Pupillage

42BR Barristers is a leading common law set based at 11 Staple Inn, London. Chambers has more than 170 members and practises across a broad range of civil and family law.

Its principal areas of practice include business and property, clinical negligence, personal injury, employment, family and housing. Chambers also has expertise in areas including banking and financial services, company and partnership disputes, construction and engineering, insolvency and restructuring, commercial litigation, professional negligence, property, landlord and tenant, public law, local government, coronial inquests and animal welfare.

Members act for a diverse range of clients and instructing organisations, including private clients, insurance companies, local authorities, public bodies and solicitors. The breadth of the practice means pupils can gain experience across several areas of common law during their training year.

The Pupillage

42BR aims to recruit one or two pupils each year for a 12-month pupillage.

The pupillage is divided into two six-month periods. The first six months is a non-practising period in which pupils shadow their supervisors and develop their legal research, drafting, advocacy and case-management skills.

The second six months is the practising period. Pupils can advise clients and exercise rights of audience in their own cases under the terms of their practising certificate and supervision arrangements.

Each pupil is allocated at least three different pupil supervisors during the year, allowing pupils to experience a broad range of Chambers' work. Chambers aims to allocate supervisors in periods of approximately four months, although arrangements may vary.

First Six

The first six is designed to expose pupils to as many of Chambers' practice areas as possible.

Pupils can expect to:

• Read and work on case papers.

• Conduct legal research.

• Attend court hearings.

• Attend conferences with supervisors.

• Attend seminars and other training sessions.

• Observe advocacy and case preparation.

• Assist with legal drafting and paperwork.

• Take notes at conferences and hearings where appropriate.

Pupils who have a particular interest in an area of Chambers' practice can discuss this with their supervisors, and Chambers will seek to accommodate those interests where possible.

Second Six

During the second six, pupils begin developing their own practice under appropriate supervision.

Pupils can expect to appear in court in their own right around three times per week on average, and potentially more depending on the work available. The clerks aim to distribute work fairly between pupils so that each pupil obtains the experience required to develop as an advocate.

The second six therefore provides substantial practical experience, including advocacy, client contact, case preparation and managing a developing caseload.

Supervisors remain available throughout the year to provide guidance and support. Chambers also emphasises maintaining an appropriate work-life balance during pupillage.

Practice Areas

42BR offers pupils exposure to a wide-ranging common law practice.

Business and Property

The practice covers banking and financial services, company and partnership disputes, construction and engineering, insolvency and restructuring, commercial litigation, professional negligence, real property and development, and landlord and tenant matters.

Clinical Negligence

Members act for claimants and defendants in clinical negligence disputes involving medical treatment and healthcare services.

Personal Injury

The personal injury practice covers a broad range of claims, including serious injury litigation and claims involving insurers and individual clients.

Employment

Members advise and represent clients in employment disputes and related litigation.

Family

Chambers has a substantial family practice covering both public and private family law.

Housing and Public Law

Members also undertake housing, public law and local government work, including disputes involving public authorities.

Other Specialist Areas

The wider practice includes coroner's inquests, animal welfare, insurance and related civil litigation.

What 42BR Looks For

42BR seeks candidates who can demonstrate a combination of self-motivation, enthusiasm, intellectual ability and strong interpersonal skills.

Candidates should be able to communicate effectively with a wide range of clients and professional colleagues and should demonstrate a professional but compassionate approach to legal practice.

Chambers particularly looks for:

• Intellectual ability.

• Self-motivation.

• Enthusiasm and commitment.

• Strong communication skills.

• The ability to work effectively with different clients.

• Professional judgment.

• An interest in several areas of Chambers' practice.

• The potential to develop a successful practice at the Bar.

The breadth of the Chambers' work means that applicants should be able to demonstrate an interest in more than one area of common law rather than approaching pupillage solely from the perspective of a single specialist practice.

Academic Requirements

A minimum 2:1 degree, or a prediction of a 2:1, is usually required.

The degree does not have to be in law. 42BR welcomes applications from candidates with degrees in other subjects who are taking or have taken the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL).

Where an applicant has commenced or completed the BPTC, Chambers usually expects a Very Competent result.

These requirements are described by Chambers as usual requirements rather than absolute guarantees of selection.

