What is Legal Cheek?

I attended a ‘Legal Cheek Virtual Fair’ this year in September and November. Legal Cheek (LC), as some of you may already know, is a website which helps students research law firms and barrister’s chambers (depending on the route you prefer). LC hold many events (which have now increased due to everything being carried out virtually) and therefore, there is an event almost every week if not bi-weekly. The Virtual Fair is one of the largest that LC hold with over 5000 attendees each at both the September and November event. There was a virtual law fair on the 3rd December and one more event: a pupillage fair on the first Saturday of December.

Tips for virtual events

Here are some tips on how to prepare for the fair and what to expect:

Firstly, try to register to attend a few days before the event, as it can take up to 72 hours for the team at LC to get back to you. If you aren’t sure which route you are interested in, attend both events and engage in conversations with the different panels in order to try and better your understanding of what your personal preference is. Once you get your details to join the event, you are able to include your LinkedIn and Twitter URL so it would be a good idea to update those platforms with your latest achievements and experiences!

Secondly, there is a list of firms, chambers, universities and courts that are participating in the event, uploaded prior to the event. It is a good idea to research the firms, chambers and universities that you are interested in beforehand, so that you already know the basic information and facts about them. Researching prior to the event allows you to avoid asking the hosts questions that you could find the answers to yourself (from simply looking at their website). Rather, take the time before the event, to prepare questions that you haven’t seen the answer to on the firm’s site. This will make you stand out more as they will know that you have done thorough research and are showing a genuine interest.

Finally, I would suggest that you try and keep an open mind. If after asking all your questions at a few chosen firms/chambers/universities, feel free to look around and join other “booths” as you may be surprised with what you learn. Information that you get from one firm can be applied to another – so to avoid limiting yourself to a few select firms, go ahead and join ones that you didn’t research and see if anything sparks your interest.

Final thoughts

I prefer the solicitor route and therefore after attending the events in September and November, I can say that I was able to filter through a lot of different firms and ask many questions and come to the conclusion of which firms I want to apply to. Many firms have current trainees who participate at the fair and it’s really helpful asking them about their experiences, what to expect and what type of work they carry out on a daily basis. I recommend that you attend these events to help better your understanding! If you miss the large virtual fair, you need not worry as many firms participate in smaller events across the year! Keep an eye on the LC Events page for more information.

Ibra Farooq, 3^rd year LLB student. Current interests are Child Law and International Criminal Law. Aspiring solicitor hoping to specialise in Family Law. Ibra is a member of this year’s Lawbore journalist team – look out for more from her soon!