Mini-Pupillage

Our mini-pupillages are not assessed and are not a requirement of applications for pupillage at The 36 Group.

Please see our separate pupillage page for information about pupillage at The 36 Group.

The 36 Group’s mini-pupillages can be obtained in a number of ways:

1.      Entering our annual oral advocacy competition

2.      Bar-wide schemes, for example via Bridging the Bar or 10,000 Black Interns

3.      Team-level applications

Team-level mini pupillages

Each year, our practice groups offer a fixed number of mini-pupillages.  The availability of mini-pupillages will be communicated on this webpage and on our social media sites.

Applications are welcome from all candidates regardless of nationality, ethnicity, religion, age, gender, sexuality, health, disability, neurodiversity or family/other circumstances.

Chambers prides itself on being a friendly and supportive team of barristers and staff members. We want all of our mini-pupils to feel welcome and will work with any successful applicants who require additional support to ensure they can take full advantage of the opportunities that mini-pupillage offers.

When attending mini-pupillage, subject to availability, mini–pupils will be offered the opportunity to attend court hearings, arbitration appointments and client conferences, or to work on legal research in Chambers.

We aim to provide mini-pupils with a week-long opportunity to spend time with a number of different counsel (again, subject to availability). The hours will likely be from 9am to 5pm each day, but this will be dependent on both the needs of the mini-pupil and barrister availability.

Mini-pupils will be expected to enter into a confidentiality agreement.

Applications are invited to the 36 Crime Mini-Pupillage Scheme. The scheme offers up to five days of mini-pupillage within the 36 Crime Team, typically involving placement with a member of the team to observe a Crown Court trial at first hand. We will seek to place successful applicants as close to their most convenient courts as possible, but some flexibility may be required. While we do operate all over the country, we have a particular concentration (and therefore availability) in the East  Midlands, the Thames Valley and London. Successful applicants will not have to undertake any written work or assessments, and any mini-pupillage undertaken will not have any impact on any subsequent application for a full pupillage. The intention of the scheme is simply to provide experience of what life is like at the Criminal bar for those seriously considering it as a career.

Applications should be submitted in writing by email to the minipupillage@36crime.co.uk , with a covering letter and a copy of your CV.

The scheme has two minimum requirements:

• All applicants must be over 18 by the time they start the mini-pupillage.
• Applicants must be of good character, meaning that they must not have any convictions or cautions which would ordinarily prevent them from being called to the Bar. This would not include minor road traffic offences resulting in penalty points and a fine. For those unsure of their position, please consult the Bar Standards Board guidelines for determining whether a person is fit and proper to become a practising barrister (here).

All qualifying applications will be judged on their merits, as reflected in their CVs and covering letters. We are not looking for the slickest or longest AI-generated CVs with the most $10 words; we are looking for clarity, good predicted or actual academic grades or a solid work history, and a serious interest in a career at the Criminal Bar.

We have reserved five places per year for those who come from backgrounds not traditionally found at the bar. If you wish to be considered for one of these places, please detail this in your covering letter. These places will be allocated on a first come first serve basis and are targeted at those who:

• Have been, at any point in their life, in the care of the local authority;
• Have been, at any point in their school career, eligible for free school meals; or
• Neither of whose parents had been to university when the candidate left school.

Please be assured that all details provided will be treated in the strictest confidence.

CV

Please include your academic/work history. For guidance, we are looking for predicted or actual grades of at least;

i.               3 B at A-Level (or equivalent), or

ii.             A 2.2 degree (or equivalent).

Those without good formal qualifications (either actual or predicted) are invited to demonstrate their academic ability through any other evidence, including, but not limited to, employment and experience.

Applicants who feel their academic grades do not reflect their abilities are invited to explain any particular hardships or difficulties they face which might have impacted their results. All details will be held in confidence.

Please be aware that all successful applicants will be required to sign a confidentiality agreement and an undertaking not to post, publish or share any information that might identify any of the people in any of the cases you might see. You will also be required to attend on the first day with some photo ID (passport or driving licence preferred).

Covering Letter

In your covering letter, please:

i.              Confirm you are, or will be, over 18, when you hope to start your mini-pupillage;

ii.             Confirm that you don’t have any relevant previous convictions;

iii.           Set out why you as keen undertake a mini-pupillage with us and specifically why you are interested in criminal law;

iv.            Set out dates that you are available over the next 6 months, and any preferred locations;

v.             Add any other information that you feel may help us assess your application (your current situation, details about grades or work not covering in your CV etc).

Frequently asked questions

1.    Will the mini-pupillage be funded? Unfortunately not. However, where possible, we will try to place successful candidates at a court close to where they live to reduce travel costs. Although the placement can last for up to five days, shorter periods are available for candidates whose work or other commitments make five days impracticable.

2.    What hours will I be expected to be at court? Crown Courts usually sit between 10.00/10.30 and 4.00/4.30. However, much of the preparation for trial takes place beforehand, so we would suggest arriving no later than 9.30. This can, of course, be adapted to individual needs.

3.    What about lunch!? Unfortunately, most courts have lost the cafes or canteens that they used to have, however most are located close to shops, cafes and restaurants. You should be able to eat in the robing room at court if you want to bring a packed lunch or buy something nearby. The courts usually break between 1 and 2 pm.

4.    Will I be expected to complete any written assessments or work? No. The aim is to allow you to observe, absorb, and decide whether a career at the criminal Bar is right for you.

5.    Will I be required to give my view or opinions to clients? Absolutely not – indeed you are not allowed to offer any opinions to lay clients. If during a conference you might be invited to attend you are asked such a question your supervisor will explain that you are not allowed to have any! You will of course be able to ask questions when in private place with your supervisor.

6.    Will completing a mini-pupillage at the 36 Group affect any future application for full pupillage? No. The full pupillage application process is entirely separate, so it will make no difference.

7.    What do you mean by good predicted or actual academic grades? Is that code for only straight As and first-class degrees? No. We are looking for good grades, and Bs and 2:1s are good grades. We also recognise that things sometimes go wrong and outside factors can have a serious effect. If you are concerned that your grades or predicted grades do not properly reflect your ability, tell us why. All details will be treated in confidence.

8.    What do you mean by “or a solid work history”? We recognise that not everyone leaves school with the same academic trajectory or ambition. Some people come to the Bar later in life, after beginning a different career. To take just a few common examples, many former police officers, members of the armed forces, and probation officers have gone on to build successful careers at the Criminal Bar.

9.    Will I be allowed to talk about what I have seen and heard in court afterwards? Yes and no. You will be asked to sign a confidentiality agreement not to disclose any privileged material to which you may be given access. You will be observing real cases involving real people, and their legal rights and privacy must be respected. Everything you see and hear in open court is in the public domain, and you will be free to talk about that. However, you will also be asked to sign an undertaking not to post on social media anything that might identify any individual in a case to which you are given access through us. This is simply to preserve the dignity of those involved and to reflect the professional standards of the profession you are being given an insight into.

10. I have another question which is not answered here. Please feel free to direct any specific questions or queries to the same email address provided above.

The 36 Crime Mini Pupillage policy can be viewed here.

The 36 Group’s 2026 Oral Advocacy Competition has now closed. Competition entrants should expect to know the outcome of their entries by the end of July 2026.

The preposition for 2026 was: Juries; for or against?

We look forward to administering this competition again in 2027.