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more students than last year think thatschemes are widening access to the profes-sion, more students (57 per cent, comparedwith 51 per cent in 2016) believe that beinga woman is a barrier to reaching boardlevel or partnership in a firm. A biggernumber than last year also believe thatbeing from a minority background is abarrier to partnership, so there is now aneven split between those who say it is abarrier and those who do not. Disability isseen as a barrier to partnership by 60 percent of respondents.On the positive side, most studentsthink that pay rates are fair in the sector,especially given that 70 per cent regardedlife as a corporate lawyer as too stressful,up ten points from the year before. More than half of respondents expect toearn between £25,000 and £45,000 as anewly qualified solicitor or barrister. TheThey support Jeremy Corbyn and admireBaroness Hale, are split over whethercontroversial historical statues should beremoved, and predict that Brexit will bebad for UK business, favouring staying inthe single market as a top priority. These are the striking results of thisyear’s exclusive survey of more than1,000 students at the University of Law(ULaw) carried out for The Times. Otherkey findings include:6 Would-be solicitors cite the intellectualchallenge of the profession as theirreason for pursuing law6 Future barristers say they aremost motivated by wanting tohelp people6 Students are evenly splitas to whether employersshould be able to checktheir online profiles6And on a lighter note,their favourite fictionallegal character is HarveySpecter from SuitsThe survey is the 14th conduct-ed at ULaw, which is the UK’s largesttraining provider for law students. It ques-tioned students on the qualifying lawdegree course (LLB), graduate conversioncourse (GDL), legal practice course (LPC)for solicitors and the Bar professionaltraining courses (BPTC). Generally a conservative group, most ofthe students surveyed say they aspire towork in commercial law rather than thesocially committed fields of legal work. Yetthe survey shows their strong support forLabour politicians and altruistric motivesfor entering the profession.Earning potential is cited as one of thetop reasons for pursuing a legal career,while family tradition, perhaps significant50 years ago, is the least likely reason of all.For the third year running future solicitorsare choosing law for its “intellectual chal-lenge”, while “wanting to help people” isthe main reason among future barristers,up 15 percentage points on last year. 6STUDENT LAWWhat students really think: exclusive survey1If you are going to a court where you have never appeared before, dosuss out what attitude the bench ortribunal has to a particular offence. Some urban courts are down on shoplifters, county courts are far more down on poaching than city ones, and so on. A local solicitor should help you and, if not, cosy up to the usher.2Do not make snippy remarks. Afterone case in which I had becomeannoyed with the prosecutor I remarked: “There you are. That proves hard work is no substitute for talent.” For some reason he took umbrage for What not to do in a courtroom (and a few things JAMES MORTONthe next 20 years we met each other, and if I wanted an adjournment he would oppose it; if I wanted bail for my client . . . 3Don’t antagonise a tribunal — particularly one in front of whichyou appear regularly. David Hopkin,who was the chief metropolitan stipendiary sitting at Bow Street, told me: “Whenever I see X I tell myself to count to ten, and I often do not get past five.”4And following on from that. Do nottry to get your case heard at thebeginning of the list every timeyou go to court. Hopkin said: “If X is in my court I have him put to the last, unless Y is also there, in which case I have X put next to last.”5Don’t believe what your clients tellyou. If your client tells you he hasno convictions, check with the prosecution. Too many clients believe that anything less than an immediate custodial sentence amounts to an acquittal. The opposite sometimes applies. Once a client told me that he had five convictions. A look at the list showed he had only three. “I got chucked on the other two,” he explained disarmingly.6Do remember that criminal clientsin particular are manipulative (andthat goes for corporate ones as well). Keep at arm’s length. Do not agree to do a favour without asking what it is first. One day at Clerkenwell I once inadvisedly answered “yes” and the client took down his trousers and extracted a building society passbook that he wanted me to hand to his girlfriend. The correct response is not “yes”, but “it depends”. That way you won’t have to back down.7Don’t use quotations unless you know the bench likes them. If youabsolutely must, make sure you getthem right. For some time I confused the Road to Damascus with the Road to Emmaus. Make sure the magistrate doesn’t have any pet hates. Mr JD Purcell, who sat at Clerkenwell, loathed initials. Once when a young advocate said the client wanted to be a DJ, Purcell replied: “He wants to be a dinner jacket. He must be mad. I think I’d better remand him in custody for mental and medical reports.”The client took off his trousers and extracted a building society passbook“FRANCES GIBBHeroes, hopes and noble idealsAspiring solicitors still favour workingin a large commercial firm, while aspiringbarristers have their sights set on regionalor medium-sized chambers. As for areas oflaw, in line with the results of the past twoyears, most students would like to work incompany/commercial law (28 per cent).However, would-be barristers are struckby the glamour of TV dramas and filmsand still favour crime above all other areas(34 per cent). Family law is attractive toprospective solicitors (12 per cent) andbarristers (9 per cent).What qualities do future lawyers thinkthey need? Integrity is still rated as themost important (by 16 per cent of respon-dents) followed by honesty and communi-cation skills. And for the first time,students mentioned resilienceand lateral thinking skills.Students plump for lawearly in life. Two in threehad decided on the legalsector before going to uni-versity and there has been aten-point rise in the num-bers of those opting for lawat school, aged 14 to 18. Uni-versity careers offices may havea bit of an image problem, but thereality is that 80 per cent of students gothere for advice. That advice is much needed: getting intolaw is still tough. Three in four respon-dents had undertaken volunteer or charitywork to enhance their CVs, while 70 percent had already secured work experiencein a firm or chambers, up eight points from2016. In a significant change, only halfthought a prospective employer should beable to check their online profiles, downfrom 73 per cent in 2016.Finding a training contract or pupillageremains a top concern, mentioned by 34per cent. More than half had not yetapplied for such places.What do they think of the profession?Some 82 per cent feel that it is still “some-what or very socially exclusive”, the sameas last year. Access to the big City firms,they believe, is still linked to “heritage andeducation”. Diversity in the top ranks islow and nepotism still exists. Yet whileThursday October 19 2017the times