I’m a criminal lawyer. Ask me anything!

OP

Original post by alb1999

I know a similar question has already answered but I already have my undergrad degree in Law. If I know that I would like to work in Criminal Law, would you recommend a Masters in Law or Criminology? Also how beneficial do you believe a Masters is to careers in law?

Hi, great that your considering a career in this area. Do you have any sense of what exactly you would like to do? Do you see yourself at the bar, working as a solicitor, or something else? Let me know as this will help inform my response to your question.

Reply 22

OP

Original post by cheese toes

hi

i wanna do criminology A-level, do you think this is a good idea? will it be hard or boring? thanks! Good morning all

Hello. I’m afraid I didn’t do this A level, or even law A level, so I’m not sure. It might be hard, but I love this area so I can’t imagine it would be boring! The only thing I would say is if you’re keen on becoming a lawyer, at this stage of your life you should prioritise getting good grades, so choose subjects that will maximise your chances in that regard.

Reply 23

Trinculo

21

@legalhelp - what kind of crime did you work in? High Street volume type stuff, of specialist crime?

Reply 24

the bear

20

are you able to share with us what kind of crime you committed ?

:holmes:

Reply 25

OP

Original post by Trinculo

@legalhelp - what kind of crime did you work in? High Street volume type stuff, of specialist crime?

I can’t say too much about that because it would be a bit of a giveaway, but I have done a good mix of ‘knockabout’ general crime, and more specialised financial crime.

Reply 26

OP

Original post by the bear

are you able to share with us what kind of crime you committed ?

:holmes:

If I told you that, I’d have to kill you, and then I’d be up on two charges instead of one. So no.

Reply 27

alb1999

Original post by legalhelp

Hi, great that your considering a career in this area. Do you have any sense of what exactly you would like to do? Do you see yourself at the bar, working as a solicitor, or something else? Let me know as this will help inform my response to your question.

Hi, thank you for getting back to me! I see myself at the bar at the moment, and I definitely think that is what I'd like to pursue, although I'm not opposed to a career as a solicitor.

Reply 28

OP

Original post by alb1999

Hi, thank you for getting back to me! I see myself at the bar at the moment, and I definitely think that is what I'd like to pursue, although I'm not opposed to a career as a solicitor.

Great, thank you for clarifying. If you are really determined to do a masters then I don’t think it would do you any harm at all, if your eventual aim is to apply for pupillage. However if you’re on the fence, and the main reason you’re considering the masters is to get more experience in crime and/or to demonstrate your interest in this area of law, then I think there are probably more productive (and less expensive!) ways to spend that time. Doing paralegal work for a year at a criminal firm is not the most exciting I have to admit, but it gets your foot in the door in terms of contacts, and you’ll get some practical experience. If you want to do something different, take a look at web profiles of junior members of chambers at the sorts of criminal sets you want to apply to. You’ll see people have done all sorts of interesting work: internships at the ECHR, work for the Law Commission, judicial shadowing, etc. People probably have different views about the value of a masters when applying for pupillage, but personally I think this kind of practical experience is not only more useful to you, but also makes you stand out more when it comes to applications.

Reply 29

Im 16 due to pick a levels am wanting to go into law 70/30 engineering i want to pick law criminology and maths and then if my mind changes will switch criminology for physics,or shud i take maths physics and law,im certain i want to go into law

Reply 30

OP

Original post by Yus745

Im 16 due to pick a levels am wanting to go into law 70/30 engineering i want to pick law criminology and maths and then if my mind changes will switch criminology for physics,or shud i take maths physics and law,im certain i want to go into law

Hi there. Sorry I am a bit confused. Do you mean you are 70/30 about whether to go into law/engineering? And your current plan is to study maths, criminology and law at A level? If your plan is to go into law, then I would suggest you study more “traditional” subjects, and that you include at least one essay-based subject. So, for example, maths, physics and an essay subject. I did not do either law or criminology at A level and am not in a position to comment on either, but I can say that if you are dead set on a career in law, a subject like history, economics or English would probably be more highly valued than either law or criminology. You really don’t need to do a law-related A level to get into and do well in law after school.

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 31

Original post by legalhelp

Hi there. Sorry I am a bit confused. Do you mean you are 70/30 about whether to go into law/engineering? And your current plan is to study maths, criminology and law at A level? If your plan is to go into law, then I would suggest you study more “traditional” subjects, and that you include at least one essay-based subject. So, for example, maths, physics and an essay subject. I did not do either law or criminology at A level and am not in a position to comment on either, but I can say that if you are dead set on a career in law, a subject like history, economics or English would probably be more highly valued than either law or criminology. You really don’t need to do a law-related A level to get into and do well in law after school.

Is there any way to get in without essay based subject as im.not really wanting to go into that,also do you like your job,wats pay like,hours,what city you from,

Reply 32

OP

Original post by Yus745

Is there any way to get in without essay based subject as im.not really wanting to go into that,also do you like your job,wats pay like,hours,what city you from,

If you are not interested in doing essay-based subjects, what is it exactly that makes you think you would be suited to a career in law? Absolutely no judgement, and not meant to be a patronising question, I am asking out of genuine interest.

Reply 33

Original post by legalhelp

If you are not interested in doing essay-based subjects, what is it exactly that makes you think you would be suited to a career in law? Absolutely no judgement, and not meant to be a patronising question, I am asking out of genuine interest.

I understand your question,reasonable,i wudnt mind doing essay based subjects but how necessary would it be,i will probably apply for law criminology and maths,and if i change my mind will switch criminology for physics,wat do law degrees look for

Reply 34

OP

Others will be able to chime in if they disagree, but I would say pretty necessary. But more to the point, if you don’t really enjoy reading long(ish) texts, research and essay writing, then there’s a good chance you will not enjoy a law degree, and a decent chance you won’t enjoy being a lawyer. I’d like to get to the bottom of what it is exactly that interests you about law, before you make A level choices (particularly law) that are geared towards a degree and a career you might not like. So for that reason I’ll ask the question again - what is it exactly that makes you want to be a lawyer?

Reply 35

I would say being able to have knowledge of law,being able to serve justice understand why people did what they did and be able to advise people etc

Reply 36

OP

To the first question: yes (luckily it doesn’t really matter what I think). To the second: no, not really.

Reply 37

OP