I thought that something that would be useful was to explore what can be done for work experience for the Bar other than mini pupillages, which everyone who is half serious will have done, and is now seen as more or less a given for OLPAS applications and CV's. I will add to this page in the future, and will concentrate on work experience that I have completed to give a bit of an insider view.

Outdoor Clerking:
This might be something that you have heard of but don't really know what it is. Instead of sending a qualified solicitor, or fee earner as they are known, it is more cost efficient and economical to send a clerk to run a file at court so the solicitor can get on with some more billable work.

Outdoor clerking is extremely useful work experience, in my opinion, because:

1) You get to meet Barristers every day, thus increasing opportunities to network;

2) You are actually involved in real cases, doing real legal work;

3) And possibly most important of all it is paid.

The best way to go about securing a place as a clerk is to Google "outdoor clerking in (insert area)", or to send in a letter and CV to local firms that deal with criminal law, as they tend to have the most work. I was lucky enough to find a company which were advertising on the net so that made it a lot easier.

The main duties of a clerk are to take the file to court, provide the barrister with any documents they require, take notes in conferences with the clients (some of which may be in the cells), and take a note of the proceedings in court (which can be quite difficult if you are trying to get down everything said during the examination of a witness).

The work is freelance so you tend to not know if you are working from week to week, sometimes it can be the afternoon before. In the beginning you will probably be asked to attend mentions, PCMH's, and bail applications. When you have proved you can handle these smaller jobs you will be asked to clerk for trials, which for me personally included crimes such as Rape, ABH and GBH, possession with intent to supply, and sexual assault. As well as the other benefits, it also gives you a really good idea of the work a criminal barrister takes on, and shows you everything that you learnt in English Legal Process in action.

Finally, lets get down to brass tacks. I currently earn £25 for a half day, and £45 for a full day. Although it is not the most fantastically well paid of jobs, the experience it provides far outweighs the fact that it doesn't pay too well.

I hope that this has helped you get a better idea of what clerking is all about, as well as thinking a bit further than just mini pupillages.