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Kerry raises the bar

Law student wins scholarship

LAW student Kerry Peach is celebrating after winning a scholarship with a leading North West law firm.

Kerry, 19, beat 230 undergraduates to the prize by getting the highest overall mark for Tort Law and an incredible 82% in her examination.

The scholarship, along with a cash award, means Kerry can do a work experience placement with the award sponsors, Knowsley-based Duncan Gibbins Solicitors.

Kerry who hopes to go on to train as a solicitor said: “This is an absolutely brilliant opportunity. It is nice that MMU recognises achievement with something that is tangible and will really help my future career.

Superb achievement

“Working at Duncan Gibbins will give me experience of things I would probably never get the opportunity to do otherwise. I’m really looking forward to it.”

Senior Law lecturer Diana Massey emphasised the importance of such partnerships with law firms: “It can be difficult for students to relate the theoretical knowledge they gain here to practical situations so placements are a great opportunity to do this.

“Kerry is an enthusiastic member of the Tort group and this is a superb achievement which reflects the combination of intelligence and commitment that Kerry has consistently brought to her studies.

“It also indicates the calibre of student that the university is delighted to attract.

Practical experience

Duncan Gibbins operations manager Daniel Taylor came to the School of Law on Thursday to present Kerry with her cash prize and a letter confirming her scholarship.

He spoke of the benefits students can gain from getting practical experience early in their academic careers: “A lot of students know how to run a claim or assess a case but they don’t necessarily know the case comes to us or how we charge for our work.

“During the placement Kerry will get experience in every legal department of the firm as well as in costs and credit control as these are a vital part of the business.”

“Building relationships with the School of Law and its students is very important for us, it helps us identify new talent and help them gain experience which will be useful in the future.”

Scholarships

Duncan Gibbins runs two additional scholarship awards with Manchester Metropolitan. One for the student who receives the highest mark in Tort Mooting and another for the student who wins their ‘Quantum Competition’.

These scholarships are part of the Duncan Gibbins Academy which aims to provide law students with useful advice on what working as a solicitor is really like and help them stand out from the crowd in the job market.

The partnership was negotiated by Nick Touati from MMU Careers & Employability Service, working alongside academic colleagues.  The Careers & Employability Service works proactively with employers to attract job vacancies and other opportunities on behalf of MMU students.

Published Friday, 27th July 2012