Lauren Bates-Brownsword - 2023 Inner Temple

I only considered a career in law after completing my undergraduate at UCL. After this I volunteered for the charity Y-Care International in Togo. This experience was a catalyst for my interest in criminal law, where I learnt the importance of proper representation and access to justice. Trials are held once a year in the capital of Togo, leading to a pre-trial detention backlog of up to 10 years. The prison I worked in, was over-capacity with over 400 people in a prison originally designed for 100.

I then studied the Graaduate Diploma in Law at Oxford Brookes University. The highlight of that year was winning the English Speaking Union/Essex County Chambers National Mooting competition with a fellow student. Subsequently, I worked for two years as a paralegal in criminal law and volunteered with Amicus, a death penalty charity assisting with death penalty cases in the USA. During the Bar Practice Course, I continued to work full-time as an English teacher and boarding Housemistress. Not only did this crucially allow me to fund my studies but I greatly enjoyed being able to coach students in a criminal Mock Trial competition.In the same year I applied for pupillage and was lucky to secure a place at QEB Hollis Whiteman.