As if to shield lockdownees from a serious case of January blues, the universe graced us with yet another TikTok craze: #ShantyTok.

The global trend started after a Scottish postman, who has since bagged a record deal after reaching viral fame, posted his cover of traditional sea shanty, The Wellerman. The sing-a-long frenzy has since stormed the video-sharing app — unearthing a secret love for 18th century sailor songs and perhaps even suggesting that after three national lockdowns, we’re all finally losing it.

After spending several hours practising harmonies in the shower, Legal Cheek‘s Adam Mawardi shares his rendition of the painfully catchy sea shanty — with a law student twist.

@legalcheek

My brain : don't sing it, don't sing it, don't sing it, don't sing it, don't sing it! Me: ##law student ##law ##lawyer ##seashanty ##fyp ##foryou

♬ original sound – legalcheek

Find us on TikTok at @legalcheek and don’t forget to give us a cheeky follow. If you’re searching for your 15 seconds of fame, make sure to tag us in your own law-themed sea shanties or send them to tips@legalcheek.com.

The post ShantyTok: law student edition appeared first on Legal Cheek.

US lawyer Bryan Wilson, also known as the Texas Law Hawk, has returned with another crazy action-packed YouTube advert — this time with a coronavirus twist.

The Law Hawk has graced the pages of Legal Cheek on a number of occasions thanks to his eye-catching approach to self-marketing. Think flamethrowers, jet-ski stunts and grabbing fish from a river.

Fans will be delighted to see his latest ad is just as bizarre as previous efforts, with the usual mix of yelling and explosion as the Law Hawk this time grapples a new foe — coronavirus (which is represented by a middle-aged bloke in a helmet with mini traffic cones glued to a bodysuit).

The Law Hawk initially defends himself with a yellow mop before placing a mask over his mouth (US flag-themed, of course) and gaining the super-strength required to defeat the deadly bug.

The lawyer — who specialises in driving and personal injury cases — goes on to urge fans to ‘MASK UP, MOVE ON’, as the virus, now puffing away on a cigarette, looks on.

Watch the advert in full below:

The post US lawyer takes on coronavirus in action-filled YouTube ad appeared first on Legal Cheek.

As COVID-19 continues to send shockwaves through the global economy, the legal market faces unprecedented challenges and uncertainty ahead.

Yet, while the UK grapples with a nation-wide corona-lockdown, resilient lawyers are seizing the opportunity to embrace agile working from home (and the technology which enables it) in an attempt to keep calm and carry on.

In a video, premiered at the Virtual Legal Cheek Awards 2020, we take a look at legal life before coronavirus, life two weeks later, and life now.

If you enjoyed this video, check out our TikTok and Instagram for more.

This video was recorded in early March and prior to the lockdown.

The post Video: Legal life before and after COVID-19 appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Have you ever wondered what would happen if Santa found himself on the wrong side of the law due to a business licence violation?

Well, thanks to Gowling WLG, wonder no more. The international firm has produced an amusing seasonal video, ‘Santa saved by lawyers: A Gowling WLG Christmas story’, which shows its lawyers stepping in to help good old St Nick when he finds himself in, well, the nick.

The short video, uploaded to YouTube yesterday, was filmed at Gowling’s Hamilton office in Ontario, Canada, and stars a host of its lawyers including partners Robert Dunford (as Santa) and Leigh Ann Sheather (as the judge), and senior associate Matthijs van Gaalen (as the hero lawyer who helps save Santa).

The festive effort, complete with rhyming narration, sees Santa hauled before the courts on Christmas Eve over his failure to possess the correct business licence to operate an elf workshop.

Fortunately, Gowling’s crack team of lawyers were on hand to work “all through the night” to secure the relevant licences for their high-profile client and “before dawn Santa was able to take flight”.

Watch the video in full below:

The post Gowling WLG lawyers step in after Santa’s workshop threatened with closure appeared first on Legal Cheek.

In their latest analysis of law student behaviour, BuzzFeed’s new viral video calls upon the honesty of four US legal rookies as they play ‘Never have I ever’.

