London Irish Lawyers Association

#minipupillage #internship #law #legalprofession #lawgraduates I find it profoundly depressing every time I read something about how hard it is for so many #lawstudents to obtain even a single mini pupillage or any kind of #legal #workexperience. How you can make an informed decision about whether the profession, let alone the #bar is for you without sampling it is beyond me. Earlier this summer I had the pleasure of two School of Law University of Reading students with me (Ben Holder and Lia Canzini) for a "mini" and talking to them and Katie Stephens and Lily Sainsbury earlier this year got me thinking about what more I could do to help those aspiring to be #lawyers, #barristers and #advocates in particular. So this year as a "prize" I am offering a week's mini-pupillage with me - on dates to be agreed with the winner - for the best essay I receive (maximum 1000 words) on the following topic; "How the challenges I have overcome in pursuit of a career in the law motivate and equip me to become a persuasive advocate for others" The judging panel will be Paul Rodgers, Deputy Senior Clerk Maria Dineen and myself. NOTE all entrants must not have obtained or completed any other mini-pupillage. The competition is open to #undergraduates and #graduates of any #college, #lawschool or #university. #students who are not eligible please share with any of your friends and peers who might be interested. The judges decision is final and we reserve the right to publish the winning entry. Closing date for entries is 7th October 2024. Entries with a cv and hand written covering letter marked "Jim Sturman KC Essay Competition 2025" to 2 Bedford Row, The Chambers of Brian Altman KC and Jim Sturman KC (2, Bedford Row, London, WC1R 4BU) Winner to be announced 30/10/2024. Those who think the second prize should be 2 week's with me? Brian Altman KC already beat you to the gag. #criminalbar #lawstudent #careers #diversity #inclusion #socialmobility #mondaymotivation #legaleducation #mentoring #payitforward

📢 TWO WEEKS TO GO!!!!!!!!!!! 📢 I am hosting a London ITGC event on 17 June for in-house lawyers working there from Ireland (or at Irish companies)! ☘ Places are nearly gone so shout if you want to come! DETAILS: 📆 Monday 17 June, 6-9pm 📍Penningtons Manches Cooper LLP, 125 Wood Street, EC2V 7AW 🎉 An evening of fun & networking with content from Claire Sanders (founder, Being Human Consulting Ltd) on the importance of connection, being human & thriving at work Big shout out to our event sponsors Penningtons Manches Cooper LLP and LexisNexis for hosting and sponsoring this special event. #irishtechgc #londonbaby #diaspora #connectedness #howtothriveatwork PS Sign up here: www.itgc.ie/events I can't wait!! 🇬🇧 ☘

So, as some people might know, back in 2022 myself and the London Irish Lawyers Association began working on a slightly ambitious idea to create a new social mobility programme called LILA Trailblazers, which would link the avalanche of working class talent back home with the expertise, passion and access of the London Irish legal community. In 2023/24, with the impressively unwavering support of the ever-brill LILA Committee, myself and the great Trailblazers Working Group set about establishing and running the pilot year of Trailblazers; covering two competitions, a bunch of fascinating talks and a collection of interactive workshops. We engaged with trailblazing university students and school pupils from Coleraine to Cork, and a bundle of places in between, and crowned exceptional winners of our two competitions in the process. It was extremely tough, alongside our busy day jobs, but we managed to do it and we go again for 24/25. The working group lived up to its name and worked tirelessly to keep the programme alive and impactful - even the Grand Mooting Final's original destination catching fire couldn't stop Trailblazers! The fact the pilot survived and impacted so many people is testament to Kerri McGuigan, Tomas McGarvey, Megan Millar (6KBW), Maeve Keenan, Jonathan Lyness, Úna Campbell, Eavan Prenter, David Walker, David Hardstaff, Seán Corcoran, Mark O'Brien O'Reilly and Anna Metadjer within the Working Group, not to mention the huge amounts of LILA volunteers who took part in our talks and workshops, and our two extraordinary High Court Justices (HHJ Angela Rafferty KC and Dame Maura McGowan) who judged the mooting final. There was also huge amounts of work done by faculty staff at University College Cork and Ulster University, never mind the fantastic teachers who encouraged sign ups and supported participation across their pupils. It was a humongous team effort to get it off the ground and run it. I ended up being nominated for a Law Society Legal Hero award on the back of helping out with LILA Trailblazers, and since found out that I made a shortlist of 19 out of over 500 nominations. The individualised nature of the award sits uneasily alongside how much of a team effort LILA Trailblazer's pilot was, without fully embracing and recognising the efforts of all of the other blister inducing efforts of everyone flagged above. I'm hugely proud to represent LILA and the Trailblazer Working Group, and the Trailblazer programme, on the list though - and it's a real sign of how much effort the bunch of us put in. Here's to cementing Trailblazers in in the coming academic year, and having a chance to work with so many of the above exceptional people again to make it happen!

Announcing the next in our’ In Conversation…’ series. We are extremely pleased that Aedamar Comiskey will be speaking to journalist and tv presenter Tadhg Enright in the next of the London Society's exclusive In Conversation evenings on Thursday 13 June. Aedamar Comiskey, from Monaghan, is senior partner and chair of the ‘Magic Circle’ firm Linklaters. Aedamar was elected Linklaters’ Senior Partner and Chair in May 2021 and is the first female Senior Partner in the firm’s 185-year history. Aedamar is recognised as a leading public and private M&A lawyer, advising on some of the most significant and high-profile deals in the market.  Including the hostile takeover of G4S, HSBC on the sale of seven banks across LatAm and Visa Europe on its separation from and remerger with Visa Inc.. She is also a trusted Board adviser to several of the firm’s large international clients, including HSBC, Visa, Capita and Tate & Lyle. With grateful thanks to Deloitte for supporting this event. Members please hit the link below for more details and to book your place. https://lnkd.in/eaDwU5m3 London Society Committee Members Michael Gilmartin Greg McAnenly James Meade FCA MBA Anita Millar Cormac O'Shea Suliyat Oyin Olalekan Paddy Daly Carla Cassidy Michelle Dolan (FCA) Denise Jones Chartered Accountants Ireland

Announcing the next in our’ In Conversation…’ series. We are extremely pleased that Aedamar Comiskey will be speaking to journalist and tv presenter Tadhg Enright in the next of the London Society's exclusive In Conversation evenings on Thursday 13 June. Aedamar Comiskey, from Monaghan, is senior partner and chair of the ‘Magic Circle’ firm Linklaters. Aedamar was elected Linklaters’ Senior Partner and Chair in May 2021 and is the first female Senior Partner in the firm’s 185-year history. Aedamar is recognised as a leading public and private M&A lawyer, advising on some of the most significant and high-profile deals in the market.  Including the hostile takeover of G4S, HSBC on the sale of seven banks across LatAm and Visa Europe on its separation from and remerger with Visa Inc.. She is also a trusted Board adviser to several of the firm’s large international clients, including HSBC, Visa, Capita and Tate & Lyle. With grateful thanks to Deloitte for supporting this event. Members please hit the link below for more details and to book your place. https://lnkd.in/eaDwU5m3 London Society Committee Members Michael Gilmartin Greg McAnenly James Meade FCA MBA Anita Millar Cormac O'Shea Suliyat Oyin Olalekan Paddy Daly Carla Cassidy Michelle Dolan (FCA) Denise Jones Chartered Accountants Ireland