Law of the Land

The Junior Debating club, along with a number of our Sixth Form students were thrilled to welcome Clair Dobbin – a leading Human Rights Barrister to talk to about a career in Law this week. Clair’s 19-year career in the legal profession qualified her to talk to our engaged girls about the ins and outs (as well as the ups and downs) of a career in Law.

Clair is a passionate advocate for Human Rights particularly when it affects children, she also represents Sajid Javid, Home Secretary, in cases when legal action is brought against the government. Throughout the talk, Clair took the opportunity to encourage bright and engaged Pipers girls to consider a career in Law and was able to shatter unsubstantiated myth’s such as; “successful barristers need to be posh”, “you can be too nice to be a barrister” as well as others.

Clair spoke to students about the qualities that make a good lawyer emphasising that if you have some of the softer skills such as being a good communicator, a strong work ethic and are a team player – you are well equipped for a career in law. All lawyers need to be diligent and hard-working and core Pipers qualities such as perseverance and tenacity will help girls in pursuit of their goals – Clair said “no-one is born a brilliant lawyer”.

Clair encouraged girls to seriously consider their A Level subjects – attending a good Russell Group university with a good degree is imperative. Clair highlighted that an interest in debating and advocacy were some of the traits Chambers looked at when considering whether to offer a pupillage. She said that they also look favourably on those that volunteer – these experiences will set you apart as “special” from those other 1,600 who sat the bar on an annual basis (1,624 sat the Bar in 2017/2018).

The talk finished with an opportunity for the students to ask questions, which included - “is there a place for morality in the legal profession?”, “Have you ever felt threatened when representing someone accused of something really horrendous?” and “Will I be disadvantaged and looked down upon, if I don’t do a law degree?”.