The Clerking team is excellent and really goes out of its way to make everything much smoother. Each lawyer is assigned their own clerk who manages their schedule and daily work, but you will be working with the whole team in different locations. During the first few years of tenancy, rooms also hold « practice development meetings » attended by you, your clerk, the principal clerk and a senior chamber member who acts as a « mentor. » This is a great opportunity to evaluate your practice and find out what more you would like to do in the future. I first heard about 4 New Square when they held the introductory course for the city`s students during the first week of GDL. This is a large event where each group of four is assigned its own member of the chambers, who will judge a pleading and then provide input on the oral argument. I then applied for a mini-student position, which I liked, and so I submitted a complete application for a student position. I was particularly drawn to the prestigious diversity of the work, as well as the opportunities to stand trial and litigate early on. But those who apply for student body in New Square won`t just do so for the « gram. » There is a generous student prize of £75,000 for the lucky candidate selected each year. Perhaps more importantly, the on-set training is also highly rated. One current student says, « The education I received was excellent. There is no formal scoring or scoring system like many sets (which, in my opinion, would be rather infantilizing/reminiscent of Key Step 3). On the contrary, students work primarily for their student supervisors and receive ad hoc feedback and advice. After a few months, the chambers` « open door » policy means that students are working for several other chamber members.

This means that we are exposed to the full range of work of commercial law firms, see and absorb different styles of lawyers, and receive constructive feedback from different perspectives. They add: « The only criticism I would make is that due to the informal system, some members of the chambers need little nudges/reminders to give their opinion. » Like many other law firms, the student body is generally non-practicing, meaning students don`t have their own workload. I studied philosophy, politics and economics for my bachelor`s degree at Oxford University before doing both GDL and BPTC directly at City University London. I didn`t have much legal work experience before I started law school, so I applied and did it for mini-students during GDL`s first semester. City have given me different opportunities to reflect, both internally and externally, so that I can also gain experience at the same time. « They are a very good set of rooms and provide useful, high-quality advice. » The transition can be difficult at the best of times, and it was made even stranger by the fact that the country was still in lockdown and I was largely working remotely. However, Chambers is very supportive of new tenants, which helps make things as smooth as possible. For example, you usually start by sharing a room with an older member of the room who is about the same seniority as a student supervisor. I`ve found that you can learn from them over and over again in the first few months as a tenant – and it`s also very helpful to have an open ear when you first encounter a problem! We are told that this exciting work, often done by older members, benefits all chambers. « The 30 or so commercial lace silks in the rooms produce high-quality work for busy juniors and vice versa.

All of this contributes to an extremely optimistic feeling that a room is getting stronger and stronger, » one insider told us. In fact, juniors tell us that there is a « great mix » of directed and unguided work and good opportunities to « appear regularly in court for an advocacy experience. » The team of clerks is closely involved in individual and chamber-wide marketing efforts and works to advance lawyers` practices as a team. Michelle Greene was recently appointed Principal Clerk and Nathan Hitchman Deputy Principal Clerk. Crystal Fernandes has joined Chambers as Director of Marketing. There is a real sense of energy among members and employees to further develop New Square`s reputation throughout the firm`s work. The relationship between lawyers and clerks is also what I would call modern; The traditional strict division between lawyers and their employees has been replaced by a relationship that is both professional and friendly, as our employees work with, and not only, the members of the Chambers.