To be a teacher who is now looking for a career as a barrister or a solicitor

[Amammai]

I’m posting from a point of the complete unknown.

Would a move from being a primary school teacher (18 years experience) to a solicitor or barrister be a completely ridiculous move?

An Instagram recruitment post from the CPS caught my eye and I’m now down a rabbit hole of research. Something about these roles has really caught my interest and I think this could be a potential career pathway for me.

There are many aspects of teaching I still love but after 18 years, I am questioning how much more I can give to the role.

So, has anyone trained as a solicitor or barrister at a ‘later point’ (I’m 40!) Would the move from teaching be doable? Am I kidding myself I could actually do it??

What are you envisaging the job will be like?

What do you think it will offer that teaching doesn't?

Do you have any legal qualifications or will you be looking at an apprenticeship/university study?

Do you have children? If so have you thought about the much shorter holidays? The workload and salary will be very similar I imagine

Just to add..,. I know someone who went through the CPS process after being attracted by the advert, got through interview, did the first week in the job and immediately quit having discovered the job in reality was quite different from the advert.

I don't want to crush your dreams but would recommend a lot of research/work experience before making any decision

I don't think it's terrible to think to retrain at 40 in principle though, you've got plenty of career left

Tho got it OP! Also as a lawyer or barrister of course you'd earn quite a lot more than a teacher salary!

The holidays are definitely a sticking point as we don’t have much family support around us. We would need to rely on holiday clubs and I do love the extra time I get with my two children.

I am happy to work hard and put in extra hours, I just find with teaching at the moment feels relentless without the same job satisfaction I previously felt.

Many children and families just don’t really seem to care about education and this is hugely demoralising. Trying to engage children who really do not care, even at such a young age whilst feeling the pressure of ofsted etc is beyond exhausting.

For context, I am a good teacher. I consistently receive very good feedback on observations etc. I work hard and do everything I can to make learning enjoyable for the children in my class.

I’ve been craving a change for a while, I just wondered if this was a new direction I could possibly succeed in.

Teaching has a way of sucking you in so you don’t believe you can ever be anything else!

On the basis you don’t know whether it’s a solicitor or barrister that you want to be, YABU.

The roles of solicitors and barristers are not very similar, particularly if you’re not in a contentious practice area.

It’s a bit like saying you want to be in education but aren’t sure if you want to be an academic at a university or a frontline teacher in a school. Different jobs, different skill sets.

Also the CPS is horribly underfunded, generally fails to attract the best people as a result and overall is not considered a great place to work.

Not necessarily true, depends a lot on practice area. Crime does not pay well and even in other area pay as a junior barrister after expenses can be really quite bad.

Thanks, interesting information about the CPS. Similar to schools in the lack of funding I guess!

The recruitment drive has the roles barrister and solicitor side-by-side as different avenues but I’ve not yet explored which would be more suitable.

Not really. Barristers don’t earn much at all and neither do criminal solicitors or those in the cps.

Thanks for responding The wages that come up on Google look very attractive compared to a teaching salary but maybe these are ‘best case’ scenarios.

The advert for the trainee barrister says

You must hold a minimum of a 2:2 university undergraduate degree. This doesn’t need to be in law, we consider equivalent undergraduate degrees.

If you have an undergraduate degree at a minimum of a 2:2 in a subject other than law, you must have completed one of the following conversion courses:
• Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL)
• Common Professional Examination (CPE)

Postgraduate qualifications
You must have successfully completed or be due to complete the Bar Course to be able to start the legal trainee scheme in October 2026.

have you got a GDL or CPE?

Seeing that you have 25+ working years to go then anything is possible.

Just be aware that it could easily take up to 5 years for you to qualify and get a decent role, during that time you would be compromising on time with your family that you may otherwise have. But teaching and family is also not always that compatible either. Also be aware typical retirement age of lawyers is much later than teachers, most teachers I know same age as you are quite vocal about pension and retirement keeping them in the job.

There ar either roles within law you could look at it didn't want to fully qualify but salary for those may not match up well to what you have now.

There is absolutely no way I would be thinking about a role with the CPS. Shite money for the workload, shite conditions, less holiday (and time with your children). I don't think this is a good option, OP.

I’ve got a first class degree but I would need to take further qualifications to then apply. I have the capacity to study for further qualifications from
July (e.g. the bar course) so this is possible avenue, although probably not to meet the next closing date.

If you have a passion for it it’s worth exploring.

To become a barrister is very very competitive and has been for years. Passing the exams is the easy bit, you then have to find pupillage, and then a tenancy. That’s where it’s crazy , and without a tenancy you can’t really get work.

There are in house Counsel, ie employees , but I m not up on that world.

To become a solicitor is slightly less difficult but not much. I qualified as a solicitor in the early 90 s. It was not easy then but it’s far harder now.

A lot of firms use paralegals to do the work trainee solicitors used to do, but it’s a dead end. The paralegals are generally poorly paid and are desperate for a training contract .

Your best bet is to do some volunteer work in a law form to see if it’s what you want. Good luck

Thanks for your honesty. Is this based on experience with the CPS? I have researched them but most responses are their own media/websites.

Thank you! Volunteer work is a great potential avenue I could look into. That might be a good way to dip my toe without committing to anything!

I've never worked for them. But I'm in law and work with an ex-CPS prosecutor. It sounds awful. I've some experience of the CPS personally and that was no better I'm afraid!

If your degree isn't in law you would need to covert first, before the exams for either barrister or solicitor.

There are far more opportunities for solicitors than barristers and solicitors have a more stable job and income. The roles are very different you would need to carefully research it.

For salary idea of solicitors, average firm in average town/city the NQ salary is around 40K. It would take you 3-5 years from now to get there. The course and exam fees aren't cheap either if you can't find a firm to cover them for you.

Totally do-able if you are motivated to do it, but very different starting earlier 20s to early 40s on the time and money input needed.

You will need to do a law conversion course which will take you at least a year full time. That is only the start of it.

Thanks, that gives me some really valuable information to work with and consider. I think ultimately to 3-5 years to work my way up is a financial hit we might not be able to take.

Law can be a brilliant and fascinating career and I know a few who have made the switch into it from a variety of careers at 40+. However, I'm not sure a switch to the CPS is going to satisfy this particular itch. It is massively and chronically underfunded as is the entire criminal justice system (the Police, courts and prisons) and I think the mismatch between the day to day reality and the ideaology could be just as great as in teaching.

Thank you. Full-time study is definitely not an option unfortunately. Really glad I’ve asked on here as I’ve already had so much useful information.

Also considering leaving teaching to go into law OP. But after spending years in tribunals battling the LA for my DCs legal rights (SEN), I'm thinking of solicitor for SEN.

Following this thread with interest.

Thank you. It’s the CPS advert which caught my eye, but maybe there are other pathways to entering law I could explore too.

The are new ways of entry into the profession which didn’t exist when I qualified. Eg solicitor apprenticeships, I am not really up on them but I know they exist.

You’ll have the exams and qualifications to consider and then getting an actual job.

The law is notoriously not family friendly, and on qualification you will be competing with keen 20 somethings with no kids. I think that’s your biggest barrier TBH

Your best bet would be to target law firms who specialize in educational law. That should give you an advantage

I have to say that being a lawyer in private practice is really about how much money you bring in for the firm , and that’s what is very disillusioning for many lawyers.