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Imagine a barrister. What comes to mind? Male, White, went to public school, followed by Oxford or Cambridge? That may be the stereotype, but the Bar is changing, applicants from all walks of life are positively encouraged, and it is vital that we recruit the best talent, regardless of background, so that we continue to have a diverse and representative Bar.
For my part I was the first in my family to go to university, I didn’t know any barristers, or solicitors, and had no idea where to start. I wasn’t one of the ‘straight A’ students at school and when I told my teachers I wanted to be a barrister they suggested I perhaps try and easier course, such as media studies. Despite all this I was determined to be a barrister, and I therefore applied to read law and German at Nottingham Trent University. I only got BBD in my A-Levels so I knew that I was at a disadvantage from the outset. If I was going to succeed, I would have to do it the hard way.
My law degree was just the start of my journey. I began to look at the numbers, at the time I was studying, roughly 10,000 students were graduating each year with a law degree. Of those 10,000 just 1,000 went to Bar school, and after that there were only 350 pupillages. The numbers were against me. It only made me more determined.
A career at the Bar starts at university, so if you want to succeed you have to put the time in now. It is not simply about getting a 2:1 or 1st in your degree – almost everyone applying for pupillage has that. You need to undertake activities that make you stand out from your fellow students. When I started university we had to do mooting as part of one of our modules, but there were no opportunities to do so on an extra curricular basis, I therefore started a mooting society, where we could hone our skills, compete against each other but without exam grades riding on the result.
This extra practice is ultimately what enabled me to get pupillage. I won the Nottingham Law School Ropewalk Moot, and the judge of the final wrote to his old chambers, No5, to suggest they interview me. At this point that chambers had rejected me on paper as my grades simply weren’t good enough, but once I had been able to demonstrate my ability they were willing to offer me an interview, and from that I was offered pupillage. Fast forward 21 years and I am still at the same chambers, having taken silk in 2017.
While at university I made sure that my CV wasn’t completely law related. I worked for the student radio station and ended up hosting the breakfast show. Don’t assume that your CV has to be full of ‘legal’ work experience. Working in radio gave me transferrable skills. It demonstrated confidence, vital at the Bar, and how I could think on my feet. It also showed that I was somebody who could manage my workload as I sometimes hosted the late night show from midnight to 2.30am, or the breakfast show where I was out of the house at 5.30am, would host the show and then go on to my 9am lecture. The Bar requires hard work and resilience and being able to demonstrate these skills in a different way made me stand out.
Once at the Bar, I felt a great deal of imposter syndrome. I couldn’t believe that I got to work with all of these incredibly bright people, all of whom seemed so sophisticated to me. I looked young, I was inexperienced, and I was scared. I realised that I needed to work harder than my peers, and those a couple of years above me, if I was to make an impression.
I began by reviewing my pupil supervisor’s cases. I read every one and produced a case summary. This helped me to understand each case, and was also useful to my supervisor. When other barristers had to cover his returns, they commented on how helpful the summary had been. This, in turn, ensured I was noticed by other members of chambers, which was useful when it came to the tenancy vote.
When it came to going to court, I adopted a similar approach. If you are junior you have to earn the respect of your peers, your clients, and your clerks. You do this by adopting a can-do attitude. I never said ‘No’ to going to a far-flung court even when, leaving the house one bleary morning at 4.15am to travel to Middlesbrough, I was questioning my life choices. I frequently felt out of my depth, but a key skill was not letting the client realise I was scared.
During my second six one client asked me how many trials I had done. At this point the answer was two. Instead of saying that, I just smiled enigmatically and said, ‘Enough.’ This false display of confidence enabled my client to believe in me, and is something all aspiring barristers need to do – portray confidence even when you don’t feel it.
I came to the Bar because I love advocacy, but the Bar has proven to be so much more than that. What I adore is the fact I deal with different cases every day, travel to courts all over the country and meet people from all walks of life. The Bar is not for you if you like predictability, but I could not face the idea of going to the same office, day in, day out.
I came to realise that success at the Bar did not depend on which school or university I had been to, but instead I was responsible for my own success or failure. This level of independence and ability to shape my own future galvanised me. I would write up the results of my cases and contact solicitors straight away. I prepared each case even if I knew that ultimately I wasn’t the trial advocate. When I went into court, I may not have been the brightest, or the most experienced, but I was the best prepared. Opponents underestimated me, something I was able to use to my advantage. My hard work was noticed, and I began to be instructed as a junior in some heavyweight prosecution cases. My attention to detail meant senior barristers wanted to work with me, and by watching them I myself gained valuable experience.
Nobody in court cared about my A-Levels, nor the fact I was the first to go to university in my family. They cared if I could do the job. If you are self-motivated there is no greater feeling than being instructed in a good case, knowing you have been instructed because of your talent and hard work, rather than because you fulfil a certain stereotype.
There is no age limit in applying for silk, or to become a Recorder, which is why I was a Recorder at the age of 34. The only limits to your career are ones you place on yourself. You need tenacity, a capacity for hard work and confidence, but the rewards are a career that fulfils you intellectually and emotionally. Think about the stereotype I described in the first paragraph of this article, then ignore it. Barristers are individuals. It doesn’t matter where you are from; it’s about the limits you set yourself.
Michelle Heeley KC was Leader of the Midland Circuit from 2021 to 2024. She is a silk at No5 Barrister’s Chambers. Michelle took silk in 2017, at the time the youngest criminal silk in the country. She became Leader of the Midland Circuit in October 2021. Michelle sits as a Recorder and holds a Serious Sexual Offences Certificate. She specialises in crime, criminal fraud and proceeds of crime, misconduct and compliance and regulatory law.
