Speed Mooting Podcast - Training tomorrow's lawyers, today!

Episode 124 — #AskSpeedSquadSpecial. John and Hayley answer your listener questions, covering the big topics law students actually want to know about.
This week: should mooting and advocacy skills be compulsory on every law degree? How much preparation really goes into a court hearing (the honest answer might surprise you)? And what's the best piece of career advice John and Hayley have ever been given — including the career-defining moment a commercial partner told an 18-year-old John he hadn't got a clue what commercial law actually was, and the trainee pep talk Hayley's never forgotten.
Real experience, no filter — from a criminal barrister and a commercial solicitor who've both been through the paralegal, training contract, and qualification grind.
Send your questions to info@speedmooting.com or drop them in the comments.

Is working as a paralegal the best first step into the legal profession?
In this episode, John and Hayley discuss why their years as paralegals became some of the most valuable experiences of their legal careers. They explain how working in practice develops the skills, confidence and commercial awareness that universities simply cannot teach.
The conversation also explores the reality of life inside law firms, the myths created by TV dramas, and how paralegal experience can strengthen applications for pupillage and training contracts.
As always, they finish by answering listener questions, including whether barristers can lie in court, what happens during legal arguments heard in chambers, and who will be the stricter parent when their first baby arrives.
If you're an aspiring or junior lawyer looking to build your career, this episode is full of practical advice and honest insight from two lawyers who've been through the journey themselves.

Conversations with Counsel - Havin Sorgucu, Durham Law Student & Speed Mooting Ambassador
Havin Sorgucu had a magistrate tell her she had a talent for advocacy at sixteen — then lost all her confidence when she got to university. In this episode, she shares how she rebuilt it, why she turned to Speed Mooting as a low-pressure place to start, and what it was like doing real plea in mitigation advocacy as an undergraduate.
She also talks about mentoring aspiring law students through Zero Gravity and has brilliant advice for anyone yet to start their law degree.
Visit speedmooting.com to get involved.

Three years of lectures, seminars, and case law and somehow no one tells you how a real case actually works.
In this episode, John (criminal barrister) and Hayley (commercial solicitor) go through the biggest gaps between law school and legal practice: the advocacy skills universities rarely teach, the soft skills and client care that catch junior lawyers off guard, and why being confident on the phone will take you further than you think.
They also answer a listener question that comes up more than almost any other: can you become a barrister or solicitor if you're shy or introverted? The answer might surprise you.
Plus — upcoming Speed Mooting events including the Northern Pupillage Fair on 5th September, a free Skeleton Arguments workshop, and an online advocacy bootcamp focused on bail applications and plea in mitigation.
Send your questions to info@speedmooting.com or DM us on any platform.

In this Ask Speed Squad special, John and Hayley answer your questions on three of the most common challenges facing aspiring lawyers:
🎙️ I've applied for 30 training contracts and had no interviews — what should I do?
🎙️ Should candidates be upfront about weaknesses in a legal interview?
🎙️ I failed a module — is my legal career over?
Practical, honest advice for law students, bar course and LPC/SQE students, and anyone applying for training contracts or pupillage.
Got a question? Email info@speedmooting.com or DM us on social.
#AskSpeedSquad #LegalCareers #TrainingContract #Pupillage #LawStudent