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SASCHA O’SULLIVANSIMRAN LAKHOTIADay one was a trip to the solicitor’s office, discussing our client and drafting a letter to the opposing counsel about their attempt wrongfully to sue him. Day two was a trip to the barrister’soffice, frantically highlighting our client’s employment contract to calm our nerves, as we drafted arguments to be presented to the court.Day three was a trip to the Royal Courts of Justice, presenting to the judge why we believed our client was acting within the terms of his contract. The rest of the days were some of the best. The days where we sat on blue plastic classroom chairs. We learnt about our rights and responsibilities; we learnt about the structure of our society; we learnt about the meaning and significance of justice. What am I talking about? The Taketo Law scheme, run by the National Justice Museum, which I took part in last year when I was 14. It aimed to educate those in the school years 9 to 11, about the legal field and how they could enter it. I got the chance to meet solicitors, barristers who had fought multimillion-pound cases for high-profile international clients, and judges who were fighting for social reform and equality in the workplace. All have one thing in common: they know how to question the world around them. Take to Law made students think about the legal sector, but Google could have done that. The great thing this programme has given young people is answers about the legal system, and then it stretched us to generate more questions, to ponder, criticise, evaluate and re-evaluate. It helped to foster an active interestin the law that acts in and around our lives, an understanding of which is vital for the youth of today. Lawyers refer to “the rule of law” because a society that doesn’t function within a legal structure leaves people vulnerable to abuse of power. Take to Law not only taught students about the law, but about justice, and the profoundly important distinction between them. It sparked the growth of a sense of moral responsibility. There are more and more legal education programmes for young people. The National Justice Museum in Nottingham runs interactive courtroom workshops for a wide variety of ages, where students can explore historical and contemporary criminal and civil cases, looking at themes such as religious freedom and disability discrimination. It also offers tours of theRoyal Courts of Justice and next month will launch a pop-up courtroom to help to raise young people’s awareness about citizenship, justice and the law.Simran Lakhotia is a pupil at St Marylebone School, LondonWays of makingyou thinkSTUDENT LAW9a firm. However, it is not necessary to obtain a training contract.” Nevertheless, 70 of the 100 students on schemes last year at Slaughter & May were offered training contracts. Likewise, Simmons & Simmons hiresstraight off the back of vacation schemes.The candidates are assessed while on the scheme and decisions are based purely on the feedback from supervisors. Freshfields differs here. “It’s not a box-ticking exercise. You don’t needto do a vacation scheme,” Austin says. “Half our trainees did vacation schemes [at Freshfields] and half didn’t.” The firm does not want it to be a prerequisite because the goal is to recruit from as broader range as possible. “People mature at different rates,”he says. “The scheme is open to penultimate-year students, but if there are people that want to apply at different stages of their studies or careers, we want them to have the opportunity. What we’re really interested in is the candidates and what they can give the firm.” The candidates at Freshfields have the chance to interview at the end of the scheme and, if successful, will be guaranteed a spot. This means that the race for a trainingcontract starts for many students well before second-year exams. While the pool is rarely much wider than the lucky ones already through the doors, the hopes of students who did not embark on vacation schemes should notbe dashed. The importance ofvacation schemes is notabsolute; what really drivesa successful application is, as expected, a passionfor the job. “in the UK, says: “We’re looking fora real drive and ambition, team skills, organisation and management skills.” The deadlines for the summer schemes, which make up the bulk of the vacation places, span from the beginning of October to mid-January in the penultimate year of a student’s degree. Coinciding with the Christmas holidays, the demands on applicants means that any mid-year exams and essays are often foregone in lieu of interview preparation. The schemes usually run for two weeks and involve a variety of tasks that are designed to give a slice of traineelife at the particular firm. At Freshfields the focus is on hands-on work. “It’s an intense few weeks,” Austin says. “The aim is for them to get as much out of it as possible so that they can decide whether working with us is for them.”Students spend time with trainees, but also have two associate supervisors and a partner “minder”, for whom they do research. To highlight the international nature of the firm, they have the chance to apply for a week at an overseas office, such as Dubai, New York or Paris. Vacation schemes also give students the rare opportunity to talk to partners informally and enter the many social events, from ping pong games to drinks and dinners aplenty. But how important are the schemes? It depends on the firm. Slaughter & May recruiters say that “work experience is useful as it give candidates an insight into life as a City solicitor and the culture of Long gone are the days where vacation schemes simply padded out the CVs of hopeful lawyers. The market for graduate jobs is changing, and the schemes are changing with it. Vacation schemes are available at almost all big firms across the country, although the “magic circle” firms are the most popular. Competition is fierce, with about 75 to 00 places that pay up to £400 a week at each firm. To give an illustration: Simmons & Simmons receives several thousand applications for 75 places. Similarly, Freshfields has 65 places in its London office and a further 35 spread over New York and Hong Kong. This year it received 1,400 applicants and the total is increasing by about 100 a year. Candidates who secure a high 2:1 or first in their first-year exams are the top picks, although the competition is not limited to law students. Representatives at Slaughter & May say that “approximately half of our trainees didn’t study law at undergraduate level”. Its easter and summer schemes are aimed at getting the best of the best, not just law students. The application process is rigorous, although it differs from firm to firm. Most hold interviews and testing days, during which candidates’ analytical skills are assessed. Once written applications have been screened, Freshfields invites candidates in for a half-day assessment, with a mix of written and verbal reasoning. Andrew Austin, the partner responsible for graduate recruitmentHow to get a foot in the doorThe City of London70 per cent of Slaughter & May’s vacation scheme intake were offered contractsSascha O’Sullivan is a third-year law student at UCL
