Recruitment

We welcome applications to join our chambers and we are always interested to talk to high-calibre practitioners with a proven record at all levels of seniority in any area in which we practice.

Cross-qualified applicants are always welcomed and each submission will be treated on its own merits as situations can be so varied.

Applications for tenancy should be made by sending a CV with covering letter to Charles Row KC, our Head of Chambers, at the following address: Queen Square Chambers, 56 Queen Square, Bristol, BS1 4PR.

Queen Square Chambers is offering up to two 12-month general common law pupillages to commence in October 2024, with an award of £30,000.

We are also able to offer a further additional pupillage focussing on publicly funded work, with the same funding and start date – see the section below on the Butterfield Scholarship

Chambers is located in Bristol and our members are instructed in cases nationwide, with a particular focus on the Western and Wales and Chester Circuits.

During pupillage you can expect to have three supervisors spanning the range of chambers’ practice areas, along with the opportunity to spend time with and complete work for members with specific practice interests.

Alongside the Western Circuit advocacy training, Chambers provides its own advocacy assessments to best prepare you for second six, as well as comprehensive feedback on all written work.

Once you start your second six you can expect a busy and varied diary in all areas of Chambers work. Recent pupils have been instructed in Magistrates Court work, Crown Court matters, Family proceedings, Fast Track trials and Employment Tribunals. New tenants have been able to build upon this platform of mixed work to forge successful practices, often exceeding the levels of their contemporaries in London.

Chambers only offers pupillage with a view to tenancy and has made offers to all pupils in recent years. The tenancy decision is usually made within one month before the completion of pupillage.

Butterfield Scholarship

Thanks to the generous support of the Western Circuit through the Butterfield Scholarship, Queen Square Chambers is able to offer an additional pupillage in 2024/25 that will focus on publicly funded work.

The publicly funded work we undertake in chambers is predominantly criminal prosecution and defence, in addition to legally aided public and private family proceedings involving children.

If you would like to be considered for this specific pupillage in addition to / instead of our common law pupillage(s), you will be able to answer the additional question as set out below as part of your application.

Funding

The overall funding of £30,000 is broken down as follows:

• a grant of £4,000 is available to pupils in August 2024 to assist with any upfront costs (e.g. relocation);
• first-six funding is £10,500, payable monthly, with travel expenses reimbursed
• second six earning are guaranteed at £15,500, topped up monthly pro rata based on receipts. Recent pupils’ receipts have consistently exceeded this sum

Chambers does not charge rent on second six earnings, nor operate any “claw back” provisions should receipts exceed guaranteed earnings. New tenants also benefit from a reduced rent structure.

The cost of all compulsory training during pupillage is met by chambers.

Equality Diversity and Inclusion

No pupil or person being considered for Pupillage will be discriminated directly or indirectly against or victimised on grounds of their race, colour, ethnic or national origin, nationality, citizenship, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, religion or political persuasion.

Any accessibility queries can be directed to Mike Blitz (Head of Pupillage) at mike.blitz@qsc.law

How to Apply

Aspiring barristers are invited to apply to chambers between 3 January 2024 and 7 February 2024 using the Pupillage Gateway application system to search for the relevant Pupillage Vacancy and selecting ‘Apply for this pupillage’. https://www.pupillagegateway.com/for-applicants.html#welcome and selecting ‘Create a candidate account’.

We offer a limited number of mini-pupillages throughout the year. They are an opportunity for applicants to experience all elements of life at the Bar in Bristol. Mini-pupils will have the opportunity to shadow members in chambers in court and during conferences. We invite applicants to inform us of their practice area preferences, although as a busy mixed set, mini-pupils may be invited to attend hearings of any kind. Mini-pupils will also meet multiple barristers and clerks, and will be able to ask any questions about the profession and about pupillage at Queen Square.

Applications are assessed on their academic ability, demonstration of the skills required to succeed as a Barrister, and enthusiasm for potential practice in Bristol and / or at Queen Square Chambers.

We are only able to accommodate mini-pupils over the age of 18, and welcome applications from those who have started higher education and beyond. Mini-pupillages are neither assessed nor a pre-requisite to any future pupillage application.

Due to the number of applications, we cannot offer feedback to unsuccessful applicants, however, we endeavour to inform all applicants of the outcome of their application as soon as possible.

2023/2024

We offer 3-4 mini pupillages each season, with the following deadlines:

Applications for mini-pupillages taking place between September and November 2024 should be submitted by 28 June 2024.

Applications for mini-pupillages taking place between January and March 2025 should be submitted by 31 October 2024.

Applications for mini-pupillages taking place between April and June 2025 should be submitted by 28th February 2025.

Applications should be made by way of the linked Google Form. Please also complete the  Equality and Diversity Monitoring Google Form

Any responses to the E&D form are voluntary, and will not be linked to the substantive application.

Queen Square Chambers is a thriving mixed common law set in Bristol, a city regularly recognised as one of the best places to live and work in the UK. We currently enjoy a surplus of instructions and are looking to recruit one or more probationary tenants (formerly known as “third-six pupils”) to join our friendly and active team.

We are particularly looking for applicants who have experience and interest in family, employment and criminal law, or who wish to develop a mixed practice encompassing one or more of these areas.

Queen Square Chambers offers:

• a reduced rent structure for probationary and new tenants, with no fixed standing / monthly fees;

• a genuinely barrister-led approach to practice development, where clerks support the development of specialisms in line with barristers’ own skills and interests;

• a collegiate, friendly, supportive and un-stuffy approach and environment.

We have also found that many new tenants, particularly in publicly funded areas, have obtained early-career earnings and opportunities significantly beyond their contemporaries in London where it can take longer to become established in an overcrowded market.

Probationary tenancies are only offered with a view to full membership of chambers and are usually for a period of c.4-6 months. We are proud to have taken on all our pupils / probationary tenants in recent years.

Applications should be by way of CV and covering letter to James Bromige, James Bromige (James.Bromige@qsc.law)
If possible, a copy of: (i) a recent work diary spanning the previous three months, (ii) any available references, and (iii) any suitably anonymised written work should also be provided.

The deadline is 26 August 2022, however applications received before this date will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

We welcome and encourage an informal discussion prior to any application, with Mike Blitz, mike.blitz@qsc.law and / or Naomi Aylwin, naomi.aylwin@qsc.law able to act as a first point of contact.

Interviews can be arranged both in person in Bristol, or remotely if appropriate. We envisage successful applicants commencing in Autumn 2022 and can offer flexibility as to start dates.

All approaches and applications will of course be treated in the strictest confidence.