The Lawyer Inquiry: Reuben Taylor

Reuben Taylor was born in Brighton and is a barrister at 2 Mitre Court Buildings.



What was your first job?

I was a waiter in a hotel in Paris.



What was your first ever salary as a lawyer?

£30 for a non-effective hearing at Hampstead Magistrates' Court.



What would you have done if you hadn't become a lawyer?

Played keyboards in the rock band Van Halen.



Which law could you live without?

Murphy's Law.



What was your most embarrassing professional moment?

Being told by a judge that he would not hear me unless I changed my stripey shirt. I then had to swap shirts in the corridor with my instructing solicitor. He was 5ft 8in and I am 6ft. The judge heard me, but I don't think that my instructing solicitor's shirt was ever the same again.



What car do you drive?

Renault Clio.



Which famous person would you like to go out with?

Marilu Henner from the TV comedy Taxi.



Where would you go to eat?

A quiet little restaurant in Swiss Cottage called Bradley's.



What's the best thing on TV?

The sitcom Seinfeld.



Which movie do you wish you'd appeared in?

Blade Runner.



What's your most often-worn piece of clothing?

A pair of old Levi jeans.



What book(s) are you reading at the moment?

The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy; Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt.



What is your all-time favourite record?

Album: The Bends by Radiohead; song: Into Temptation by Crowded House.



What piece of advice would you give to anyone entering the profession now?

Always go to the lavatory before appearing in court.



What do you like about yourself?

That I always go to the lavatory before appearing in court.



What do you hate about yourself?

My inability to take regular exercise.



Where would you most like to be right now?

Scuba diving on any reef edge in the Maldives.