Barrister's Clerk Job Profile

Barristers' clerks are responsible for managing the practice and business activities of the barristers within a set of barristers' chambers. As a barristers' clerk, you'll provide crucial business and administrative support to your members or barristers. As such, your role is integral to the success of a set of chambers, both as an individual legal practice and as a business.

What is a barristers’ clerk?

Barristers’ clerks manage a legal practice’s diary, ensuring its smooth operation. Therefore, the role involves scheduling meetings, negotiating fees on behalf of your barristers, maintaining excellent client relationships, and much more. Bear in mind the term ‘clerk’ is historical and doesn’t accurately reflect the role’s responsibilities or intricacies. Being a successful barristers’ clerk is a profession in its own right and therefore should not be used as a stepping-stone to becoming a barrister – chambers will seek candidates who demonstrate a true passion for this demanding role.

Responsibilities

Typical responsibilities for barristers’ clerks can widely vary, but all clerks will be tasked with managing their practice’s diary, which involves:

• Scheduling meetings

• Arranging for court documents and files to be taken to and from the relevant court

• Negotiating fees on behalf of your barristers

• Recommending specific barristers for cases according to their practice areas and experience

• Marketing and developing the business of members to optimise workflow

• Maintaining excellent client relationships with solicitors and other professional clients

• Keeping abreast of compliance matters and ensuring systems are up to date and accurate

Salary

Starting salaries for junior clerks in London are usually around the London Living Wage, rising to £27,000+ after a few years of experience. For senior clerks, salaries can vary widely and depend on the size and income of the chambers, as well as their specific area of law. As a rough guide, these salaries can be anywhere from around £90,000 upwards, with many of today’s senior clerks earning six-figure salaries. Salaries elsewhere in the country are generally lower. Some chambers offer senior clerks a bonus payment commensurate with the barristers’ salaries, but generally, salaries are ultimately determined by responsibility, ability, and experience, with barristers' clerks in leading chambers earning substantial salaries.

Qualifications

Although there are no set requirements to become a junior clerk, chambers will expect you to have GCSEs in maths and English at grade 4 or above (or equivalent). Chambers will likely also ask for further GCSEs at grade 4 or above (or equivalent). As many barristers’ clerks have higher qualifications like A-levels or a degree (some chambers prefer law-based degrees), it’s worth exploring these courses.

You might also be able to enter the profession by taking a higher apprenticeship in law and/or business administration. Having relevant work experience, skills and personal qualities is particularly important. Some chambers may recruit clerks with previous management or administrative experience. Because there are no strict learning paths to becoming a barristers’ clerk, you have several options to consider to improve your chances of beginning a career in law.

Paralegal Level 3 Apprenticeship

Predominantly catering to paralegals, the Paralegal Level 3 apprenticeship provides a choice between two areas of law to specialise in and start to build foundational legal knowledge – making it equally relevant for aspiring barristers’ clerks. You’ll also benefit from wider learning, including how to carry out legal research, act professionally and ethically in a legal setting, and work well with other legal professionals.

Law Conversion Course (PGDL)

If you already have an undergraduate degree but it’s in a non-law subject, the Law Conversion Course (or PGDL) is another route to a legal career worth considering. The PGDL is a replacement for the now defunct Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) and it’s designed to provide students with a smooth transition into the legal sector. Here, you’ll develop your knowledge of legal matters, concepts, and principles, alongside delving into some of the most common specialisms, such as public law, contract law, and criminal law.

PGDL graduates can then progress onto completing an LPC or BTC course, to become a qualified solicitor or barrister, respectively. However, a PGDL doesn’t have to propel you on to further training and you can just as easily start applying for barristers’ clerk roles to build your experience instead.

Skills

To become a proficient barristers’ clerk, you'll need to have:

Legal knowledge

Pre-existing legal knowledge is an excellent advantage if you’re considering applying for a barristers’ clerk role. As you’ll be working in a team alongside other, more qualified legal professionals, knowing legal terminology and processes from the offset is invaluable.

Strong communication

Your responsibilities as a barristers’ clerk will involve significant amounts of both verbal and written communication with your team and clients. Clarity and thoroughness of communication are arguably more important in a legal profession than anywhere else, so strong all-round communication skills are imperative.

Teamwork

As a barristers’ clerk, your role will be almost entirely team focused. You will be working alongside paralegals, solicitors, or barristers, so strong teamwork abilities are a significant advantage.

Attention to detail

Both attention to detail and the capacity to maintain focus over long periods of time are essential skills for barristers’ clerks. They’ll help to make sure you’re accurate and thorough when carrying out duties like proofreading documents or inputting data.

Additional languages

While not essential, knowledge or proficiency in additional languages is a great benefit for aspiring clerks looking to work for high-street law firms in ethnically diverse areas.

Research abilities and critical thought

Barristers’ clerks are responsible for researching and dissecting critical case information, making research skills and critical thought imperative.

Career path

Work experience

Although there’s no specific work experience that’s required to become a barristers’ clerk, the competitiveness of the law sector means that anything you have will be valuable. If you’re applying for roles without a relevant law qualification, though, it’s even more important that you have experience. This can be gained through pro bono or volunteer work, and even community service experience working with youth groups or elderly citizens can be helpful.

Continuing professional development

Your training is mainly done on the job, learning by working with an experienced clerk. What is more, employing chambers will often provide practical training and may support further training through relevant organisations such as the IBC.

With experience, you will develop knowledge and expertise in the specific areas of law undertaken by your chambers, such as:

• Civil

• Commercial

• Criminal

• Employment

• Family

• Pensions

• Property

As a barristers' clerk, it’s essential you keep up to date with current legal issues, as well as market changes and administration issues. An IBC membership will be extremely useful for networking and finding career opportunities.

Find out more about our law programmes here.