On top of standard £10k maintenance support
International law firm Baker McKenzie has established a new ‘Baker Boost grant’ to help support future trainees experiencing financial difficulties.
The grant provides an additional £4,000 to those studying the Legal Practice Course (LPC), and comes on top of the £10,000 in maintenance already provided as standard by the firm.
Bakers’ future rookies will be eligible to apply for the extra cash three months prior to starting the LPC, up to their training contract start date.
The firm, which recruits around 33 trainees annually, says the move is “part of its ongoing commitment to improving social mobility within the profession and increasing the diversity of candidates undertaking its training contracts”.
Bakers’ future trainees currently study the accelerated LPC at BPP University Law School. However, from September 2023 they will join the Solicitors Qualifying Exam pathway and complete a prep course with BARBRI.
In addition to the new grant, Bakers will provide a further laptop bursary worth £750 to those studying the Graduate Diploma in Law or LPC. This is in addition to the standard maintenance and boost grants.
The extra cash can be used to cover the cost of new laptop, additional items such as mouse and keyboard as well as WiFi connection and boosters. Future rookies who fail to pass the LPC will not be required to pay back their grants.
Baker McKenzie’s London graduate recruitment & development manager, Nicola Willden, said:
“As a firm we recognise that the cost of qualifying as a solicitor could present a financial barrier when entering the profession. We hope that by offering this additional financial support through the Baker Boost and Laptop grants we can support more people to enter the profession who may not have been able to do due to their financial circumstances.”
The move comes just 48-hours after Legal Cheek revealed that Hogan Lovells had increased its LPC maintenance grant by 25%, from £10,000 to £12,500. This followed similar uplifts by the likes of Ashurst, Clifford Chance, Freshfields, Herbert Smith Freehills and Slaughter and May.