From advising the public to clerking the Old Bailey: how LSBU helped Owen find his voice in advocacy
After graduating in Law (LL.B.) from LSBU, Owen is now a Crown Court Clerk at the Old Bailey, working on some of the country’s most serious criminal cases as he builds towards a future career at the criminal Bar.
Finding his calling
Owen started his degree in 2022 without a fixed idea of where Law would take him. Determined to explore, he put himself forward for LSBU’s Annual Moot competition in his first year. He not only won but the competition gave him his first experience of courtroom-style advocacy and helped him recognise where his interests lay.
‘This was one of my first introductions to undertaking courtroom-style advocacy, and it confirmed my suspicion that my future aspirations laid in the field of legal advocacy.’
‘It helped me understand where my confidence in advocacy and public speaking was diminished, and how to go about improving that.’
Learning to advise
The next opportunity came in his second year: LSBU's Legal Advice Clinic, where Law students spend a semester advising members of the public on real cases, under professional supervision.
‘This is undoubtedly the highlight of the LSBU Law degree. For a semester, I attended weekly sessions where I would advise real people about real issues, under the supervision of a Clinic Supervisor.’
What stayed with him wasn't the legal knowledge itself, but who it was for. His experience wasn’t simply about understanding the law but learning how to communicate it.
‘It allowed me to understand how to interact with the public when they are often at their most vulnerable, and also how to take complex legal positions and distil them into digestible pieces of information which the general public can not only understand but also engage with.’
Training the next cohort
By his final year, Owen had moved from learning advocacy to teaching it. As Advocacy Training Lead for the Family Law 2 module, he helped design and deliver a series of advocacy training sessions for Year 3 students preparing for a Family Law Moot, judged by sitting District Judges.
‘Most of the students had never taken part in advocacy before. It really helped me hone my own advocacy by seeing my co-students practise and observing what is and isn't effective.’
Keen to create opportunities for other aspiring advocates, Owen also took on the presidency of the LSBU Bar and Mooting Society, organising events and networking opportunities for members, including the Society's End of Year Law Ball.
‘This experience helped me understand the challenges and importance of being a capable and diplomatic leader.’
Building courtroom confidence
Each experience built on the last until advocacy stopped being something Owen was learning and became something he could be trusted to lead.
‘My time at LSBU has instilled enough confidence in me to go into court each day and ensure the court day runs smoothly, making the decisions and having the conversations that need to be had. I'velearned how to maintain solid working relationships with different stakeholders, and how to amend my communication style depending on who I'm speaking with.’
From LSBU to the Old Bailey
Owen spent his first year after graduating working in the Family Courts for HM Courts and Tribunals Service, before moving into criminal law, the area he always intended to practise in. Today, that path has taken him further than he expected.
‘I spend every day in court dealing with the most serious criminal cases in the country, speaking openly in court daily, and working alongside esteemed judiciary, criminal barristers, the CPS, prison staff, and of course witnesses, defendants and complainants. This is an opportunity I would not have dreamed of before those experiences at LSBU.’
His next step is to continue clerking before undertaking the Bar Course, with a view to pupillage and qualifying as a criminal barrister.
Advice for future students
For anyone considering a Law degree, Owen highlights how much it has to offer:
‘A Law degree at LSBU doesn't just teach you the law, it teaches you how to comprehend intricate statute and case law, how to pick out what is relevant, how to formulate an argument which is logical and persuasive, and how to impart that on others. Those are transferrable skills to many different areas. Say yes to every opportunity that comes your way, within reason, and give yourself space to relax too. You will not regret it.’
Owen didn't arrive knowing exactly where his law degree would take him. What he did have was a growing interest in advocacy and a willingness to explore it. Through mooting competitions, the Legal Advice Clinic, student leadership roles and advocacy training, he found opportunities to test himself in increasingly challenging environments. Each time, he chose to step forward. The result is a level of confidence and professional judgement that now serves him every day at the Old Bailey as he works towards his ambition of becoming a criminal barrister.