Many people look into barrister jobs as a way to earn large amounts of money and although this is true, this should not be your main reason to start these graduate legal jobs as you will need a genuine love of the job and the ability to work long hours under incredible pressure. Getting barrister jobs in the UK is fairly straightforward when talking about the route taken but these graduate legal jobs are in extremely high demand and only the best land barrister jobs. If you are interested in graduate legal jobs and barrister jobs in particular, read on.
Graduate Legal Jobs – Barrister Jobs
- The first step in the journey of getting barrister jobs is to undertake a degree in a relevant subject. A law degree is by far the most sensible to be able to progress into graduate legal jobs but it is possible to do other degrees and then take a law conversion course.
- Once you have enrolled and completed this step, the next step in the process to finding barrister jobs is to become part of one of the four Inns of Court in the UK and undertake a 1 year (or 2 year part time) Bar Vocational Course which when completed, you’ll be called to the Bar.
- After the BVC, is the last step to becoming fully qualified and opening the door for barrister jobs is to undertake two 6 month pupillages, shadowing a practicing barrister to gain the relevant experience required to move on to full time barrister jobs. These graduate legal jobs will often be completed on minimum wage and they are highly competitive so only the best will get through. At every stage of getting graduate legal jobs, there is no guarantee that you will progress to the next.
- Barrister jobs differ from other legal jobs in that barristers are allowed to represent clients in court. Often, those with barrister jobs will work with a solicitor who advises the client and prepares the case for the barrister to present.
- Barrister jobs involve long hours, high pressure and the ability to be able to quickly collate vast amounts of information for a court case. Dedication, wit and intelligence are absolutely essential for these graduate legal jobs. The pay off for these challenging working conditions is the fact that the wages for barrister jobs can be huge. The very top barristers may earn £1m+ per year and although this is quite rare, £100k+ per year is certainly attainable.
You can search for a wide range of barrister jobs and graduate legal jobs here on Simply Law Jobs.
Solicitor jobs are one of the two main routes available to people fresh out of university, the other of which is barrister jobs. These graduate legal jobs can lead to big wages and excellent job prospects but legal jobs require years of continuous training and hard work. If you are interested in getting into solicitor jobs though, this guide will help you out.
Getting Into Graduate Legal Jobs
- The first step to getting into solicitor jobs is to undertake a relevant university degree. A law degree is by far the most sensible degree to undertake to get into solicitor jobs but if you have done another degree it is possible to undertake a Common Professional Examination (CPE), a Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) or to be become qualified as a fellow in the Institute of Legal Executives (ILEX). After you have obtained these qualifications it is then time to undertake the next stage to get into graduate legal jobs.
- The next step in becoming eligible for solicitor jobs is to enrol and complete a Legal Practice Course (LPC). This course will either last 1 year full time or 2 years part time. After you have completed this it is time to undertake two years vocational training in graduate legal jobs.
- These vocational graduate legal jobs will allow you to gain all the necessary experience and final qualifications (such as the Professional Skills Course) to be able to move out into solicitor jobs as a fully qualified solicitor. During this process, you will most likely have to choose a specialism and start focussing on this for your future.
- Solicitor jobs differ from barrister jobs in that these legal jobs do not involve representing people in court but rather have a more active role in advising clients and preparing their cases. Those with solicitor jobs can easily earn over £80k per year with experience but for graduate legal jobs, that figure is likely to be in the region of £25k-£30k per year.
You can search for a wide range of graduate legal jobs here on Simply Law Jobs.
Almost all medium to large companies will have their own legal departments and the legal counsel is tasked with ensuring that the company operates within the confines of the law at all times and should there be any issues, those with legal counsel jobs will represent the company. A legal counsel job is essentially an in-house legal team. To find out more about legal counsel jobs, read on.
Legal Counsel Job Info
- The legal counsel jobs will be split up within a company to focus on things such as employment law, commercial law etc. Large companies may be able to offer plenty of legal jobs to people with a wide range of experience levels.
- Those with legal counsel jobs will be expected to keep thoroughly up to date with any legislation or regulation changes and how these may affect the company. A legal counsel job also requires the individual to be able to advise on company policies and procedures.
- When it comes to a legal counsel job, the top of the tree would be that of senior legal counsel and these legal jobs require the individual to be aware of the goings on throughout the company. These legal jobs require to individual to identify, assess and manage any potential risk issues across the firm and prove continued preventative legal advice. A senior legal counsel will require all the relevant qualifications to be a solicitor as well as several years experience in legal practice.
- Many people choose to enter legal counsel jobs after several years practicing as a solicitor because of the comparatively easier hours and benefits. Those with legal counsel jobs need all the skills to make it as a solicitor as well as the ability to work in a commercial business environment and find resolutions to legal issues within a business context.
Senior legal counsel jobs will easily pay wages of over £100k and lower level legal jobs in this sector will still earn upwards of £60k pa. You can search for a wife range of legal counsel jobs here on Simply Law Jobs.