Our guide to unlocking new, diverse and often overlooked pathways into a career in law
Here’s what to expect this week…
Opportunities we’ve spotted, including legal work experience, paralegal roles and training contracts
Our weekly Q&A, answering your questions about careers in law
5 minutes with... Minah Ilyas on legal business development
And finally, a career tip you can put into practice this week
Let’s get into it 👇
Career opportunities spotted this week 👀
📍 Work experience, insight days and legal placement opportunities
⚖️ Albion Chambers (Bristol)
Fancy a taster of life at the criminal and family bar? Albion Chambers run mini-pupillages of at least two days, with at least 50% of places to be given to those who identify as BAME and/or attended a state school (reasonable travel expenses covered too at their discretion). Applications for the next window closes 31st July.📎 Vialto Partners (London)
If you’re interested in employment law and legal tech, this Legal Intern opportunity is worth a look. You'll support the EMEA Employment Legal team with legal research, drafting guidance, and cross-border employment law projects, while also helping develop and test AI tools to improve legal workflows. Apply ASAP.
⚖️ Grays Inn Tax Chambers (London)
Gray's Inn Tax Chambers offers funded and unfunded mini-pupillages throughout the year for law and non-law students. No prior knowledge of tax law (or any law) is required. Funded mini-pupillages receive £600 per week and there is potential financial assistance provided. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.
💼 Trainee, Apprenticeship & Pupillage Roles
💻 AmTrust International (Nottingham)
Not sure about uni? AmTrust International are looking to hire school leavers to join their Solicitor Apprenticeship Programme and gain a Level 7 Solicitor Apprenticeship qualification. No prior legal experience required - just enthusiasm, commitment, and a genuine interest in pursuing a career in law.
📅 Milburns Solicitors (Cumbria)
Milburns are looking to recruit Trainee Solicitors and Paralegals for their September 2027 intake. They are open to Law and non-Law graduates with support for both the SQE and LPC routes. Apply with your CV and a short covering letter.
👩⚖️ 4PB (London)
4PB, a leading family law set, are recruiting for a Third Six Pupil position starting 1st October 2026 (or earlier by agreement), with guaranteed earnings of £30,000 for the six months. They're after candidates with a strong academic record and a particular interest in private children and finance work.📝 Streeter Marshall LLP (Greater London)
They are accepting applications for their Trainee Solicitor Programme, open to those who've completed the LPC or are preparing to start the SQE. Send your CV to [email protected] before applications close on 17th August 2026.✍️ Hadaway & Hadaway Solicitors (North Shields)
They are inviting applications for a Training Contract commencing September 2026. Trainees gain hands-on experience and meaningful responsibility from an early stage, working across areas including Residential and Commercial Property, Wills and Probate, Family Law, Housing Law and Litigation, and Mental Health Law. Apply with your CV and a covering letter.
⚖️ Paralegal/Entry Level Roles
⭐ Inclusie’s pick of the week ⭐
Humber Law (Beverley)
This Legal Support Assistant role is a great opportunity for those interested in private client work. We love an advert that focuses on the skills needed, rather than requiring years of prior legal experience.
You'll get stuck into document and file management, calendar coordination and some client-facing admin, with scope for more advanced tasks as you settle in.
Apply with a CV and short covering letter to [email protected].
🔬 University of Sheffield (Sheffield)
Not a law firm, but a brilliant in-house-adjacent route: Assistant Contracts Officer in the University's Research Contracts team. You'll help negotiate confidentiality, collaboration and material transfer agreements while getting full training and support to build contract law expertise from scratch. Apply by 10th August.🏥 JMW Solicitors (Manchester)
JMW have two paralegal roles open right now, one in Court of Protection and one in Catastrophic Injury, both permanent and full time. A great chance to get hands-on experience at a well-regarded, award-winning northern firm with genuine progression routes. Apply via JMW's careers site for whichever practice area interests you most. Apply ASAP.💰 Wealthtime (Bath)
A Group Paralegal & Governance Assistant role is available at the wealth management group, six months fixed term. You'll support contract admin and company secretariat work under supervision, a nice blend for anyone curious about corporate governance alongside traditional paralegal tasks. Some prior legal or admin experience required. Apply ASAP.🤝 HCR Law (Cheltenham)
HCR are recruiting a Paralegal for their Employment, HR and Immigration team, a great one if you're drawn to people-focused legal work. You'll draft documents, conduct legal research and build tribunal bundles amongst other tasks. You'll need a legal qualification (or be working towards one - LLB, SQE or CILEx counts). Apply ASAP.⚡ E.ON (Derby)
E.ON are recruiting a Paralegal for their Legal, Compliance and Data Protection team, a 12 month fixed term contract focused on land rights work like easements, leases and title reviews. A good option if in-house appeals. It does require some previous legal experience. Deadline: 28th July.📌 Lawyers on Demand (TBC)
Are you interested in a career in legal tech/engineering? We understand that Lawyers on Demand are hiring ambitious graduates and current paralegals across various roles. Email [email protected] to find out more.