The video’s premise is simple: four legally minded novices are asked about things that they’ve never done during law school. In this version of ‘Never have I ever’ — a drinking game that serves as a rite of passage for freshers everywhere — the players trade in the bevvy for ‘I HAVE’ and ‘I HAVE NOT’ signs. Check out the full video below:

Responding to questions ranging from ‘never have I ever cheated on a test’ to ‘never have I fallen asleep in class’, the US legal foursome speak frankly about their experiences — inadvertently highlighting the similarities with their UK counterparts this side of the pond.

One question asking if they have dated another lawyer/person in law, for example, is met with candid responses. Holding up her ‘I HAVE’ sign, one participant describes her cohort as “incestuous”, while another gives a very lawyer-like answer: “What’s your definition of ‘dating’?”.

Asked if they had ever come to law school while under the influence, one offers up classic law student logic: “Drinks are cheaper during the week, as a law student you are broke. So, you go out and enjoy those happy hours.”

Another recalls experiencing her first hangover during bar prep, “throwing up in the bathroom of the basement of a Korean church”.

The video, which has racked up over 50,000 views on Facebook, isn’t the first time BuzzFeed has called law grads to the stand. Previous offerings have seen lawyers reveal their law school horror stories and answer commonly Googled questions about legal life.

The post Video: Law students play ‘Never have I ever’ appeared first on Legal Cheek.

A solicitor at national outfit Slater & Gordon has just dropped what could potentially be the sound of the summer, channelling his inner Fresh Prince to produce an incredible employment law-themed rap.

James Watkins, an employment specialist in Slater & Gordon’s Cardiff office, added his own special musical twist to an otherwise routine “case update training session”, spitting fire bars to the theme tune of the classic American sitcom, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

So, here it is, for one night only, The Fresh Prince of Cardiff’s, DJ Watkins, guide to employment law ⁦@JWatkinsLegal⁩ ⁦@SlaterGordonUK⁩ pic.twitter.com/PRsE58C7kI

— Juliette Franklin (@Franklin_JJ) April 24, 2019

In a video posted to Twitter by fellow Slater & Gordon lawyer Juliette Franklin, Watkins (otherwise known as “The Fresh Prince of Cardiff”) is seen playing a keyboard and donning the firm’s branded headgear, twisted to the side in Fresh Prince-esque fashion.

Watkins raps about a recent case, South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust v Jackson, that was heard before the UK Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT). In the case, the NHS sent Mrs Pease, who was on maternity leave, an important letter about redundancies to her work email account, to which she did not have access. The EAT found this to be unfavourable treatment but did not rule whether it amounted to maternity discrimination.

Speaking to Legal Cheek, the Fresh Prince Watkins said:

“I was asked to present a case at our case law update session this week via video conference. I thought I’d take a more creative approach and hopefully raise a smile. I love a bit of old school rap and everyone loves the Fresh Prince of Bel Air so thought I’d work the case into a song. Once I read the judgment and thought of one verse, it was easy to add more and to learn the key principles as I went along.”

He added: “I hadn’t quite anticipated how well received it would be! But if it gets people talking about their rights in the workplace it’s a good thing.”

The post Slater & Gordon solicitor produces incredible Fresh Prince-inspired employment law rap appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Technology has taken the City by storm this year, capturing the imaginations of lawyers using futuristic fantasies of how legal practice may evolve.

Tech-savvy law firms, keen to stay ahead of the competition, are racing to provide “ground-breaking, innovative and efficient solutions to client service delivery” — or so their marketing teams tell us…

But are lawyers on the ground really living the lawtech dream? In a video premiered at the Legal Cheek Awards 2019, we take a look at what’s actually happening — with the help of a special guest.

Enjoy!

Further reading: ‘I want some lawtech experience before I start my magic circle training contract’ [Legal Cheek]

The post Video: How innovative are law firms behind the scenes? appeared first on Legal Cheek.

A heckler has discovered first-hand why you should never interrupt a panel discussion chaired by one of the country’s top legal commenters.

