possession, disrepair, homelessness), immigration and asylum, public law (including social security and welfare benefits), Court of Protection, family, criminal and protest defence, inquests and inquiries, community care and prison law. Show why you’re interested in any or all of these areas of law through your work and lived experience.
The human rights and civil liberties Bar is not a homogenous group of people. We all have different perspectives and different experiences. I have given my own example of an ‘atypical’ route to the Bar but in reality there are very few ‘typical’ examples among legal aid lawyers. Work hard to understand what makes you unique, because you are, and convey that in your application.
If you don’t have much experience in human rights or civil liberties, get some. It doesn’t have to be legal work experience per se, it can be through voluntary or charity work or work in the public sector. Whatever you do, be sure to express in your application how that experience is relevant to the work of a barrister and how it links back to the work of the chambers you are applying to.
Ciara Bartlam is a barrister and Chair of the Pupillage Committee at Garden Court North Chambers. She specialises in representing bereaved families at inquests.
When I applied for pupillage, I thought my route to becoming a barrister was not a typical one. I hadn’t studied undergraduate law and didn’t have much interest in working in dusty courtrooms or in what I perceived to be an ‘ultra professional’ occupation that wasn’t particularly interested in people like me (queer, half-Irish women from Stoke-on-Trent).
While living in Russia in my early 20s, I became increasingly aware of the fragility of my own rights and those of others. Back in the UK, I began to realise how inaccessible the law is for the majority of people and how broken the justice system is in some important respects. One day, I found myself having to represent a young client of mine at a Magistrates’ Court because there was no duty solicitor to do so, and that’s the moment I decided to become a barrister.
Nine years on, I am working in human rights and civil liberties and that makes sense to me. It makes sense because I love working for and with people who are disenfranchised by poverty and discrimination and I am not motivated by a lavish lifestyle. Like many others at the human rights and civil liberties Bar, I am driven by a value system in which I believe that every person should have access to good quality legal advice and representation that is free, or at least affordable, at the point of access.
I have taken time to spell out my motivation for becoming a barrister because it is so important when applying for pupillage. The criminal barristers’ strike action in 2022 re-emphasised the dire pay and conditions under which legal aid barristers sometimes work. If you are determined to become a human rights and civil liberties barrister, the first thing you need is to interrogate within yourself, and articulate on paper, your motivation for doing so. It is not only essential for your application but is also essential to carry you through your first years of practice.
If you are applying to a chambers that has a motto, try to understand what it means and tailor your application to it. You can find out more by looking at members’ profiles or notable cases, and social media. Don’t worry about understanding everything about the human rights and civil liberties Bar because that’s impossible before you start but do understand that it comprises many areas of law; for example, housing (including housing possession, disrepair, homelessness), immigration and asylum, public law (including social security and welfare benefits), Court of Protection, family, criminal and protest defence, inquests and inquiries, community care and prison law. Show why you’re interested in any or all of these areas of law through your work and lived experience.
The human rights and civil liberties Bar is not a homogenous group of people. We all have different perspectives and different experiences. I have given my own example of an ‘atypical’ route to the Bar but in reality there are very few ‘typical’ examples among legal aid lawyers. Work hard to understand what makes you unique, because you are, and convey that in your application.
If you don’t have much experience in human rights or civil liberties, get some. It doesn’t have to be legal work experience per se, it can be through voluntary or charity work or work in the public sector. Whatever you do, be sure to express in your application how that experience is relevant to the work of a barrister and how it links back to the work of the chambers you are applying to.
The Chair of the Bar reports back
Clement Cowley, Partner at The Penny Group, explains how global events can influence the performance of pensions and ISAs, and why taking a long-term approach to investing is often the most effective strategy
Mário Barroso, Head of R&D and Method Development at AlphaBiolabs, discusses what family law professionals need to know about hallucinogens, from the main hallucinogenic drugs encountered in family proceedings, to their effects and the testing options available
Harmony Christian Ministries is the latest charity to benefit from a £500 donation from AlphaBiolabs via the company’s Giving Back initiative
By David Green
Mário Barroso, Head of R&D and Method Development at AlphaBiolabs, examines the forensic science underpinning hair drug testing, its evidential scope and limitations, and why it remains the gold standard for evidencing patterns of drug use in family proceedings
Developing a tech start-up demands a different definition of excellence to the Bar, says Saara Idelbi. The co-creator of Advocatr on entrepreneurship, AI advocacy training, and matching the thrill of a killer cross-examination
At the start of her term, Chair of the Bar 2026 Kirsty Brimelow KC set out a series of priorities for the year ahead. One of those priorities was children in the justice system
As the world becomes more digital, Barbara Vinagre Mota examines international research into the mental health consequences of judges’ exposure to graphic and immersive evidence, highlighting the importance of support systems
Reviewed by Daniel Barnett
James McNeill Whistler at Tate Britain until 27 September Rothko in Florence at Palazzo Strozzi until 23 August Reviewed by Stephen Cragg KC
