Nottingham’s blessed with world-renowned universities, but there’s one you might not know about - The University of Law (ULaw). Opening their Nottingham city campus in 2019, they offer law-specific courses for those looking to get into the profession. ULaw does plenty for the wider Notts community too, by offering pro bono (without charge) services, where students can get hands-on experience whilst being supported by practising lawyers. We paid a visit to find out more from some of the law students hoping to make a difference in the world…
You’d be forgiven for not knowing there are actually three, not just the two, universities in Nottingham. One of them, The University of Law (ULaw for short), is a little different.
Opening up in Nottingham in 2019, the campus is one of seventeen bases across the country, and they also operate in Berlin and Hong Kong. As the name suggests, ULaw focuses on the practice of law. Campus Manager & Senior Lecturer, Harriet Pearce, explains:
"We aim to prepare students for a professional legal career with a wide range of study options, from undergraduate law degrees with optional foundation years, to postgraduate programmes, which are required to become a solicitor or a barrister. Students are given the opportunity to study a range of subjects, such as family, business, commercial and intellectual property law"
Other than a laser focus on the subject area, students report that one benefit of studying at the relatively small city centre campus is the close-knit and supportive academic community. Another plus is the opportunity for hands-on experience, which the students say is better able to match their interests than at some of their more academically multi-faceted rivals.
This comes mainly in the form of the ULaw’s pro bono work, which literally translates as “for the public good”, or "free" to you and me. ULaw run several pro bono programmes including the Family Advice Midlands Clinic (FAM) and the Will, Trust, and Estate Disputes Advice Line (WTED) which individuals and families in the Notts community can freely benefit from. There’s also opportunities for local small businesses who can contact the Small Business Advice Line (SBAL) for a free 30 minute advice appointment with a corporate solicitor.
Pro Bono Coordinator and Supervising Solicitor Victoria Dodge says: “ULaw’s pro bono team aim to deliver opportunities for our students to gain valuable experience and build their legal skills, whilst also helping those that may otherwise not be able to afford legal advice on matters that are important to them.”
We headed across town to the ULaw campus, just up the road from Nottingham Castle and opposite the lovely Roundhouse pub, to ask the students ourselves...
“It's like a mix between being a teacher and being a social worker, being able to provide that hands-on help.”
Isabella, Masters student
What inspired you to pursue a career in law?
I like helping people, it sounds really cliché because a lot of people are going into law because they want to help people. But it's like a mix between being a teacher and being a social worker, being able to provide that hands-on help, which I liked about family law. I know how difficult it can be to get the help you need as a child, I have a lot of empathy for those living in situations where local authorities and family law solicitors need to be involved.
What’s studying at University of Law and in Nottingham like for you?
Well I did my undergrad here, and I could have done my postgrad in Manchester because the University of law has a campus there, but I'd have to commute from home, which I didn't fancy doing. I like the continuity of studying my undergrad and my post grad in the same place.
Nottingham’s a diverse city. I come from a really small village in the middle of nowhere and there's nothing to do - there's barely any takeaways, there's no nightlife. All the social things on offer here are really great, there's always something going on. On Saturday I made a bag of tea at a festival in the square with The Nottingham Forager.
How have you found working on the pro bono programme?
At first I thought it's just something to put on my CV, helping out the community, especially because I want to do family law. But now that I'm actually doing it, it's really rewarding to wake up and know that some children who are on a school trip will have a really great time just hanging out with me. I’m involved in the work we do at the National Justice Museum so I like that we get to work with a lot of different age groups. It’s great helping being there for them, involving everybody is really nice. It’s fun.
“The campus is quite small in size, but the support is massive.”
Eric, Masters student
What inspired you to pursue a career in law?
I want to be a mergers and acquisition lawyer, because I'm currently doing a project about private equity, and the more I do the research, the more attractive it looks to me. It’s not only about case law or disputes, it’s more about how to make the economy better. Private equity is about acquiring undervalued companies and investing money to make them better, and really show their value to the financial world. This is particularly interesting to me because it’s basically a win-win situation for the investors and for the enterprise. I think that is the interesting part, and that’s the magic of private equity.
What's your experience of studying at University of Law?
Well, having studied in Brighton previously I think I'm in a good position to say that the culture here is very nice, especially in this centre. Staff are willing to help whenever I have questions, they always give the best information to support you, although it is still newly established and the centre is relatively new, being established in 2019. The campus is quite small in size, but the support is massive. People work really well together and the tutors are really experienced. They are solicitors and they will try their best to educate you and to guide you through. They focus on the real life application, it’s very practical. People are nice here, and I think you can achieve more in a smaller centre than the bigger centres sometimes.
Do you like living in Nottingham?
