Job Secured

It has been a long time since I last blogged, and I am glad to say it is for good reason, I secured a job and have been very busy as I have commenced my studies on the Legal Practice Course.  However, it has not been easy so far, I am currently working full-time over four days and study on the LPC on a Wednesday, while trying to fit in studying in between.  I must try to keep the faith and look forward to reaping rewards at the finish line.  

In the meantime I have attended a fantastic Conference on Human Rights, hosted by the fantastic Critical lawyers group in MMU yesterday.  A review will be coming shortly. 🙂 

“If I hadn’t had legal aid I would be dead now”

Save Justice

This morning we went to meet Lord McNally, Minister of State for Justice, with two women who have received legal aid. We wanted the Minister to hear from people who have received legal aid directly what it means to them. As we were waiting to enter the Ministry of Justice we spotted Chris Grayling, so we hand delivered the clients’ letters to him too.

Laila’s story – fighting to be safe from persecution

Laila’s letter to the Ministers

“I came to this country from Somalia to seek protection. When I made my asylum claim I was put in detention and my case was processed in the Fast Track system. Everything happened so quickly: after just two weeks my case had been refused. The Home Office did not even allow me time to get any evidence to support my case. I did not speak any English then and I did not really understand what was happening. Later…

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Rally for Legal Aid – 30th July 2013

Job Search

I have been searching for a job now since I finished my exams on the 21st May, that’s nine weeks now.  I have sent about thirty applications off, and got four interviews, two of which are next week! However i have gained some excellent legal work experience, working with a human rights law firm near my home once a week.  As this experience further stimulates my confidence and tickles my interest deeper into this area of law, I am contented that I might have found where my heart lies! As I have another interview in a different area of law, I am keen to learn about something new, before finally making up my mind and sticking to one career path. 

I am all to aware that these days one cannot be too choosey on what they work at, which is why I want to build up a varied experience.  This, I hope will lay down a string foundation for a chosen career path later on. 

I do wonder however, what is it like for a would be employer, taking on candidates like myself? I also think about those who are still indecisive about their career paths, do they feel pressured?

Legal Aid Day on 30th July 2013: a celebration and a protest

Save Justice

The birth of Legal aid

The 30th July 2013 marks the anniversary of the day the Legal Advice and Assistance Act 1949 came into force, the Act of Parliament that marked the beginning of the provision of legal aid in England and Wales. It is the anniversary of the day that the provision of free legal advice and representation to people who cannot afford to pay for a private lawyer and whose cases have merit became a cornerstone of the welfare state. Where previous schemes had operated on a charitable basis only, the Rushcliffe Committee report whose advice the Atlee government followed, recommended that free access to justice for people with a low income should be funded by the state. The report stated: “Many people of moderate means […] may suddenly find themselves in urgent need of help for this special purpose. In our view, people in this position should…

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End of Law Degree and upcoming graduation

Well, my updates during exam time disappeared, but only because I was studying so hard to get the grade.  And it paid off, I got a 2:1!!!! 🙂 I am now a low graduate pending formal graduation, which the ceremony takes place next week.  I have been riding the wave of enthusiasm of a shiny new graduate for a week now, and I have been hunting for the job to follow my recent success and to showcase my skills, however, the crest of this wave has dipped considerably.

As one amongst the sea of new graduates trying to find a job, the reality of how difficult the market is has hit me like a train.  One must fight the urge to get low and get stuck in a rut.  The best way to do this, is to stay as active in the field as possible, networking and keeping my skills up-to-date.  So I am going to utilise this blog to do just that.

Graduation is next week, so the wave of optimism will rise again, I hope I can get it to last through to securing a job.

Related articles

• 10 survival tips for new graduates (reed.co.uk)
• Five pitfalls for graduate jobseekers to avoid (reed.co.uk)
• Grandmother Graduates from Law School (wtvy.com)

The beginning of the end

Getting ready for the onslaught of final exams, and the submission of my dissertation. A year long slog of hard work will hopefully pay off.  The marks which have increased significantly since last year are showing signs of achieving the 2:1 classification needed.  What awaits after is desperately scary, with the enforcement of cutbacks to the legal aid budget today, one can only hope that jobs are out there to help get ones foot one the career ladder.

I decided to start this blog to track my progress from final exams.  I could have just written a diary, but made the decision to join the world of online blogging to track my progress in line with other would be lawyers, and see how we manage to get on.

 

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