💊 Pharmacy2U (Leeds)
Pharmacy2U are hiring an In-house Commercial Paralegal to support their Head of Privacy and Chief of Staff, covering contract drafting, IP and compliance work at the UK's largest online pharmacy. It does require some prior experience, but could be a great step for someone interested in in-house careers, with only 1-2 days required onsite. Apply ASAP.📢 Thomas Legal (Gloucester)
An “entry-level” position for any law graduates, career changes or anyone looking to break into property law. As a legal assistant, you will be supporting conveyancing transactions under supervision, client due-diligence, interpreting legal correspondence and more. Thomas Legal has been known to promote within the firm, so this position can possibly open up future opportunities as well. Apply ASAP.
🗒️ Duncan & Toplis (Grantham)
Looking for qualifying work experience? Duncan & Toplis is recruiting a Corporate Paralegal/Administrator. This candidate will support a range of corporate legal matters, including drafting legal documents, developing client relationships and progressing transactions. The firm is looking for candidates with prior corporate legal experience and requires office attendance at least every Wednesday. Apply ASAP.
🔨 Slater and Gordon (London / Manchester)
Slater and Gordon are recruiting in their London and Manchester office, with entry-level roles including Paralegal positions, such as in their Clinical Negligence team, and a Legal Assistant position in their Costs team. Various deadlines apply.
Fancy a role as an Administration Assistant? You could support either Weightmans’ Costs team (Liverpool/Manchester) or Real Estate team (Newcastle). You'd assist case handlers with a broad range of file and case management tasks - a varied way into life at a national firm. No legal experience required, though previous admin experience in a similar setting is preferred. Apply ASAP.
📌 HCB Widdows Mason (Cardiff)
This role supports the Legal Practice Manager of HCB Widdows Mason, with a mix of compliance, HR, finance, client service and project administration ensuring the firm’s day-to-day operations run efficiently. An interesting varied role. Apply ASAP.
🔨 DAC Beachcroft (Newcastle-upon-Tyne)
Fancy handling your own caseload early on? DAC Beachcroft are recruiting a Paralegal for their Construction & Engineering team, working across residential development, energy and infrastructure. The team has a strong track record of supporting paralegals through to qualification via training contracts, CILEx or apprenticeships. Prior experience in construction, property or contract law isn't essential - just a strong academic record and genuine interest in the law.
Your questions answered ❓
Question: I'm planning to sit the SQE next year. Is there any financial support available to those from working class backgrounds?
My response: In short, yes! Several schemes exist specifically to support candidates from underrepresented and less advantaged backgrounds. Here's a few ideas of where to start looking 👇
🔗 Diversity Access Scheme – The Law Society's flagship scheme offers SQE scholarships, mentoring, and work experience for those from less advantaged backgrounds. It is currently closed for applications, however it’s worth keeping an eye on for next year (likely for those starting the SQE from September 2027 onwards).
📖 Specific Provider Schemes - Providers such as BARBRI, BPP, University of Law and the College of Legal Practice all have their own scholarships and schemes to support those from underrepresented backgrounds.
💰 Postgraduate Loan - If you enrol on an eligible SQE preparation course that leads to a Master's degree (such as an LLM), you may be able to apply for a Postgraduate Master's Loan. This funding can be used towards tuition fees and living costs, although you'll need to check whether your course qualifies and whether the loan covers the full cost of study.
〰️ Other Options - Some local law societies, charities and universities that promote diversity and social mobility in the legal profession offer scholarships, bursaries or grants for aspiring lawyers too.
Finally, if you’re currently working in a legal related role, it’s always worth checking with your employer to see if they might support you.
Best of luck! 💛
✍️ 5 minutes with… Minah Ilyas
This week we caught up with Minah, who has recently joined Legal500, to talk about Business Development, a career that's often overlooked but fundamental to the legal sector.
