Pupillage Vacancy Information
Furnival Chambers is providing an award of £25,000 to its 12 month pupils.
Chambers will make a grant towards the living expenses and food requirements incurred during the 1st six months of pupillage. The total payment will be £12,500, paid in monthly instalments, payable in advance (subject to possible delay during the first month whilst a CHAPS transfer is set up). This payment is made on the basis that the pupil continues as a pupil in Furnival Chambers during the 1st six months but, should that arrangement cease, for whatever reason, the payments will be stopped.
During the 2nd six months, Chambers guarantees earnings up to a figure of £12,500. In the unlikely event that a pupil’s earnings do not exceed this sum in any given month, Chambers will pay the pupil the difference. During the 2nd six months period of pupillage, Chambers does not seek to recoup 10% of pupils’ receipts until they have reached earnings of £12,500 during that period. Again, this payment is made on the basis that the pupil continues as a pupil in Furnival Chambers during the 2nd six months but, should that arrangement cease, for whatever reason, the payments will be stopped.
Travel expenses
In addition to the Pupillage Award, Chambers will cover reasonable travel expenses through paying for a London zones 1-6 travel card. During the 1st six months period of pupillage, Chambers ensures, where possible, that when travelling outside the London Underground system, arrangements are made for pupils to travel to Court with their pupil supervisors.
Recoupment of payments made to pupils
Chambers will not seek or accept repayment from pupils of any of the sums referred to above (or payment made for attendance at compulsory training courses – as to which see below), whether before or after their fixed departure date, save in the case of misconduct on the pupil’s part.
Equality Diversity and Inclusion
The selection of pupils and tenants
It is extremely important, given the nature of entry into the profession, that selection criteria for pupillage and tenancy should be free from discrimination. In pursuance of this aim Chambers undertakes that recruitment policy towards pupils and tenants should:
- be transparent, set out in a document which is available to all upon request,
- not be subject to change during the selection process,
- be based on objective and explicit criteria which relate to the demands of the work,
- Save in exceptional circumstances, be applied equally to all potential recruits,
- be free, at all stages, from assumptions based on stereotypical views or expectations of the behaviour and characteristics of any particular group,
- not be subject to the will or unexplained veto of one person alone, but instead reflect the views of a broad spectrum of people.
Equality of opportunity in Chambers
Distribution of work to all members of Chambers and working pupils must be carried out in a manner that is fair to all and without discrimination. Selection of counsel shall be on the basis of the skills and experience required for the particular case. In particular, no applicant for pupillage or tenancy shall suffer discrimination:
- in the arrangements which are made for the purpose of determining to whom it should be offered,
- in respect of any terms on which it is offered, or by a refusal, or deliberate omission, to offer it to him/her.
Furthermore, no pupil or tenant shall suffer discrimination:
- in respect of any terms applicable to him/her as a pupil or tenant,
- in the opportunities for training, or gaining experience, which are afforded or denied to him/her,
- in the benefits, facilities or services which are afforded or denied to him/her,
- in the volume or type of work which is offered or denied to him/her,
- by termination of his/her pupillage or by subjecting him/her to any pressure to leave the Chambers or other detriment.
Furnival Chambers’ full equality and diversity policy can be seen on the website at https://furnivalchambers.co.uk/about/equality-diversity/
How to Apply
Pupillage selection process
Applications submitted
Candidates submit a CV and covering letter.
Initial selection
The selection process is overseen by the Pupillage Committee who are trained in ‘Fair Recruitment’. All CVs and covering letters are independently reviewed by 2 tenants using a standardised, approved, scoring procedure. In the event of disagreement between the 2 members, a member of the Pupillage Committee will assess the application and his/her decision will prevail.
Interview
Approximately 20 candidates will be invited for interview. The number of interview rounds will depend on the number of candidates that pass the initial selection process. Each member of the interviewing panel has received “Fair Recruitment” training. Candidates will be advised in advance of the interview as to its structure. This will be provided shortly before the interview.
The features of the interviews are:
1) Each candidate will be asked exactly the same 4 questions. This is to create a level playing field and to allow each candidate to display individuality and the core qualities being assessed.
2) All candidates will be asked to perform the same pre-arranged advocacy exercise. The candidate will be asked to attend prior to the allotted interview time, and will be given a short piece of advocacy to prepare, such as a plea in mitigation or bail application.
3) The advocacy exercise will be followed by a 3-minute speech to the Pupillage Committee on any non-legal subject of the applicant’s choice, which should have been prepared in advance.
4) The candidates will be asked questions about their personal CV/ covering letter.
