12 King’s Bench Walk

Of course, the core practice areas of personal injury (including cases with an international dimension) and industrial disease continue to play a key role at the set. Tenants can find themselves dealing with anything from minor road traffic accidents to Supreme Court cases grappling with complex issues such as scope of duty under consumer protection regulations. One tenant tells us: “we’re on the cusp of changing the law in some areas. I genuinely find it exciting”. Employment and discrimination law is also a key area for 12KBW, with tenants having particular expertise when personal injury and employment law meet: if there is a workplace stress claim or discrimination following an industrial accident, 12KBW are the people to call.

The past year has seen no exception to the interesting cases. Charlotte Reynolds securing a finding of fundamental dishonesty in pursuit of a claim arising from a road traffic accident (surveillance evidence caught the claimant out!), Steven Snowden KC and Achas Burin representing the largest group of victims in the Infested Blood Inquiry, and David Green having success in a military deafness group litigation action against the Ministry of Defence. That’s just to name a few examples!

It’s not just the more senior members of the set who get all the exciting work. One junior tells us that there are “excellent opportunities to challenge yourself as a junior with complex factual and legal issues”. However, one tenant in their first few years of practice confides that “some of the baby junior work (lolling around the small claims court, arguing about credit hire) can get tedious”. Well, I suppose it can’t always be trips to the Supreme Court and client meetings with Premier League football clubs!

We are told that even when junior tenants are not being led by KCs on big cases, they can always pop into their rooms to ask them even small questions about their cases. There is an open-door policy throughout chambers, which contributes to a “truly collegiate atmosphere”. One junior tells us: “I literally WhatsApp queries and questions to the silks when I’m puzzled on a difficult point!” One happy tenant adds: “we are like a close-knit family where we look out for each other and the wellbeing of everyone, members and staff alike”. One member who completed their pupillage elsewhere comments that the friendliness of the set is something they know “is not to be taken for granted”. The set is broadly “doing a lot of work on wellbeing to ensure a strong support network”.

This emphasis on wellbeing continues into the issue of work-life balance. Of course, this will never be perfect at the bar. We are told, however, that where this balance lies falls predominantly with the barristers themselves. Whilst one tenant exclaims that “the bar is a stressful profession that impinges constantly on your personal life”, another reveals that they “take buckets of holidays a year and don’t often work weekends”. There is “not a lot of pressure from clerks” and open discussions about work-life balance are encouraged.

When the tenants want to have some downtime, we hear that “there will always be someone around for lunch or a drink after work”. Colleagues very often become friends, with tenants of all levels of seniority socialising together. There are also organised social events such as regular chambers tea and the annual Christmas party. We do hear, however, that things have been a little slow to recover post-Covid.

When it comes to 12KBW’s premises, the set is fortunate to be situated in the heart of Inner Temple. Spread over three buildings, the main building faces Temple Gardens, with some barristers’ rooms even overlooking the Thames. Whilst the outside of the building is described as “beautiful”, the inside gets less favourable reviews from tenants. Whilst some simply describe it as “dated”, others are harsher in their comments, with one detailing “client-facing conference rooms that look like they were last done up in the 90s by someone who didn’t care very much”. Another does, however, acknowledge that the set has made significant improvements to the public areas and has more renovations in the pipeline. With regards to IT, views are again mixed. Whilst one junior claims that there is “minimal IT provision”, another describes the IT team as being “fantastic”, especially during the pandemic. We are told that the set is “working on achieving excellence” in this area.

12KBW offers up to three pupillages per year, each coming with an award of £75,000. Pupils rotate between three supervisors throughout their pupillage year, and “work on complex and high-level cases from the outset” with detailed feedback being provided along the way. During the first six, they will exclusively complete work for their supervisor. Moving into the second six, pupils will begin completing work for other members of chambers as well as taking on their own cases — exciting!

One former pupil sums up their experience as this: “I certainly felt lucky compared to friends at other chambers. The emphasis was very much on education and development first: assessment is an obvious part of any pupillage, but it didn’t feel like a bear-pit. Supervisors were supportive and there was a strong sense across chambers that people want the pupils to succeed.” Pupils also receive a junior tenant as a mentor to provide help and support as required. Beyond pupillage, the training is “ongoing and very high quality” with the set putting on seminars which members are encouraged to attend.

Those wishing to apply to 12KBW should make their application through Pupillage Gateway. Around 30 candidates are invited to a first-round interview, which consists of an oral presentation to the panel. Candidates will be asked to select a recent case and deliver their presentation as an application for permission to appeal from that case’s decision. They will also face questions from the panel. The highest-scoring candidates will be invited back to a second-round interview, which is more traditional in format.

12KBW say that they are looking to recruit “first-class pupils who will be able to strengthen their areas of practice”. Their website states that they are committed to diversity. Indeed, 12KBW offers social mobility mini-pupillages in addition to its ordinary mini-pupillage programme. These seek to “improve access to the profession and enable excellent students from under-represented backgrounds to embark on careers at the Bar”.

The pupillage experience

I had three supervisors, all of whom had different areas of practice.

In my first six, I attended court and conferences with my supervisors. Usually, I would be asked to put together my own preparation for these, which I would then compare with my supervisor afterwards.

I always received detailed and helpful feedback on the written work I prepared for my supervisors and for other members of Chambers. Usually, I would receive both written feedback and an opportunity to talk through the work. This learning was invaluable for my own practice.

One thing that stood out for me was the willingness of other juniors to take you along to their hearings. This is built into the pupillage at 12 and everyone is expected to help out. I would be shadowing a junior at a local county court around once a week. It meant that when I came to the second six, I had some useful advocacy tips up my sleeve. Chambers also put on informal training at the end of their first six to answer any last-minute questions we had.

Chambers has an assessment process which takes place towards the end of the first six. This comprises of written work which a junior tenant may be instructed to complete (we did a Defence, Counter Schedule of Loss, and an advice on liability and litigation tactics). We also did a “mock” small claims hearing, with our co-pupils as opponents. Both of these assessments were challenging, but I felt more prepared for taking on my own work in the second six.

In the second six I was in Court around 3 times a week doing small claims trials and application hearings. My clerks and supervisors helped manage the workload so that I had plenty to do but still had time to prepare.

The transition from pupil to tenant

Not as daunting as expected! There is a genuine collegiate attitude at 12KBW so when you do have a question about a case, people are happy to help.

What is your practice like now?

I am in the county court three or four times a week with my own cases and I have a paper practice that keeps me busy when I’m not in court. I am being led by members of chambers in some cases, and I have devilled for members of chambers too.

I have a broad PI practice, comprising of road traffic accidents, credit hire, employers and public liability, and occupational disease work. 12KBW has expanding specialist practice groups related to our core practice areas, such as costs, sports law and abuse work. Specialists in those fields and clerks are welcoming to new members and will support you to develop your practice.

Life at the junior end is busy. My normal hours are 8am-7pm but this can vary. In busy periods, I work on weekends. In quiet periods, I take afternoons off in the week. The clerks are supportive of us taking holiday.

What is the culture of chambers?

The junior end at 12KBW is very supportive and I have made good friends. Lots of us come into Chambers regularly and there is an expectation you can pop and see someone for a chat. We have a great relationship with the clerks and can speak to any of them if we want to develop a new area of work. Many of the silks and senior juniors in chambers are down-to-earth, approachable and supportive of junior members. Being based in Temple is a beautiful place to work, especially in the summer.

Top tips for those wanting to become a barrister/secure a pupillage at your chambers

I think you need a genuine desire to do personal injury work, strong communication skills, and to be able to show motivation and commitment to a career at the Bar.