Pupillage at The Bar is notoriously challenging and demanding so it’s easy to let work overtake its primary objective – to produce excellent new barristers and to make sure these barristers careers begin with a flourish. We’ve asked our pupil’s to provide an honest and open appraisal of their pupillage and how, as a pupil, they found life at Westgate Chambers.
This is what John Hatton had to say.
“I found my pupillage with Westgate Chambers to be rewarding and effective in setting me up for a busy practice due to the supportive and collegiate environment as well as the varied and busy workload.
My pupil supervisor, Maria, was (and is) my first port of call when it came to helping with dilemmas I faced when on my feet but I also knew I could draw on the experience of members of chambers from across practice areas and of any year of call.
All the members made time for me when I needed it, they always made time for me to bounce ideas off them, provide advice, or tell me – honestly but gently! – when I was veering “too far outside the box”.
This support remains in place, and I see my colleagues at the junior end of chambers in particular constantly taking on more complex and interesting cases as a result.
Pupillage was always varied, interesting, and busy.
Throughout my second six I was on my feet almost every working day. It provided essential experience needed to bridge the gap from an academic understanding of presenting a case to doing so in the heat of a real-life courtroom.
I am grateful for the excellent pupillage programme Westgate Chambers provides which prepared me for having a busy practice through these early years of my career.”
Leave A Comment