On Wednesday 28th October, the Student Union café in the Tait Building became the scene of a crime. The Women in Law Society committee had organised a Halloween murder mystery night, and the brief was simple: come in costume, solve the mystery and enjoy yourself. I’m a member of the society, so I went along, and I’m so glad I did.
Three teams, one culprit and a lot of pizza
Here’s how it worked. Members of the society were welcome, and so was anyone who bought a £3 ticket. There were no assigned roles. Instead, we split into teams of five, with about three teams in total, and the aim was to be the first team to work out who did it and win a prize. There was also pizza and Halloween sweet treats, which is a strong start to any evening.
I have to start with the food, because the set-up was great. The drinks and snacks were laid out so that everyone could reach them easily, there was a good range of both, and the pizza was delicious. It sounds like a small thing, but it made the evening feel relaxed and welcoming the moment I walked in.
A deer, a vampire and Lara Croft walk into a murder mystery
Then there were the costumes. I went as Hannah Montana, which felt fitting for anyone trying to get the best of both worlds between law school and a social life. The committee members and other guests had clearly put thought into theirs. One committee member came as a rapper, two came out as deers and another a vampire. Among the other attendees there was a cop, a cat and Lara Croft. Looking around a room of law students dressed as deers, a vampire and a video game character is a very effective way to break the ice.
There was also a prize for best dressed, and I was thrilled to win it. I took home a pink Sol de Janeiro set and two tubes of fake blood, which felt very on theme.
Swapping case reports for crime scenes
Once we were in our teams, the real work began. At one point my team realised we were feeling overwhelmed by the amount of reading we had to get through for the mystery. We joked that it looked just like the readings we are assigned for our modules, and that we had simply swapped a case report for a crime scene. Laughing about it helped, and it was also a reminder that sifting through a lot of information and working out what matters is exactly what we do at law school.
The most tense moment came when we were narrowing down our suspects. We thought we were getting close, and then the reveal was made and we were completely thrown off. I won’t spoil anything for future events, but it was a good lesson in not getting too attached to your first theory.
The skills I didn’t expect to use
I came away having deployed more skills than I expected. Talking to people I didn’t know was good practice at socialising (aka networking!), and dressing up in front of a room took me out of my comfort zone. Working in a team meant listening, sharing ideas and deciding together which lead to follow. Core to our endeavours that night was being sure to reason from the evidence, which is exactly what lawyers do when they build a case of course, and doing it speedily because we were racing the other teams. Clear communication mattered too, because a good idea is no use if your team can’t understand it.
Why a night off matters for law students
It was also a great chance to meet people. Women in Law events are an ideal way to make friends and connections, to get to know other students and to talk about everything from career options to how we are all managing our workloads for different modules. As Leen Al Shekh Taleb, the society’s events officer, told me:
“We just wanted to bring a social event where you could feel welcome and also to provide a break from academic pressure for an evening of problem solving, but also some fun.”
Looking back, what I valued most was how gently the evening pushed me out of my comfort zone. Dressing up in front of a room full of people could have felt awkward, but so many people had made an effort, so it quickly became part of the fun. That is a good lesson for law school too. Many of the things that feel intimidating at first, from joining a society to speaking up in a seminar, get easier once you realise most people are in the same boat, and it is much easier to take that first step when the setting is friendly.
I’d recommend the night to anyone who loves dressing up or loves Halloween, and to aspiring solicitors and barristers in particular. The vibes were great and so was the company, and it had made me keen to go to more Women in Law events. If you spot the next one, take a friend, choose a costume and go!