As part of this year’s Putney Debates, a series of annual public discussions which take place at St Mary’s Church in Putney, South London, a group of leading academics and lawyers gathered to discuss judicial independence.

There was, however, a brief moment of adrenalin-fuelled excitement during the discussion when the debate’s chair, Joshua Rozenberg, confronted a heckler.

The footage, posted online earlier today by Rozenberg himself, shows a man enter the church and sit on the front row of the audience, before attempting to interrupt one of the panellists.

Ever the professional, Rozenberg can be seen immediately rising to his feet, pointing at the man, and saying: “Sit down and be quiet, otherwise we’ll have to ask you to leave!” With the man continuing to talk, the top legal commentator and Legal Cheek contributor hits back again: “You be quiet sir, or we’ll ask you to leave.”

Facing the prospect of ejection and Rozenberg’s steely gaze, it’s at this point the man finally decides to be quiet.

The post Top UK legal commentator Joshua Rozenberg confronts heckler during debate appeared first on Legal Cheek.

A group of solicitors have channelled their inner diva this festive season, producing an awful interesting lip-synced rendition of Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas Is You.

In a bid to show that even lawyers can embrace the season of goodwill, Scottish outfit Blackadders’ two-and-half minute video features festively attired partners, associates and trainees.

Following a brief attempt at lip-syncing Carey’s 90s Christmas classic, and sat in what appears to be someone’s front room, the fivesome moves on to opening some rather questionable Secret Santa gifts.

In recognition of the season of goodwill to all men, trainee Blair Duncan received a book, 52 things to do while you poo, along with a plunger.

Meanwhile, fellow Blackadders rookie Duncan Milne received some Lord Of The Rings merch. To be fair to Secret Santa, Milne does bare a slight resemblance to Elijah Wood’s character, Frodo Baggins.

Santa brought Jack Boyle, an associate at the seven-office-outfit, a book on How Not To Be A D***.

This, however, isn’t the first time Blackadders has produced some questionable video content. Earlier this year, the firm’s lawyers donned black suits to create their own very unique tribute to Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs. More recently, it re-reproduced the opening credits to US sitcom Friends.

The post Lawyers lip-sync Mariah Carey Christmas classic appeared first on Legal Cheek.

As we bid a fond farewell to another law fair season, aspiring lawyers the length and breadth of the country assess their latest haul of branded goodies.

However, what can be a wonderful freebie-filled occasion can quickly get out of hand. Before you know it, you’ve collected so many notepads, pens, portable chargers, phone cases, USB key rings and water bottles, you’re seriously considering quitting law and giving WHSmith a run for its money.

In recognition of this common problem, our latest video clip, embedded below, shows what happens when you take the ‘free’ in freebies a little too literally. And with over 10,300 views on Instagram already, it seems we aren’t the only ones loving the merch-life.

View this post on Instagram

I've got 99 law problems but the merch ain't one #merchlife #dreamsreallydocometrue #ifitsfreeitsforme

A post shared by Legal Cheek (@legalcheek) on Nov 19, 2018 at 9:48am PST

What’s the best freebie you’ve recieved this year? Send your pictures to adam.mawardi@legalcheek.com

The post What happens when you go overboard on law fair freebies? appeared first on Legal Cheek.

A group of law students have released a music video that takes aim at sexual harassment in the legal profession.

The viral video is a parody of UK singer Dua Lipa’s smash hit New Rules and has been produced by the Wellington Law Revue, a collection of musically-minded wannabe lawyers from Wellington, New Zealand. Racking up over 57,000 views in under a week, the video focuses on the HR manager of a fictional law firm reprimanding male lawyers for harassing young female members of staff.

Making her way around the firm’s office, the head of HR calls for, among other things, an end to “dirty jokes, unwanted touches, hugs or gropes.” Demanding a change in the way women are treated in the workplace, the chorus goes:

“We want new rules, we want them
We want new rules, we want them
We gotta hold them to account
We want new rules, we want them
It’s not that hard to figure out.”

