No5 Barristers' Chambers - True Picture

No5 Barristers' Chambers pupillage review 2026

The Chambers

“If you’re dedicated to a big career at the bar, there’s no better place to be,” is how one pupil introduces No5. It’s true, ‘big’ certainly is what No5 is all about, with over 260 barristers spread across Birmingham, London and Bristol. As large as the footprint is the spread of work, which director of clerking Daniel Griffiths describes as “eight sets of chambers under one umbrella, covering clinical negligence, personal injury, business and property, planning and environment, public law, family, crime and regulatory, and employment. Our structure means we always have the right barristers to meet every client’s needs.”

It’s certainly far from your standard chambers setup, but that’s the charm according to head of pupillage Simon Hunka: “No5 is one of those sets that doesn’t necessarily follow traditions of the past but is brave about going forward.” One such example is the new Birmingham office, complete with open-plan and private working spaces, a designated pupils’ room and “snazzy” hot water taps! “There are signs on people’s office doors to say, ‘come in’ or ‘we’re out,’” a junior tenant explained, “It’s been designed thoughtfully so people can’t colonise spaces, and pupils don’t have to feel like a closed door is a barrier.”

“No5 is one of those sets that doesn’t necessarily follow traditions of the past but is brave about going forward.”

A sleek workplace certainly doesn’t hurt, and it’s part of the approach that has helped No5 earn a range of Chambers UK Bar rankings befitting of its size. In the Midlands, No5 is among the best of the best in clinical negligence and personal injury, planning, crime, family, immigration, company and commercial dispute resolution – and that’s not even the exhaustive list! According to Griffiths, the family team has seen the most growth over the past year, “particularly in London, reflecting growing demand and recognition for its expertise. Alongside this, our business and property group continues to expand, as does the employment and clinical negligence groups — all areas where No5 has built a significant national presence.”

Speaking of clinical negligence, Henry Pitchers KC recently represented the claimant in a negligence suit against the Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust. The case went to the Supreme Court and centred around secondary victim claims after the client suffered severe psychological harm from witnessing the death of their daughter of a negligently undiagnosed condition. In a recent commercial matter, on the other hand, Mark Anderson KC acted for Gowrie Holdings in a pharmaceutical shareholder dispute concerning allegations of fraud and unfair prejudice.

The Pupillage Experience

Pupils spend their entire twelve months of pupillage with one supervisor, with a distinction between the learning first six and the practising second six. Hunka clarifies that, since pupils only get one supervisor, “we try to pick one with a broad range of work. If they have more of a niche practice, their pupil will spend more time with others during pupillage.”

Those who had been through the process found that there were clear benefits to the setup: “It means that whatever shoots of progress that are starting to form can be given the full chance to grow. We don’t do seats with different supervisors in different practice areas,” a junior tenant explained, “that would mean that by the time you’ve got yourself used to the setup you’re moving onto the next, with only a few pieces of work demonstrating your strengths.”

“I don’t think there was a hearing I didn’t see!”

This single supervisor approach means that there’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to pupils’ experience of their first six. “It’s quite flexible. My co-pupil spent time with lots of different people in the team while I had a totally opposite experience, but it suited us equally well,” a pupil summarised, “I spent pretty much every day with my supervisor, and I don’t think there was a hearing I didn’t see!”

Live work is the name of the game here, with pupils’ often providing the first draft of a final product that then goes to a client. Though tasks can vary depending on the practice, pupils usually get the chance to conduct legal research and draft things like written applications and skeleton arguments. As one pupil reflected, “I really appreciated how I wasn’t given tasks for the sake of it or as an academic exercise. I’d work on what my supervisor was working on and would be of assistance to them. I felt like we’d talk through cases together and my insights were valued even though I had almost no experience.”

There are two formal reviews in the first six; the first takes places three months in, and the other at the 5.5-month mark. Supervisors here submit full reports on pupils’ progress, which they then discuss with pupils who can share any concerns, feedback and requests for specific types of work. The second review takes place right before the start of the second six and involves an advocacy exercise. “It’s an opportunity for pupils to do a formal exercise with people they don’t know, just before they get on their feet,” Hunka summarises, and a pupil adds, “It was very basic and not meant to be particularly difficult. It’s less about the legal intricacies of your argument and more about oral advocacy.”