5) Each candidate will have the opportunity to ask any questions of the interviewing committee at the conclusion of the interview.
Throughout the interview process interviewers will use a standardised scoring procedure approved by the Pupillage Committee, again to try and make the process as fair as possible. The marks for each candidate at all stages are kept in confidence by the secretaries to the Pupillage Committee.
Application procedure
Furnival Chambers does not use the Pupillage Gateway Scheme. Please apply directly to Chambers as follows.
PLEASE READ AND FOLLOW THESE INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY
- Please apply by email to pupillagecommittee@furnivallaw.co.uk
- The email should be headed: “SURNAME First Name – Pupillage Application”.
- Your application email should have 3 attachments:
- Letter (File Name: “SURNAME First Name Letter”) in PDF format
- CV (File Name: “SURNAME First Name CV”
- Diversity Monitoring Form (File Name: “Initials, Diversity Monitoring Form”)
- [Please note, if you do not follow this format, your application may not be considered]
- The letter is your opportunity to explain why, in your view, we should offer you an interview. The body of the letter should not exceed 400 words and should be submitted as a PDF.
- Your CV should not exceed 3 pages.
- Please submit a completed Diversity Monitoring Form. The Diversity Monitoring form can be downloaded here: Furnival Chambers Diversity Monitoring Form. This is required to be completed by our regulators. It will be kept separate and will not feature in any decision to interview or recruit.
- The window for submitting applications is 4th January 2023 – 8th February 2023. Applications submitted outside this timeframe will not be accepted.
- It is anticipated that interviews will take place in March or April 2022.
- Successful candidates will be notified of their offer on the 5th May 2023
About AETO and Structure of Pupillage
All pupillages are general criminal pupillages.
During the first six months, pupils will be allocated to a single Pupil Supervisor. We have a system that allows either the pupil or the Pupil Supervisor to ask for a transfer at any time during the first month of the pupillage with no questions asked. We accept that sometimes people just do not get on. It happens very rarely but it is right to have a system that acknowledges this and can deal with it swiftly and fairly.
At the commencement of pupillage, we arrange a meeting for all pupils with our Head of Pupillage Committee and the Secretaries to the Pupillage Committee, together with fellow pupils, to answer any further queries and to ensure that pupillage has begun smoothly.
Chambers runs a scheme whereby each new pupil is allocated a junior member of Chambers to be their “godparent”. This is intended to work in parallel with the traditional system of Pupil Supervisors and is not intended to subvert the authority or wishes of the Pupil Supervisor. Instead, a pupil’s godparent is deliberately selected as a junior member of Chambers much nearer to their own call, whom they may wish to approach with queries about life in Chambers and at the Bar as a whole, or to discuss (if they wish in confidence) a particular problem that they may have (whether with the administration of pupillage or otherwise) and that they do not feel able to raise initially with their Pupil Supervisor. Should the pupil so wish, their godparent will deal with any difficulties that they have or bring them to the attention of the appropriate Chambers forum and/or act as advocate on their behalf in any grievance procedure. The use that the pupil chooses to make of our godparent scheme is entirely a matter for him or her. However, we have found that this is an excellent and informal way to keep an eye on any matters and deal with them before they become real problems.
Second six month pupils will be allocated to a (different) single Pupil Supervisor for the duration of the second six month period whom they will shadow and assist. Pupils will also attend Court in their own right. Pupils are encouraged to shadow other members to ensure they are able to see a balance of prosecution and defence work. The association between pupil and Pupil Supervisor is necessarily less strong during the second six months as the pupils are in court on their own account every day. But the Pupil Supervisors keep a close eye on the work their pupils are doing, especially during the first few weeks.
Pupils are encouraged to take part in any advocacy training offered by their Inns or the Circuit and financial help is available to assist them with this.
Additionally, during pupillage the pupils undergo a series of in-house advocacy workshops. The course takes place weekly. Workshops are conducted along the lines developed by Gray’s Inn and are run by members of Chambers. They take place one evening a week and the training material has been compiled by members of Chambers and covers all the ground that young members of the Criminal Bar can expect to encounter in their first few months on their feet. It is an intense course as we are able to have a very low ratio of Trainers to Pupils. We also have the advantage of being able to call on junior members of Chambers, who themselves have gone through the same course, to act as the witnesses/clients.
At Furnival Chambers we are confident and proud of the fact that we offer our pupils among the most comprehensive advocacy training available at the Criminal Bar. In their second six months our pupils will have completed many hours of intense advocacy training. Pupils must pass this course to the satisfaction of the Pupillage Committee in order to take up the second six months and to attend court in their own right representing Chambers.