Turning things up a notch, the track suggests law is full of “pervs” and that life for a woman can be “like living in an episode of Mad Men“. The video ends with the HR manager threatening to burn the office to the ground and kill all men, before turning to the camera and saying: “Come on you guys, can’t you take a joke?”

Catchy parody aside, the legal profession has been rocked by allegations of misconduct in recent months.

In February, Dentons confirmed one of its London partners placed on a leave of absence following allegations he had acted inappropriately towards female members of staff had left the firm. At the time, the global law firm said his behaviour “fell well below the expectations that we have of our partners”, however it “found no evidence of sexual harassment”.

One month later, Baker McKenzie revealed one of its partners was leaving amid an allegation of sexual assault. The incident reportedly occurred after the partner in question invited a number of lawyers, including the victim, back to his hotel for drinks.

The post ‘New Rules’: Law students release parody Dua Lipa music video addressing sexual harassment in the workplace appeared first on Legal Cheek.

It’s been an interesting couple of months for City lawyer pay.

US outfit Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy fired the starting pistol on another summer pay war after it upped the salaries of its London-based newly qualified (NQ) lawyers to £143,000. Not to be outdone, a host of US firms quickly matched Milbank’s big money move.

The focus now shifts to the top UK-headquartered outfits, most notably the fivesome known as the magic circle. Keen to preserve their elite status and keep their associate ranks satified, they too are likely to bump pay — but by just how much remains to be seen.

That said, one big City firm — albeit not a member of the magic circle — has already upped pay following the US rises. Herbert Smith Freehills announced last week that junior associates will now start on a £93,000 (salary and bonus), up 13% from £82,000.

Legal Cheek has produced a handy video (embedded above) giving you the lowdown on this summer’s MoneyLaw madness.

The post The story of how 25-year-old City lawyers came to earn £143,000 a year appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Hosted in the highest events space in London, the Legal Cheek Awards was an evening of glitz and glamour. See what went down at the event — kindly sponsored by BARBRI International — in this short video, which was filmed and edited by narrative filmmakers Stock + Bokeh. Spoiler: contains dancing, clinking glasses and that all-important magician.

The full list of the Legal Cheek Awards winners, complete with photos from the night, can be found here.

The post Video: What went down at the Legal Cheek Awards appeared first on Legal Cheek.

City law firms are renowned the world over for providing their rookie lawyers with the very perkiest of perks.

Keen to sample some of these delights first hand, Legal Cheek journos Katie King and Tom Connelly were given exclusive access to some of London’s leading legal players, as part of a video that premiered at the Legal Cheek Awards. Oh, and they had a very special guest chauffeuring them around too…

Enjoy!

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Legal Cheek’s popular comments section is, more often than not, a fiery blend of careers advice, industry tittle-tattle and abuse — much of the latter being aimed at us. With that in mind, and to show there are no hard feelings, we thought it was about time we took a break from editorial duties to read out some of our favourite mean comments.

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Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s financial crime barrister turned daytime TV star Judge Rinder taking a helicopter to court.

The crazy clip shows Rinder quietly reading a book in what appears to be a plush countryside mansion. Realising he has just ten minutes before he is due in court, the ITV star (real name Robert) is collected by helicopter and whisked off towards the city.

Emerging from the chopper sometime later, a now leather-clad Rinder — who is still listed as a tenant at London’s 2 Hare Court — hops onto the back of a motorbike ridden by his on-screen clerk Michelle.

With just seconds to spare he arrives at court and makes his way up the stairs.

The advert, which has already racked up over 55,000 views, marks the start of the seventh series of Rinder’s courtroom show. The first new episode will hit screens on 28 August. If you can’t wait till then for your TV judge fix, be sure to check out Legal Cheek’s ‘When a story breaks…’ video below, featuring Rinder in all his sassy glory:

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Fresh from his recent viral revision video success, Keele University law graduate Adam Mawardi is back with some last-minute training contract application advice.