After getting the greenlight, the practising second six begins. “Second six pupils can have a full diary of cases,” a junior tenant outlined, “For me, there were a lot of small claims, bankruptcy petitions, minor insolvency cases and applications.” Of course, the exact work pupils will take on depends on their practice but, rather than taking on any work just to get court time, a junior explains how “specialist pupils undertake specialist work from the very beginning. We’re lucky to have a proactive, friendly and approachable clerking team that makes sure of that.”

Supervisors will naturally spend less time watching over pupils once they start building their own practice, but a pupil was pleased to report that there was still no shortage of ongoing feedback: “Instead, I’ve been getting feedback from opposing counsel and barristers sitting in the back of court waiting for their case to be called on. They’ll watch your case and will make an effort to give you feedback when they know you’re a pupil. Judges have emailed my supervisor to tell them what they thought of me.”

A final review takes place at the nine-month mark and is “about addressing any final issues if there are any, but we don’t expect there to be any problems by that stage,” says Hunka. The tenancy decision follows and shouldn’t come as a surprise, according to a pupil, as “chambers wouldn’t spring it on you. You’d know if there were concerns about your performance.” It’s also worth noting that pupils don’t have to fight each other for tenancy spots: “You’re taken on with a view to tenancy, so if you’re doing even averagely well, you shouldn’t feel worried.”

“Whether it’s the barristers or the clerking room, we look after each other.”

Of course, the size of chambers has to be mentioned as part of the pupillage experience and, according to a junior, “it means there are multiple levels of support throughout chambers. In the rungs immediately above you there are plenty of people to share war stories and socialise with.” Griffiths goes as far as to say that “we pride ourselves on feeling like one big family — a genuine national set where barristers and staff pull in the same direction.”

Despite being spread across offices and practices, a pupil explained how “my cohort gets along really well. We see each other at least once or twice a week for a drink at the pub or whatever. It’s so friendly, and we’re encouraged to lean on each other because we don’t have competitive pupillages.”

The Application Process

No5 uses its own application form as the first stage of the recruitment process. Hiring across eight different practices is no small feat, so Hunka explains that “the target is to have four groups involved every year based on business need and their history of successful pupils. We found that, with all eight groups involved, we’d only be able to get four pupils invited to the final round for each, so we reduced the number of groups so that we could interview more people.”

The first step involves applying to a chosen group (or groups) and office, though it’s worth bearing in mind that certain groups are only available in one office, such as crime in Birmingham. Applications are then sifted based on certain marking criteria which, according to Hunka, include academic history, interest in the practice area and viability for the position.

The first-stage interview is typically in-person with a three-person panel, with questions based on the application form. The details will naturally differ depending on the practice, but there will ordinarily be a question on a recent development in their chosen area, so “it’s important to brush up on your knowledge of recent developments,” says Hunka, “We might ask what candidates think about a recent decision that was made, for example.”

Panels then score each interviewee and are encouraged to note down any standout points that should be considered in the selection process. Those who are invited to the second stage then complete an advocacy exercise, which is “not about finding out how much they’d like to work in the practice area, but to see if they’ve got the advocacy skillset we’re looking for,” Hunka explains, “That’s means there’s not really much prep they can do but, again, being up-to-date with recent developments in the legal landscape won’t hurt.”

“It’s about seeing whether the ethical cogs in their mind are whirring the way we like them to.”

Successful candidates are then invited to a second-stage interview but, ahead of this, are asked to join a mini pupillage. Here, they spend a day with someone from the group who then feeds back to the pupillage committee. Around eight applicants make it to each group’s final-stage interview, which includes an ethics question.

“We’re not expecting that they’ll get the right answer. After all, we set questions where the panel isn’t even in agreement,” Hunka tells us, “It’s about seeing whether the ethical cogs in their mind are whirring the way we like them to. We ask them to make an argument and throw a few spanners in the works to see how they react.” After this, each group makes around two pupillage offers, but it’s flexible so, “if there are three stellar applicants, we might take three,” according to Hunka.

Interviewees were clear that finding the right culture fit is important for both chambers and applicants alike. “Be your authentic self and let chambers know that you’re the person they want in their set, not just because you’ll be a good lawyer but because you’ll make a great colleague,” a pupil advised. Hunka echoes this, suggesting that candidates should “come in and enjoy it as best you can. I understand it’s nerve-wracking but let us see you. Don’t give us stilted answers or be afraid that we won’t like what you say. Let us see exactly who you are and don’t worry about what we might think!”