Vacancies

Guildhall Chambers – 12 Months – October 2024 (General Civil)

Equality Diversity and Inclusion

Our selection process aims to be rigorous and fair, and to comply with the Bar Standards Board Bar Qualification Manual and the Fair Recruitment Guide. We select pupils on ability and potential alone, without regard to disability, gender, race, age, and sexual orientation or political affiliation.

Our Accessibility Officer is:

Debbie Grennan - debbie.grennan@guildhallchambers.co.uk

How to Apply

Aspiring barristers are invited to apply to chambers between Wednesday 4 January 2023 and Wednesday 8 February 2023 using the Pupillage Gateway application system to search for the relevant Pupillage Vacancy and selecting ‘Apply for this pupillage’.

In addition to the standardised Bar Council questionnaire, candidates will be asked to respond to the following questions from Chambers:

1. Which of Guildhall's civil practice areas are you interested in and why? (1250 character limit)
2. Why do you believe you will make an exceptional barrister? In your answer, please give identify the relevant experience and skills that you believe will help you in your career. (1250 character limit)
3. Please give an example of a time when you have used advocacy skills in a non-legal and difficult situation to achieve a better outcome. (1250 character limit)
4. Please identify a recent case or development in the law in the last year (relevant to our core practice areas) and explain why you find it interesting. (1250 character limit)
5. Why do you want to join our chambers? In your answer, please give reasons for your choice of chambers and explain why you are interested in our areas of practice. (1250 character limit)

About AETO and Structure of Pupillage

Based on the Western Circuit, Guildhall Chambers is one of the UK’s leading multidisciplinary sets with a national reputation for formidable advice, advocacy and client service. We are described in the directories as “an amazing set” offering “first-class” service where “the quality all round is phenomenal”.

Chambers comprises 78 barristers including 10 silks practising from Bristol and we also have a working office London. We are ranked by Legal 500 in 11 practice areas, with 75 individual rankings. Chambers & Partners ranks us as a top-tier leading set in 11 practice areas with 71 individual rankings. Furthermore, it distinguishes Chambers as being in the top 20 UK sets by number of rankings by practice area.

We are proud to be ranked so highly in all our core practice areas and this is highlighted by our continued successes in legal awards. Winning the ‘Set of the Year – Regional Bar’ award for Legal 500 in 2015; Winning the ‘Regional Set of the Year’ award for Chambers and Partners in 2017 and being shortlisted again in 2021. Being shortlisted for ‘Chambers of the Year’ award by the Bristol Law Society in 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022.

Although we are a multidisciplinary set, our established civil members are organised in specialist teams. Guildhall’s civil teams are Clinical Negligence & Personal Injury, Commercial, Employment & Discrimination, Insolvency and Property & Estates. More information about each of these areas can be found by clicking here.

Chambers is offering up to three civil pupillages to commence in October 2024. The successful candidates should expect the focus of their pupillage to be within one or more of Chambers’ compatible civil practice areas. In the second six, a pupil should expect to undertake work in civil areas beyond their principal areas of interest. Candidates are invited to specify in their application form the Chambers civil practice areas that they are most interested in. Chambers will tailor the pupillage considering the specialist practice areas agreed with the successful applicants. At the end of pupillage, pupils are invited to apply to join one or more of Chambers’ civil teams reflecting their intended area(s) of practise.

Chambers is committed to ensuring that our pupils receive the highest quality training and guidance. Our aim is not only to ensure that our pupils excel in the necessary competencies within the Professional Statement, but that they also develop as individuals who are rounded and confident advocates, with the skills and insight they will require for a successful career at the Bar.

Pupils will be allocated one or more supervisors depending on the practice area(s) they will be specialising in. In their first six months, pupils will see a wide range of work within their specialist areas, including undertaking paperwork and shadowing members of Chambers in court hearings and conferences etc. In the second six months, pupils will undertake their own cases.

Pupils’ progress is monitored closely by the supervisor(s) and feedback is given regularly. Pupils will spend time with, and do work for, as many members of the team(s) as possible to gain maximum experience of different types and styles of work and levels of seniority. Members will provide constructive feedback to the pupil on every piece of work undertaken.

A Career at the Bar is incredibly rewarding; however, it is also challenging. That is why each pupil has, as well as a supervisor, a mentor who is another member of the team to whom he or she can turn in confidence if necessary. It is of great importance to Chambers that each pupil feels properly supported during what can be an exciting and daunting year. Our objective is to help each and every pupil fulfil their potential.  

Applicants are expected to demonstrate intellectual ability, excellent communication / advocacy skills, and an ability to work under pressure as well as flexibility of thinking, sound judgment and good interpersonal skills, as well as the determination and temperament to build their own practice.  It is also necessary for candidates to be able to demonstrate an interest in and commitment to one, or a compatible combination of Chambers practice areas since in making decisions to award a civil pupillage, Chambers will also take into account the business needs of the different civil teams.