Kingsley Napley LLP is delighted to announce the launch of The Legal Apprentice, a nationwide competition, in conjunction with The Times, which invites year-12 pupils from all 4,168 secondary schools across the UK to compete to win a place as a solicitor apprentice at the London-based law firm. The brainchild of Stephen Parkinson, Kingsley Napley’s newly-appointed Senior Partner, The Legal Apprentice embodies Stephen’s and the firm’s desire to expand legal career opportunities to students from non-traditional backgrounds who are underrepresented in the profession.
The competition, will see pupils work together in teams to complete three-rounds of ‘heats’ which will test their legal knowledge, negotiation and drafting skills.
Four groups will then be picked by Kingsley Napley to take part in a live final in June 2019, at the offices of The Times’ parent company, 
News UK. All students in the winning team will receive £500 each and will be interviewed individually by Kingsley Napley for the chance to win a legal apprenticeship at the firm after completing their A-Levels. Stephen Parkinson comments: “Kingsley Napley is keen to spearhead the drive to increase social mobility within the legal profession. There are many highly-talented pupils across the UK who may not previously have considered a life in law, perhaps believing it to be the preserve of the privileged few. I urge all schools to encourage entries from their pupils – the law has given me so much in my lifetime, I want to enable a greater range of students to experience such an enriching career.” Teachers must register their school’s interest by 18 December 2018 via a dedicated web page (https://www.kingsleynapley.co.uk/the-legal-apprentice). Once teachers have registered, students from their school will be able to sign up. Kingsley Napley has devised a series of teaching aids, available to all who enter, which are designed to support teachers in educating their students on matters involving the application of both civil and criminal law.