Assessment During Pupillage

42BR assesses pupils throughout pupillage against the core skills identified in the Bar Standards Board's Pupillage Handbook.

The assessment areas include:

Conduct and etiquette: Professional standards and appropriate conduct as a barrister.

Advocacy: The ability to present arguments effectively and appropriately.

Conferences and negotiations: The ability to communicate with clients and other parties and contribute effectively to conferences and negotiations.

Drafting, paperwork and legal research: The ability to produce accurate, clear and effective written work and conduct appropriate legal research.

42BR does not require pupils to undertake formally assessed exercises or compete against one another for assessment purposes. Instead, pupils are informally assessed throughout the year and receive detailed feedback designed to help them improve.

Supervisors hold regular meetings with pupils to discuss progress and feedback, with formal feedback provided at the end of each placement.

Tenancy

Tenancy decisions are made during the final few months of pupillage.

The decision takes account of feedback from pupil supervisors and other members of Chambers. Pupils are assessed on their performance throughout the training year and on whether they have demonstrated the skills and qualities required for tenancy.

42BR has continued to recruit successful pupils as tenants. For example, James Hoile joined Chambers as a tenant in October 2025 after successfully completing his pupillage.

Pupillage Award

The current published financial information on the 42BR pupillage page provides for an award of £40,000, paid in monthly instalments, together with guaranteed second-six earnings of £15,000.

If a pupil does not reach the £15,000 minimum earnings level during the second six, Chambers provides a top-up to reach the guaranteed amount.

42BR also pays for compulsory courses that pupils are required to undertake during pupillage.

The published £40,000 award is specifically described on the current Chambers page as applying to pupils who started in October 2025. Candidates applying for the October 2028 intake should therefore check the final Gateway advertisement for the applicable award before relying on the figure for financial planning.

Application Process

Applications for pupillage at 42BR are made exclusively through the Pupillage Gateway. Chambers does not accept applications by another route.

For the relevant Gateway recruitment round, applications open at 11:00am on Monday 4 January 2027 and close at 11:59pm on Thursday 28 January 2027. The national Gateway timetable provides for offers to be made from 9:30am on Friday 7 May 2027.

Candidates should ensure that their Gateway application clearly explains their motivation for becoming a barrister, their interest in 42BR and the areas of practice that particularly appeal to them.

First-Round Interview

The first-round interview is deliberately short, lasting approximately 10 minutes.

Candidates are asked questions about their current activities, their future ambitions and other matters designed to allow the interview panel to get to know them.

Legal knowledge is not assessed at the first-round interview. The focus is instead on the candidate as an individual and on the qualities relevant to a career at the Bar.

Second-Round Interview

Candidates who progress from the first round are invited to a longer second-round interview, normally lasting approximately 30 minutes.

Candidates receive a topic shortly before the interview and discuss it with the panel during the first part of the interview. They are then presented with ethical problems and asked to identify the issues and explain how they would approach them.

The interview concludes with an opportunity for candidates to ask questions of the panel.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

42BR is committed to equal opportunities throughout recruitment and employment and has regard to the Bar's Equality and Diversity Code.

Chambers seeks to broaden access to the profession through its outreach and development activities. It participates in programmes including 10,000 Black Interns and operates university and school outreach initiatives.

42BR also has Equality and Diversity Officers who meet regularly to consider equality and diversity matters within Chambers.

Mini-Pupillage

42BR offers mini-pupillages in civil and family law.

A mini-pupillage is not assessed and does not form part of the pupillage selection process. It provides prospective applicants with an opportunity to experience Chambers' work, observe barristers and gain a better understanding of life at the Bar.

Applications require a covering letter of no more than one A4 page, a CV, a completed confidentiality agreement and a completed diversity monitoring form.

The current mini-pupillage timetable provides several application windows throughout the year, with placements taking place in the periods immediately following each application deadline.

Application Deadline

The application deadline for the 42BR Pupillage 2028 recruitment round is:

28 January 2027 at 11:59pm

Applications must be submitted through the Pupillage Gateway.

How to Apply

Candidates should prepare and submit their application through the Pupillage Gateway during the January 2027 application window.

Further information about the Chambers, pupillage structure, selection process and mini-pupillage programme is available on the official 42BR website.