Chichester law graduate on track for legal career
A University of Chichester graduate has landed a highly competitive training contract with high-profile law firm Irwin Mitchell. Briony Finn, who studied Law and graduated in 2024, will soon take up her place on the scheme as a trainee solicitor.
Briony grew up in Gosport, Hampshire and had an early awareness of the law. She said: “Quite a few people around me needed legal advice when I was growing up, for divorces or probate. When I was 15 or 16, some of my friend’s parents couldn’t get the legal help they needed, and that made me aware of how important access to legal support is.”
“I originally wanted to study forensics, but I couldn’t get the maths grade I needed, so I sat down with a teacher while I was at 6th form college to talk about my options and they suggested law could be a good fit. I had an amazing teacher, Fiona, who inspired me to stick with my studies at college.”
Briony went on to study Law at the University of Chichester, where she quickly saw the value of gaining work experience alongside her studies. She said: “Don’t be afraid to start applying for work experience while you are studying for your degree. I completed a couple of mini pupillages in Chichester, as well as the Access to the Bar scheme, which my Senior Law Lecturer Amy Elkington encouraged me to apply for in my first year.
“This experience really helped me stand out when applying for graduate jobs – in fact I got the first graduate job I applied for! It all helps to build your CV. I found my lecturers at Chichester really helpful in answering any questions I had.”
After graduation Briony found work as a paralegal in the Will, Trust and Estate Disputes team at Irwin Mitchell in Chichester. She spotted the opportunity for a formal Solicitor Training Contract on LinkedIn in a post from the firm’s Early Careers Service.
Briony explained: “Speaking to other trainees in the company made me aware of the different routes into training and I decided to apply for the training contract in October 2025.
“As part of the application process, I had to take a number of aptitude tests. I was then invited to an assessment centre in the new year, which included a 1:1 interview and a team scenario.
“I heard I’d been successful last month, which is great news! Depending on my start date, I will either be working four days a week and studying for the SQE (Solicitor’s Qualifying Exam) one day a week, or I will be studying and undertaking my SQE before commencing the training contract.”
Irwin Mitchell is one of the UK’s leading law firms, providing expert legal advice for individuals and businesses. It has been named as one of the best places to work by The Sunday Times.
To find out more about the Law courses at the University of Chichester, visit https://www.chi.ac.uk/law/
