Pupillage

 

Devereux Shortlisted for Best Chambers for Training at the Legal Cheek Awards 2022

 

Devereux is a top civil set and its members are recognised as leaders in their fields by both Legal 500 and Chambers UK. We advise and represent leading solicitors firms, major corporates and multi-nationals, government departments and private individuals.

We are friendly and forward-looking and have an excellent reputation for the quality of our work. We have won or have been nominated for multiple awards across our practice areas. Our core areas of law are commercial litigation and arbitration (including insurance, reinsurance, professional negligence and telecommunications), employment, personal injury, clinical negligence, and advisory and contentious tax (acting both for HMRC and the taxpayer). 

A pupillage at Devereux will offer you the opportunity to be involved in fascinating, often complex, litigation.

 

Our pupillage programme

Our starting point is that we want you to succeed. In line with our reputation as a progressive set, we have developed a structured and challenging pupillage programme. Our aim is to ensure that a pupillage with us is stimulating and exciting and that pupils receive the support necessary to fulfil their potential. In the last four years we have recruited all pupils who applied through Pupillage Gateway as tenants, which demonstrates both their hard work and the effectiveness of their training.

To read how a pupillage at Devereux is structured, please click here.

What do we look for in pupils?

In selecting our pupils, we look for potential tenants: graduates who can demonstrate incisive analysis, strong advocacy skills and academic excellence. Common sense, practicality and the ability to get on with people are also key requirements.

Essential Facts

• Pupillages funded: two.
• Tenancies in last four years: eight.
• Minimum qualification: 2.1 and an impressive all-round CV.
• Awards: £75,000 (from 2024). £20,000 available during the BPTC year, paid as two instalments in December and in May. During the first six months of your pupillage, you receive £27,500 in monthly instalments and during the second six your earnings are guaranteed at a minimum of £27,500, also paid monthly.
• Training: placements with leading juniors in at least three of Chambers' main practice areas.
• Assessment: five formal written assessments and two formal advocacy assessments (one assessment per month from December until June, inclusive). 
• Applications for pupillage should be made through Pupillage Gateway.

Need more information?

In an article for Legal Cheek, Thomas Cordrey offers some practical advice as to 'How to gold-plate your pupillage application'. In their feature 'Five minutes with...' Shaen Catherwood talks to TargetJobs about how to stand out during the pupillage application and interview process.

Some of our previous pupils, now members, share their own experience which you may find helpful:

• Alice Defriend on 'How to make the most out of your Pupillage Application'
• Charlie Hill on 'Putting in a pupillage application amidst the pandemic'
• John Platts-Mills and Harry Sheehan on 'Five pupillage application form essentials'
• Colm Kelly on 'How to give yourself the best chance of securing pupillage'
• Katya Hosking on 'Securing pupillage — It’s a jungle out there!!'
• Marianne Tutin on 'How I secured pupillage'.
• Matthew Sellwood on 'My life as a pupil'.
• Ishaani Shrivastava and Bayo Randle on 'My first year as a Devereux tenant'.

We regularly participate at events organised by BPTC providers and run twitter campaigns under the hashtag #PupillageTips. In this handy document, we summarised the key tips we shared during 2016 on how to prepare for applications and how to deal with pupillage interviews.

 

Mini-pupillages

Mini-pupillage is a fantastic opportunity to get a taste of the work undertaken at Devereux. During both programmes a mini-pupil will shadow members and gain a sense of our friendly and collegiate culture.

July round: The July round is principally for those at an earlier stage of their journey to the bar. Successful applicants are invited to spend one day with a member of chambers during July. The application window is now closed.

December round: The December round is for those in a position to apply for pupillage in the same academic year. Two-day mini pupillages are offered to successful applicants. The mini-pupillages are held during a two-week window in December, shortly before the opening of the Pupillage Gateway. In previous years Chambers has held a reception for all participants at the end of the window to ensure that all participants gain as much insight as possible into our work and what life is like in Chambers.

Applications can be completed here.

Applications for mini-pupillage are now closed.

Chambers is usually able to take between 10 and 15 mini-pupils during each window. Unfortunately, school pupils are not eligible for mini-pupillage.

Completed applications must be received by the designated dates, after which time candidates will be informed in writing of the outcome of their application. Unsuccessful applicants should not be deterred from making further applications but should reflect on why their first application may have been unsuccessful and whether a further application is materially stronger.

We also participate in the Pegasus Access Scheme and Social Mobility Foundation Bar Placement Scheme which offer additional mini-pupillages.

 

#10000BlackInterns

We are proud to support the Bar’s collective participation in the #10000BlackInterns Programme.

The 10,000 Black Interns Programme aims to transform the horizons and prospects of young Black people in the UK by offering paid work experience across a wide range of industries, as well as world-class training and development.

Together with a number of other chambers, we have committed to host an intern through the programme. They will have the opportunity to shadow our barristers across our core practice areas.

For more information on the programme, and details on how to apply, please visit the 10,000 Black Interns website.

Devereux considers all applications on an equal basis and does not discriminate on grounds of gender, race, disability, sexual orientation, religion or belief, or age. Information provided in the equal opportunities monitoring form will be kept separately from your application form and will not be considered during the selection process.

Devereux Chambers welcomes applications for pupillage from those with a disability.

Access to the main building is via a ramp as is access to the conference rooms. The building contains a disabled toilet.  However, there is no lift to the higher floors in this building. The practice managers, administration and marketing teams are based in a different building which has full wheelchair access, a disabled toilet and a lift to all floors. A substantial number of the barristers are also based in this building. There is also access via a permanent ramp to Middle Temple Gardens.