🤔 Why law?
What's interesting about the "why law?" question is that there's rarely a single correct answer.
Some aspiring solicitors and barristers are drawn to the industry for multi-jurisdictional work, others to the intellectual challenge of interpreting the law, the variety of tasks, or the ambitious nature the profession reflects.
Yet one core assumption is typically understated: that entering the legal industry means becoming a solicitor or barrister, full stop. In reality, the legal industry relies on a wide range of professionals, such as compliance specialists, business development teams and legal technologists, who are rightfully gaining increased recognition.
💼 So what actually is Business Development?
One lesser-discussed route is Business Development (or “BD”), often used interchangeably with sales or marketing. But BD is broader than that. At its core, it involves creating long-term value by developing client relationships, identifying market opportunities, and engaging in strategic activities which facilitate growth.
This is why firms such as Addleshaw Goddard structure their Business Development graduate scheme not only across seats in BD and marketing, but also in bids, client services, and communications. Activities such as public affairs and events arguably fall within this wider strategic remit too.
⭐ Why is the Business Development function important?
BD has always mattered to legal practitioners themselves. At a law fair last month, one consistent theme heard from Partners, Senior Associates, Trainees, and Recruiters is that technical legal ability acts as a baseline expectation for lawyers. Understanding the law, meeting billable hour quotas, or producing excellent work are fundamental, but not necessarily enough on their own. Successful lawyers also invest time in building client relationships, developing networks, and identifying opportunities to cross-sell expertise across their firms.
"Commercial awareness," then, isn't just providing applications to a stakeholder's business needs. It's also recognising that lawyers themselves operate within organisations that depend on long-term client relationships and intentional strategic positioning in a competitive landscape.
Lawyers with strong BD skills are often the epitome of what salespeople call a "trusted advisor," uniquely positioned to resolve clients' commercial and legal needs while nurturing the internal Book of Business.
🛤️ What about your own journey into legal BD?
Like many, my own career journey has been non-linear. After graduating, I entered high-ticket software sales to understand how businesses actually grow and deliver value while creating consultative relationships with client companies. Off the back of that experience, I'll be joining the Legal 500 in its submissions origination team, working with law firms around the world to understand their practices and support the research which informs our rankings.
What drew me to this role is that BD in the legal industry is less directly transactional, driven far more by reputation, thought-leadership, and long-term strategic planning. It also lets me return to a research-based function, something I particularly enjoyed at university, while exploring my budding love for the law.
If you're aspiring to break into the legal industry, whether through more traditional pathways or otherwise, it's worth growing your understanding of BD. It's fundamental across the board, and opportunities extend far beyond law firms and barristers' chambers, including LegalTech companies, specialist consultancies, legal marketing, PR, branding and growth agencies, legal publishers, media organisations, conference providers, and professional membership bodies.
💡 Any practical advice for someone considering this route?
Understand different sales cycles. Not all business development roles are the same. The sales cycle for a SaaS business, for example, is very different from how law firms win work through tenders, both in the tasks involved and the attributes required of a hire. Take time to understand how the firms you're applying to generate work, on what time scale, and what a typical client journey looks like.
Highlight your relationship-building skills. Strong interpersonal skills are essential in legal BD, which is why experience in customer service or any client-facing role is particularly transferable. During interviews, focus on building genuine rapport with recruiters and hiring managers before, during, and after. The key word is genuine. Being yourself goes far in a profession built on relationships.
Show commercial awareness and curiosity. Remember you're joining a business that serves client needs. Asking in an interview why a firm is investing in specific sectors, or why certain values are emphasised, is a great example of this.
There's not much information out there on roles in legal BD, so if this sparked your interest, feel free to connect with Minah on LinkedIn and ask away!
And finally, a career tip ✍️
You can actually overprepare for interviews.
The best interviews aren't the ones where you have a word for word script for every potential question (you can’t prepare for every question anyway).
For your next interview, spend less time memorising answers and more time getting comfortable with the story you're telling. I used to prepare with spider diagrams of around five key experiences, so I could pull an answer from any angle, in any order, without it sounding rehearsed.
Be present and show who you really are, not just who you think they want to hire.
That’s all for now. See you next week!
Emma
The careers advice shared in this newsletter is intended as general guidance and should not be treated as formal legal or recruitment advice. I do my best to keep all opportunities and deadlines accurate and up-to-date at the time of writing, but always double-check the employer’s website before applying.