How to become a legal aid barrister

On this page:

How to become a legal aid barrister
University degree
What if I completed a non-law degree?
Bar vocational training course
Call to the Bar
Pupillage
Further information

How to become a legal aid barrister

The steps to becoming a legal aid barrister are:

University degree
Bar professional training course
Call to the bar
Pupillage

University degree

At this stage you should gain as much practical experience as possible by securing volunteer and pro bono work with organisations such as the Citizens Advice Bureau and other organisations serving the community.

Make full use of your university careers service, and any careers fairs they offer. Many university law departments/careers departments run a pro bono service which students can get involved with.

What if I completed a non-law degree?

You can still become a barrister even without a law degree. You would need to complete a year's conversion course after your degree, called a Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) or Common Professional Examination (CPE).

Bar vocational training course

You need to complete the Bar Vocational Course (BVC) if you want to practise as a barrister in England and Wales.

The ten institutes that run the BVC along with the four Inns of court are often collectively referred to as 'Bar School'. No one can practice as a barrister unless they complete this course.

Call to the Bar

Those who are not solicitors, but have been licenced to argue in court, are said to have been 'called to the Bar'.

Pupillage

This is the Barristers' equivalent of the training contract a solicitor undertakes.

It builds on the knowledge gained on the BVC by giving practical experience in a set of barristers chambers.

A pupillage is the final stage of training to be a barrister in England and Wales, and is made up of two six-month periods. The first of these is non-practising during which pupils shadow their pupilmaster. During the second period pupils can also do some work on their own, under supervision.

At the end of the first six months a pupil must get their pupilmaster to sign a certificate confirming satisfactory completion and send it to the Bar Council.

The pupil will then receive a Provisional Qualification Certificate. After the second six months a pupil must get their pupilmaster to sign another certificate confirming satisfactory completion and send it to the Bar Council Education and Training Department. The pupil will then receive a Full Qualification Certificate.

Further information

Last updated: 23 December 2009