Reflections From The Barrister Training Course: How To Approach Each Subject

Hey everyone!

I’d firstly like to begin by congratulating you for starting the Barrister Training Course (BTC)! It is a massive accomplishment. It is easy to forget that during this course, and especially after experiencing your first few weeks. But the best advice I can give you is to remind yourself that the Bar is not for everyone. The fact that you got a place on the course shows that you are there because you are capable and you have what it takes to become a barrister.

I was extremely overwhelmed after my first few weeks. There was too much to read, all the content was alien, I had no idea where to start and there was too little time but way too much to do. I felt like had completely underestimated the workload. And you know what the worst part was? No one ever said it would get easier. Instead, they told us to brace ourselves, because this was just the beginning.

I never understood why people said that, it was not what I needed to hear at that point. But having gone through the year, I can assure you that it’s true. The BTC was the most intense year of my life. I don’t mean to scare you, I just feel it’s important that you walk in to this year with your eyes open, so you know exactly how to deal with it. The year did not get easier, but I just learnt how to cope with the pressure (well, at least I tried to) and I thankfully managed to pass all 12 papers on my first attempt. If you stay committed to the course, i’m sure you will too.

The purpose of this blogpost is to highlight how I approached each subject. But before I begin explaining how I studied for each subject, it’s important to remember that everyone understands and studies for subjects differently so as much as these approaches highlighted below worked for me, I can’t guarantee that they will work for you. However, I hope that my blogpost will give you some insight into what the subject is like and perhaps help you form your own way to study it. I’d also like to emphasise that my experience was based on the BTC for the year 2017-2018. It is up to you to confirm whether there are any syllabus changes or whether any exam is marked differently.

A few important things to keep in mind from the outset:

This is a vocational course, not an academic one. The best advice I received during my year was to forget everything I studied for my undergraduate degree. You will barely ever deal with cases, and the handful of cases which are important will be highlighted to you by your tutor;
You have to approach each subject based on how it will be examined. There is no point preparing an opinion or short answers for subjects which will be examined by way of multiple choice questions (MCQ’s);
Try your best to never miss a SGS. If you absolutely have to, either reschedule it and attend a different groups SGS, or get the notes from a friend and make sure to catch up;
It is very natural to forget what you learnt in class a few weeks later. You need to try as much as possible to make comprehensive notes after the SGS’s (I understand that this may seem difficult, so if you feel you aren’t able to make the time, just make sure you take thorough notes during the SGSs). These notes will help you recollect what you learnt when you start revising the subject;
You may feel like you don’t know how to study a subject and where to start. Just keep following your SGS reading list. By week 8, you should be able to get into the rhythm of things and understand what is expected from you in each subject;
I realised very early that the way to get through this course is to work with other people. I’m sure you have already seen how overwhelming the workload can be. Everyone doing the course is struggling and so they can empathise. Don’t be afraid to ask for help and exchange notes where need be;
Perseverance and commitment is key this year.

Civil Litigation

Civil Litigation is a confusing, technical and mind-boggling subject; but it is so much fun once you understand it. I was fortunate to have a teacher who was able to explain it in a manner in which I did.

What do you need to know?

This is a centralised exam (i.e. you are examined by the BSB, not your university).
The subject is examined by way of MCQ’s, some of which include Single Best Answer (SBA) questions.
You will be examined on the exact wording on the CPR. Focus on words like ‘‘must’’ and ‘‘may’’; time limits and years; and if the rule is setting out a test, always try and understand whether the test in the rule is conjunctive (i.e. establish (a), (b) AND (c)) or disjunctive (i.e. (a), (b) OR (c)).
There is no escaping reading the commentary in the White Book. What’s important however is extracting the relevant principles from that commentary, understanding those principles, and then applying them to scenarios. I’d recommend to practice as many MCQs as you can and to never be afraid of asking questions when you don’t understand (this will happen quite a bit).
Civil Litigation was actually my favourite subject on the course. I had good notes, had always attended my SGS’s, and I thought understanding the subject is enough. It’s not. This is a subject which really tests your memory. I had spent the whole weekend studying, and when I woke up the morning of the exam, I could not for the life of me remember what I had read. You can avoid finding yourself in the position I was in by making sure you come up with your own personalised ways to remember what you have learnt e.g. keeping flash cards, coming up with games etc.
I used to make a folder for each topic. I would then use the online version of the White Book and copy all the relevant sections and commentary in to a word document. I would then paste the relevant sections into my SGS answers. This approach was very time-efficient and really helped me when it came to making my notes for the final exam as all the necessary resources were in one folder.

Criminal Litigation

I really enjoyed my Criminal Litigation classes: my teacher was so passionate about the subject; the classes were fun; the content was not particularly hard to understand; and I was finally able to understand the practical side of the law e.g. what a police has to say for an arrest to be lawful or what the procedure for a jury trial is.

What do you need to know?

This is a centralised exam. It is examined by way of MCQ’s, some of which include Single Best Answer (SBA) questions.
You will be examined from the contents of Blackstone’s Criminal Practice.
The syllabus very clearly tells you what you need to focus on. Pay attention to this.
I personally felt that the best way to approach it is to find a book that explains the basic concepts and principles properly, and then to read from Blackstone’s. To those doing the BTC at BPP - I thought the Crime Manual was fantastic for this!
Again, this is a subject which requires a lot of memorising.
I would also recommend to make sure you pay close attention to the topics of ‘‘Allocation’’ and ‘‘Hearsay’’, as I found them very tricky!
Similar to what I did for Civil Litigation - I used to make a folder for each topic and would then use the online version of Blackstones and copy all the relevant sections and commentary in to a word document.