Yes I do. Especially as I’m into water polo, so the very first thing I did after I moved here was find a place for water polo and there is a really good sports centre that does it, and a few different teams. The city itself is really quiet which I like. I'm a quiet person. Last Sunday I finished my training and just sat on the Forest Recreation Ground and enjoyed the sun and the vibe.
How did you get involved in the pro bono clinics, and what’s your experience been?
I started my pro bono at the beginning of October, a couple of weeks after I started my LPC programme. The first one I did was an advice clinic in Cotgrave, and it involved shadowing a solicitor, listening to clients' concerns and advising them. The fun part is that it’s practical, we really need to find out all the facts - people don’t always give the full story at first and need steering there, and we need to build rapport to be able to get that information from the client.
We help them find their possible next steps and solutions. That’s very important, they want to know where to go next. Then I had a chance to phone interview a client about a family dispute around wills, and it’s difficult because you have to get all the background first, figure out what to ask and what you expect them to answer. The last client gave really good feedback and named me, and thanked me for my patience. I find that really rewarding.
“You never know what to expect with family law. Once I called and they started crying…”
Rose, SQE and Masters student
What kind of law are you looking to get into, and why?
I'm from a Turkish background. Four years ago, when I was trying to decide what type of law to go into, there were a lot of really big family problems going on in Turkey. Not to get morbid, but there was a really famous case where a woman was killed on the street in front of her kid. It was a huge case, and the guy almost got away with it. There were five or six other cases that happened within the next three months of it. When I heard that I felt, as a Turkish person, I want to be able to at least protect the people here, even if I can't help over there.
How do you find studying at University of Law in Nottingham?
I'm from Leicester, but my undergrad was at Canterbury which is quite far from here, and it was like a tiny, quiet little uni, it was one of the smallest places I've been. This uni is smaller, but the city is bigger, and it’s a weird mix but because the uni is smaller you get to meet everyone. All my friends in Nottingham are my classmates and their friends from Nottingham. Rather than only being able to go out to places with friends in other cities, here the city has things like festivals. Two days ago there was one in the centre called Green Hustle, I loved it. I didn’t know it was happening and I was walking through and saw some cute little plants, which drew me in, and I learned how to take care of them. There was this stall called Whirly Wire jewellery - her jewellery was so pretty.
Tell us about how you got involved with the pro bono clinics what you've done...
With the SQE (Solicitors Qualifying Examination) and generally in law, you don't get a lot of experience with family law. It's based on commercial stuff and wills for example, so I needed something to see if I do like family law. My old university had a clinic, but when I applied they never gave me the family spots, so I kind of learned what I don't want to do. Here I got onto the family clinics and I loved it, it was so interesting. The firm that we work with, Actons, has a solicitor who’s so good at what she does, she's so confident and gives great advice.
You never know what to expect with family law. Once I called and they started crying, another time they were very angry and they just wanted to talk about everything that happened. And it's like, it's like finding the balance. You have to kind of know how to react to them, and control it to gather all the information, whilst doing it empathetically. It’s a challenge that I really enjoy. When the client first comes in, they're confused and frustrated, and when they're leaving they have an idea of what's going on and they know what their next steps are. It's nice to see so much change in less than an hour.
All of this hands-on experience students are getting wouldn’t be possible without support from real practising law firms, who steer and support students through the process.
One such partner is Actons who support on the family law side. Sophie Spreckley, Associate & Solicitor at the firm, says “We have been working exclusively with The University of Law on this programme for coming up to two years, and the offering has gone from strength to strength. We are proud to be part of the Family Advice Midlands Clinic initiative and whilst it is great to be associated with Nottingham, it’s worth noting that this service extends well beyond the Midlands.”
“We are continuing to receive a positive response from those we have advised and endeavour also to work closely with the students in a practical and advisory capacity. We look forward to continuing and growing this close relationship with The University of Law in which we have been greatly supported and encouraged by our team.”
East Midlands based solicitors Rothera Bray are another partner firm, who support ULaw’s Wills Clinics. Marketing & Business Development Coordinator Claire Morrison added that “Being involved in ULaw’s Pro Bono service via its legal advice clinics has been incredibly beneficial for the volunteer staff members involved from our firm. Our volunteer solicitors range from newly qualified solicitors to senior partners with specialist expertise across the full range of private client matters.”
“It is a valuable way for our staff to share their knowledge and experience in a way that simultaneously benefits future lawyers and also provides genuine assistance to people within our local community. Rothera Bray sees its involvement in the ULaw scheme as one of the key focuses of its Corporate Social Responsibility agenda.”
All that aside, we hope you’ve learned a little bit more about ULaw - we certainly have - and hopefully some of our readers might one day benefit from their community-facing services. Or, you never know, this might be the read that encourages you to get into law and make it your way to make a difference.
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