Irish graduate qualifying in UK?

BasedHobbes

Hi all. I've just finished DCU's BCL programme, and I graduated with a first. I'm working at the moment, and I'm hoping to do an LLM in Oxford or Cambridge in 2016.

Thereafter I'd like to qualify as a barrister in the UK. I'm a little lost as to what I need to have studied to do pupillage in one of the inns over there. I've never studied any UK law, but I did study all necessary modules for the King's Inns.

So I suppose I have two questions:

Is this a realistic career plan?
If so, what do I need to do to qualify out in the UK?

BasedHobbes

Bumping this up as it didn't get replies. Hope that's ok.

notabasicb

Prioritise the Oxford BCL over the Cambridge LLM - the Inns seem to greatly favour it. Do as many mini-pupilages as you can.

MarkAnthony

I presume you mean England and Wales as Scotland is a different legal system and NI is a different animal as regard getting in the door' very lucrative if you do though I hear.

E&W has the opposite problem to Ireland. Solicitors jobs are not too difficult to get, barristers however are like it was here for TC's a few years back. I've also heard that certain circuits in the UK are pupilige deserts.

If you're doing a postgrad at a E&W Uni I'm sure they'll have contacts for you to mine. It's all about the contacts, make sure you grab every opportunity.

BasedHobbes

MarkAnthony wrote: »

I presume you mean England and Wales as Scotland is a different legal system and NI is a different animal as regard getting in the door' very lucrative if you do though I hear.

E&W has the opposite problem to Ireland. Solicitors jobs are not too difficult to get, barristers however are like it was here for TC's a few years back. I've also heard that certain circuits in the UK are pupilige deserts.

If you're doing a postgrad at a E&W Uni I'm sure they'll have contacts for you to mine. It's all about the contacts, make sure you grab every opportunity.

Thanks a mil. You mentioned about NI being lucrative - can you tell me a bit more?

notabasicb

BasedHobbes wrote: »

Thanks a mil. You mentioned about NI being lucrative - can you tell me a bit more?

I've heard its quite small, as you would expect, given the limited geographical area it covers.

MarkAnthony

BasedHobbes wrote: »

Thanks a mil. You mentioned about NI being lucrative - can you tell me a bit more?

Pub conversation so take from it what you will. They only take 40 a year IIRC so it's not the free for all it is here. Bear in mind that academic achievement is only part of the equation.

LutherBlissett

Is it easy to get a solicitor job in London? I'm specifically asking with regard to getting a training contract in a Magic Circle firm. I was under the impression that while there are more training contracts than pupillages, it's still quite difficult to get a contract at a Magic Circle firm (and that there are varying levels of difficulty in getting a contract in different Magic Circle firms).