1. BFUWI and Coventry University Legal Workshop
(14 November 2015)
Careers in Law:
Global Options, Local Opportunities 2015
Student Review of Legal Workshop
by Mitica Matthews
On the 14th of November, I attended the ‘Careers in Law: Global Options, Local
Opportunities’ Legal Workshop organised by Coventry University Law School in
collaboration with the British Foundation for the University of the West Indies (BFUWI). The
purpose of this student focused legal workshop, was to enhance participants’ knowledge of
the legal profession, including the various positions and routes available to qualify; and to
1

2. educate participants on the different sectors of the legal profession available to pursue both
nationally and internationally.
Having attended numerous legal fairs, events and workshops throughout my undergraduate
degree, none of them were as beneficial, or could compare to this. Each speaker presented
with passion and I found every single panel discussion to be a very educational experience. I
was particularly impressed with the wealth of talent from diverse sectors that attended the
workshop.
As a final year LLB Law student who harbours firmly rooted aspirations to pursue a career at
the Bar, I found the Skills and Qualifications panel discussion particularly enlightening. I
appreciated the high level of honesty and emphasis, on the intensity of competition that the
legal profession currently faces; nothing was sugar coated. More specifically, I was astonished
to learn that there are currently 132,864 (employed) Solicitors in comparison to 15,600 (self-
employed & employed) Barristers. Suzanne Reece, Panellist spoke about her experience of
reviewing pupillage applications, and thus was able to offer fantastic practical advice about
making your application stand out. Given the ‘chronic shortage of pupillages' at the Bar, this
panel discussion particularly resonated with me, as it is important that my applications are
distinctive. Furthermore, the discussion increased my motivation to try and achieve the best
classification results possible.
Perhaps my favourite panel discussion was ‘Life in Private Practice’. This is due to the fact
that I was very much so inspired and fascinated to learn about their distinguishable journeys
into the profession and their experiences in practice to date. For example, I really enjoyed the
presentation by Richard Wilson QC, as he gave practical advice on both written and oral
communication; some of which was useful for both mooting and academics. The presentation
by Dawn Brathwaite, Partner at Mills & Reeve used her firm as a case study and this proved
particularly useful for insight into the application process.
Overall, the immensely talented professionals led a thought-provoking and compelling
session. I especially enjoyed the discussion concerning both the current and future challenges
faced by the legal profession and welcomed the literature recommended for further analysis
on the topic. The guest speakers were extremely enthusiastic and it was clear that each of the
panellists came with the intention of being both helpful and informative. Unfortunately, due to
time constraints, we were not afforded the opportunity to network with the guest speakers at
the workshop. However, we were invited to obtain their contact details to network with them
at a later date via email or social media. Since the event, I have made contact with numerous
guest speakers and they have proven to be as sincere and down-to-earth as they were at the
event.
Mitica Matthews
Final year Law Student, Birmingham City University
2