Further reading

Four key moments from ‘How to make it as a City lawyer’ [Legal Cheek Careers]

An open letter to training contract applicants everywhere [Legal Cheek]

13 articles you must read if you’re applying for training contracts this summer [Legal Cheek]

The post A law student shares his last-minute TC application pain appeared first on Legal Cheek.

Video footage showing a group of lawyers in New Zealand listening to rap music has racked up over 60,000 views in under a week.

Taken from the opening day of a trial at New Zealand’s High Court in Wellington, the short clip shows some of the country’s finest legal minds sitting in sober silence as Eminem’s chart-busting banger ‘Lose Yourself’ rings out around the court.

Far from a misguided attempt to motivate the court, the US-born rapper’s 2002 track was actually being played as part of a copyright infringement claim. The National Party (a conservative political party in New Zealand) is accused of using a similar song titled ‘Eminem Esque’ during a 2014 political broadcast.

Lawyers for the track’s publishers are asking for a cash settlement and an acknowledgement by the court that the National Party breached copyright.

Complex legal wranglings aside, the footage — posted online earlier this week — has amassed a whopping 60,000 views and makes for excellent viewing.

One YouTube user commented: “I half expected the guy who pressed play to just flip around and start spitting the verses.” Another, clearly amused by the lawyers’ muted reaction to the music, said: “That club looks sick as fuck.”

The trial is expected to last a week.

Watch the clip in full below:

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The post Watch lawyers sit in stony-faced silence as Eminem’s ‘Lose Yourself’ blasts out through courtroom speakers appeared first on Legal Cheek.

A final year law student at Keele University has made a film about one of the most relatable topics around: wasting time procrastinating instead of studying. So relatable in fact, the video has racked up over 350,000 views.

The two-minute clip, embedded below, follows Adam Mawardi, an aspiring lawyer who struggles to get through a Monday morning deadline day.

After changing locations a total of three times, LLB-er Mawardi, his Mac laptop and stationery finally get comfy in the library, but the pull of social media proves too powerful.

An Instagram and Snapchat splurge later, Mawardi — who can be seen surrounded by tort law textbooks in the video — is faced with further concentration-testing challenges.

He spends some time meditating, stretching and taking a trip to the vending machine, after which you’d think Keele legal research assistant and digital ambassador Mawardi would be ready to crack on with his work. You’d be wrong.

Suddenly, however, after an impromptu trip to the coffee shop Mawardi miraculously manages to curb his wasting time tactics and his essay word count shoots up.

Freedom, he thinks, but not before he wakes up and realises he’s fallen asleep in the library and his word count is still a big fat zero. “Stop wasting time”, a post-it note in the video’s final screen ends.

The piece has had a great reception, as can be seen from its 2,000 shares and 6,000 likes. One Facebook user noted they’d “never seen anything so accurate”; another said: “I haven’t seen anything I can relate to as much as this video”.

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Yesterday, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) confirmed it will be scrapping the traditional route to qualification as a solicitor in favour of a new super-exam.

Spelling the end for both the Legal Practice Course (LPC) and the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL), the regulator revealed that the super-exam — or Solicitors Qualification Examination (SQE), to give it its official title — could be rolled out as early as September 2020.

Sending shockwaves through the law student community, our news story on the topic racked up almost 40,000 views in 24 hours and triggered a flood of comments and queries from readers.

In our latest live Facebook broadcast, Legal Cheek’s Katie King and Tom Connelly discuss some of your biggest concerns.

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Earlier this month Legal Cheek brought you the story of Leila Taleb. Star of BBC3’s Breaking out in Bradford, Lancaster University graduate Taleb explained to viewers how difficult it can be for working class graduates, like herself, to become barristers.

Revealing to us that she had been denied a scholarship by Inner Temple to pursue her studies, Taleb — refusing to give up on her dream — launched a crowdfunding page in the hope of raising some much-needed cash. Incredibly, less than a week later a “mystery person” coughed up a whopping £12,500 to help cover the cost of her Bar Professional Training Course.

In our latest live Facebook broadcast, Legal Cheek’s Katie King and Tom Connelly discuss whether crowdfunding law school fees is the way forward.

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