Those who impress could receive a barrister training scholarship
BPP Law School (BPP) has unveiled a brand new advocacy competition that aims to give university students considering enrolling on the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC) a sneak peak into life as a barrister.
The ‘Advocate of the Year’ competition will see wannabe barristers take part in a series of challenges, including “client conferences and advocacy roles during short, realistic trials”. To make the challenges all the more authentic, BPP has drafted in actors from the Synergy Theatre Project — a London-based charity that works closely with ex-prisoners — to play key witnesses and clients.
BPP hopes the competition — which is due to run on 26 and 27 November — will give students a better understanding of what life at the bar is like before they commit to a BPTC, which could see them part with as much as £19,000.
The law school has confirmed that the advocacy event will run in five locations nationally: London, Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham and Bristol. With space for 22 teams in total, some universities will be invited to put forward their own group of aspiring barristers, while other teams will be hand-picked and consist of students from different universities.
Standout students who impress the judging panel — which is made up of BPP staff — could receive a BPTC fees reduction of as much as £6,500.
James Welsh, director of BPP’s BPTC programmes, said:
We are keen to give those considering coming to the bar the chance to practice their skills in the sort of work that junior barristers do. There is such a huge appetite to moot but that form of advocacy is actually quite rare in practice. This competition will focus much more on everyday cases and test a wider range of practical skills. It’s a chance for students to take on life-like cases and have a ‘taster’ for what the BPTC entails which could help them in their career choices.
Further details on how to apply can be found here.