“It is week 9 of my pupillage which means I am almost halfway through my first seat. Though it still feels like the beginning, second six is beginning to edge closer by the day!
In this seat, I am being supervised by Matthew Winn-Smith. With a very mixed civil and chancery practice, Matthew has given me the opportunity to see (and get involved in) a great variety of work.
I started in week one on an opinion for a potential claim against a spread betting platform. This required trapsing through over 4,000 pages of evidence in order to determine that the potential claim had minimal prospects of success. I then moved on to assisting in a high court trial in Manchester with direct access clients. Though the matter settled before we got into the courtroom, I did get the opportunity to see how negotiations are managed by counsel; this experience was slightly more fast-paced than a border dispute mediation we had attended the week before! I have also drafted various opinions, skeleton arguments, particulars of claim, a defence and counterclaim, and a witness statement and draft order for a specific disclosure application.
As well as assisting my supervisor, I have also been able to attend court with other members of Chambers. This gave me the opportunity to shadow an appeal in the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber).
I am really enjoying the variety of work thus far, particularly in the context of drafting. After spending time on my feet as a county court advocate, the opportunity to practise and refine my written advocacy is invaluable.
The most exciting (and admittedly surprising) aspect of pupillage at Lamb Chambers has been my involvement in live cases. I mistakenly anticipated that the beginning of pupillage would comprise mostly paperwork on dead cases. However, it has been the complete opposite. Everything I have done since starting pupillage has contributed in some way to my supervisor’s live cases. This has also meant that I receive feedback on my work quickly and regularly.
As well as support from my supervisor, Chambers also paired me with a mentor, Chelsea Sparks, before I joined. Chelsea is someone I can go to whatever the question or problem, without any judgement. It was brilliant to have a friendly face in chambers before starting, and to also have someone round the corner to chat through a legal problem with. One thing that speaking with other members has taught me is how important verbalising a legal problem to another can be. It can really help you to wrap your head around the issue, see it from another perspective, or identify another potential route to remedy.
Fortunately, it has not been all work and no play. I have had lots of chances to get to know members of Chambers, from an informal get-together before I commenced pupillage to regular post-work drinks. Most lunches are spent with members too, typically in hall, giving me a chance to catch up with people and hear what they are working on. We also recently had Chambers’ annual quiz night, which proved a fun and entertaining evening, despite my team finishing middle of the pack… Alongside this, my supervisor established a “jogging” club when I joined, which even ended up on tour to Manchester whilst we were there for trial. Somewhat regrettably, the cold weather and workload has prevented (saved) me from enduring another 7k (for now…)
I am looking forward to what the second half of my first seat has in store.”
-Georgia Ezzard
09.12.2025