Professional Ethics

Anyone who has seen the pass rate for ethics or has done the BTC would probably tell you that Ethics is the most feared subject on the course. Those were my sentiments too, but if I could get through the subject, trust me, so can you!

What you need to know

This is a centralised exam.
It is examined by way of SAQs (Short Answer Questions). We had 6 SAQ and each of them were marked out of 10.
Structure is absolutely key - listen closely to what your tutor says and if possible, try to keep detailed notes of what is discussed when you start practising the SAQs so you are able to understand how to structure your answers.
Ethics is examined from the BSB Handbook, Code of Conduct and different guidance. Keep in mind that not everything in the Handbook is examinable. Pay close attention to the syllabus and maybe make a new version of the book with only what is relevant for that year.
I spent so much time trying to memorise the BSB Handbook and Code of Conduct. That’s not the way to study Ethics. Ethics is all about practising application questions e.g. ‘‘what do you do if your client tells you they are guilty but wants to plead not guilty’’ or ‘‘what happens if you are running late to court’’ etc. Once you practice these questions and verify your answers, memorise those answers!
We had 6 SGS’s for Ethics. Things only started to fall into place after the 4th SGS, so don’t panic if you feel like you aren’t understanding the subject and how to study for it.
There is no negative marking in the Ethics exam (confirm this has not changed). So write as much as you can for each question but pace yourself for the exam - it is a 2 hour exam and you should ideally allocate only 20 minutes per question. Time really flies during this exam.
Make sure to break down your points in the exam (query with your tutor whether he/she would recommend bullet points). Don’t put them in one paragraph.

REDOC/ADR

This was probably the easiest subject on the course. It is all about the different types of ADR mechanisms, with a focus on mediation, negotiation and arbitration.

What you need to know

This not a centralised exam.
I’m not sure how it is examined as it depends on your own BTC provider. At BPP, we had 20 MCQs and 3 SAQs carrying 10 marks each.
When studying the topic ‘‘Arbitration’’, make sure to focus on the wording of the Arbitration Act and make sure the exam is not the first time you are reading the Act.
Make sure to attend all your SGSs and lectures and make detailed notes.
This will usually be your first exam, so I’d recommend to ensure you make good notes as you go along the term so have enough time to practice MCQs and SAQs before the exam.

Advocacy 1, 2, 3 and Conference

These are not centralised exams.
Every BTC provider has their own structure preference when it comes to these subjects for e.g. how they like their skeleton arguments or conference plans. Make sure to pay close attention to what it is your own provider wants.
These subjects are not as easy as they may seem. So if your first few SGSs have been tough, it is completely natural. There were so many times I actually got a fatal flaw in all of these classes. What’s important however is to pay close attention to your tutor’s feedback. Write the feedback down, take it positively and practise to make sure you don’t make the same mistakes again.
Some people are naturally gifted when it comes to these subjects. For others however, these subjects may not come so naturally. The good news is that these subjects are skill based, and the key to doing well in them is to practise continuously.

OPINION WRITING & DRAFTING

These are not centralised exams.
Structure is so important, and every BTC provider has their own structure preference. Make sure to pay close attention to how your BTC provider wants you to structure your answers.
These subjects are a lot tougher than they may seem. Don’t take them lightly. Don’t leave them to last minute. You need to practise them as much as you can, so try to do all the SGS’s.
My tutor taught us something that really helped when deciding how to structure a Defense in drafting. Get three different coloured highlighters:

Use one colour to highlight the parts you agree with;
Use a different colour to highlight the parts you deny;
Use a different colour to highlight the parts you want the other party to put to proof i.e. give additional evidence for.

OPTIONAL SUBJECTS

Optional subjects are examined differently. Some are examined by way of Advocacy, others by Conference, and others by Opinion. Before I picked these subjects, I was advised by people who had already done the course to pick subjects that were easy to score in and not marked by way of Opinion. I didn’t listen. I picked Intellectual Property (IP) and Company Law, which were both examined by Opinion. I did this because I can’t pick subjects which I don’t enjoy. I wanted exposure to the practical side of these areas since I was interested in practicing them. I don’t have any regrets and I really learnt a lot about these subjects, but I’m not sure whether I’d recommend this approach as it was very very difficult to get two 5,000 word opinions done in one week. So before making this decision, I think you need to ask yourself whether you are the type of person that is able to take a subject which you may not be too fond of, but which is easier to score in.

Use one colour to highlight the parts you agree with;
Use a different colour to highlight the parts you deny;
Use a different colour to highlight the parts you want the other party to put to proof i.e. give additional evidence for.

OPTIONAL SUBJECTS

In terms of my experience with each subject:

Company Law doesn’t come to me naturally so I had to put in a lot more effort than I did for IP. I had started reading some of my undergraduate notes, but was reminded that this is unnecessary and would only confuse me more. I then focused on what was on the syllabus, read from extra sources, and asked friends and teachers where I didn’t understand. In the end, I felt like I understood the topics and this would benefit me in real life too. So although most of the topics in Company Law are intertwined and it took some time to develop a structure for my final exam, I had quite an enjoyable experience writing the opinion for it.
Intellectual Property can relate to everything that we do, everything that we see, and everything that we use. It is a subject that I always liked as I liked the application of age old principles to present day situations. However, remember how I said the BTC is a vocational course and not an academic one? This was not the case when studying IP. As much as I found IP as the most interesting subject on the course, we had to be familiar with the relevant legal principles and legislation, and a tonne of cases. On top of that, the opinion we had to write for the exam required an analysis of all the topics we studied during the SGSs. I have to admit that it was tough.

I hope my reflections on how best to approach each subject helps you.

All the very best for this year.

Lots of love,

Arooj