Imagine a barrister. What comes to mind? Male, White, went to public school, followed by Oxford or Cambridge? That may be the stereotype, but the Bar is changing, applicants from all walks of life are positively encouraged, and it is vital that we recruit the best talent, regardless of background, so that we continue to have a diverse and representative Bar.
For my part I was the first in my family to go to university, I didn’t know any barristers, or solicitors, and had no idea where to start. I wasn’t one of the ‘straight A’ students at school and when I told my teachers I wanted to be a barrister they suggested I perhaps try and easier course, such as media studies. Despite all this I was determined to be a barrister, and I therefore applied to read law and German at Nottingham Trent University. I only got BBD in my A-Levels so I knew that I was at a disadvantage from the outset. If I was going to succeed, I would have to do it the hard way.
My law degree was just the start of my journey. I began to look at the numbers, at the time I was studying, roughly 10,000 students were graduating each year with a law degree. Of those 10,000 just 1,000 went to Bar school, and after that there were only 350 pupillages. The numbers were against me. It only made me more determined.
A career at the Bar starts at university, so if you want to succeed you have to put the time in now. It is not simply about getting a 2:1 or 1st in your degree – almost everyone applying for pupillage has that. You need to undertake activities that make you stand out from your fellow students. When I started university we had to do mooting as part of one of our modules, but there were no opportunities to do so on an extra curricular basis, I therefore started a mooting society, where we could hone our skills, compete against each other but without exam grades riding on the result.
This extra practice is ultimately what enabled me to get pupillage. I won the Nottingham Law School Ropewalk Moot, and the judge of the final wrote to his old chambers, No5, to suggest they interview me. At this point that chambers had rejected me on paper as my grades simply weren’t good enough, but once I had been able to demonstrate my ability they were willing to offer me an interview, and from that I was offered pupillage. Fast forward 21 years and I am still at the same chambers, having taken silk in 2017.
While at university I made sure that my CV wasn’t completely law related. I worked for the student radio station and ended up hosting the breakfast show. Don’t assume that your CV has to be full of ‘legal’ work experience. Working in radio gave me transferrable skills. It demonstrated confidence, vital at the Bar, and how I could think on my feet. It also showed that I was somebody who could manage my workload as I sometimes hosted the late night show from midnight to 2.30am, or the breakfast show where I was out of the house at 5.30am, would host the show and then go on to my 9am lecture. The Bar requires hard work and resilience and being able to demonstrate these skills in a different way made me stand out.
Once at the Bar, I felt a great deal of imposter syndrome. I couldn’t believe that I got to work with all of these incredibly bright people, all of whom seemed so sophisticated to me. I looked young, I was inexperienced, and I was scared. I realised that I needed to work harder than my peers, and those a couple of years above me, if I was to make an impression.
I began by reviewing my pupil supervisor’s cases. I read every one and produced a case summary. This helped me to understand each case, and was also useful to my supervisor. When other barristers had to cover his returns, they commented on how helpful the summary had been. This, in turn, ensured I was noticed by other members of chambers, which was useful when it came to the tenancy vote.
When it came to going to court, I adopted a similar approach. If you are junior you have to earn the respect of your peers, your clients, and your clerks. You do this by adopting a can-do attitude. I never said ‘No’ to going to a far-flung court even when, leaving the house one bleary morning at 4.15am to travel to Middlesbrough, I was questioning my life choices. I frequently felt out of my depth, but a key skill was not letting the client realise I was scared.
During my second six one client asked me how many trials I had done. At this point the answer was two. Instead of saying that, I just smiled enigmatically and said, ‘Enough.’ This false display of confidence enabled my client to believe in me, and is something all aspiring barristers need to do – portray confidence even when you don’t feel it.
I came to the Bar because I love advocacy, but the Bar has proven to be so much more than that. What I adore is the fact I deal with different cases every day, travel to courts all over the country and meet people from all walks of life. The Bar is not for you if you like predictability, but I could not face the idea of going to the same office, day in, day out.
I came to realise that success at the Bar did not depend on which school or university I had been to, but instead I was responsible for my own success or failure. This level of independence and ability to shape my own future galvanised me. I would write up the results of my cases and contact solicitors straight away. I prepared each case even if I knew that ultimately I wasn’t the trial advocate. When I went into court, I may not have been the brightest, or the most experienced, but I was the best prepared. Opponents underestimated me, something I was able to use to my advantage. My hard work was noticed, and I began to be instructed as a junior in some heavyweight prosecution cases. My attention to detail meant senior barristers wanted to work with me, and by watching them I myself gained valuable experience.
Nobody in court cared about my A-Levels, nor the fact I was the first to go to university in my family. They cared if I could do the job. If you are self-motivated there is no greater feeling than being instructed in a good case, knowing you have been instructed because of your talent and hard work, rather than because you fulfil a certain stereotype.
There is no age limit in applying for silk, or to become a Recorder, which is why I was a Recorder at the age of 34. The only limits to your career are ones you place on yourself. You need tenacity, a capacity for hard work and confidence, but the rewards are a career that fulfils you intellectually and emotionally. Think about the stereotype I described in the first paragraph of this article, then ignore it. Barristers are individuals. It doesn’t matter where you are from; it’s about the limits you set yourself.
The Chair of the Bar reports back
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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
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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
