Exchange Chambers is set to double its number of pupil barristers from 2020.
The set, which works out of Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester, currently takes three pupils a year, but has committed to increase that number to at least six, and potentially up to eight.
Its pupillage award will remain at £25,000.
The set is dubbing its scheme a ‘pupillage academy’ and is citing the opportunity for second-six pupils to be on their feet in court more frequently than at London chambers as a key selling point.
Exchange is also introducing mentoring for pupils for 18 months before they start their pupillage. A spokesperson for the chambers said it planned to engage with schools and universities much earlier than in the past and encourage its members to support other students seeking pupillage.
Exchange is one of the country’s largest chambers, with more than 170 barristers. With the increase in pupils, it will become one of the country’s biggest providers of pupillage outside the Government Legal Department and Crown Prosecution Service. Another large Northern chambers, St John’s Buildings, also offers six pupillages, but most sets have a maximum of four per year.
Exchange Chambers chief executive Tom Handley said: “We are a multi-disciplinary set with an abundance of high-quality work at all levels, wide geographical coverage and outstanding barristers. Everything is in place to bring on the next generation of talent. Chambers’ strength in depth means that pupils will work with barristers who are leaders in their field. During their second six they will be in court virtually every day with the opportunity to generate significant income, build their practice and develop their advocacy skills.”
