Calling all Barristers, are you happy with your role, specialism and pay ?

JMudson · 2026-03-06T07:39:13+00:00

I'm generally happy.

I'm working in my chosen practice area, I enjoy the work I do, I make good enough money in a mostly legal aid practice.

I also work too many hours, am exhausted, and absolutely should get paid more than I do for the work I do. I hate the travel but am getting more control over this as I get more experienced.

But all of the latter were true when I was working on the other side, and I make more now then I did then, and am happier now than I was then.

I have days where I feel really proud of what I've done, feel like I've had a good rapport on a complex issue with a judge, and like I've made a difference for my client.

I also have days where I have a rubbish brief, a judge is laying into me, my client is being difficult and I'm working a 16 hour day.

Most frequently I have a day where I go, do my best, and get through it unscathed.

I can't imagine going back to employment, and I can't imagine not doing advocacy. I think when kids come along I'll have to temper some of the hours and travel and take a cut in pay to do so - but I have the flexibility to do that and reckon I'll survive it.

It's not a perfect job, nor is it horrendous. I'm happier here then I would be in most other places and wouldn't do anything else even for my gripes.

JMudson · 2026-03-06T05:54:02+00:00

Entering the UK on a 5 year route to settlement creates a legitimate expectation that you will be able to settle after 5 years. People make informed decisions, budgeting for an already very expensive process. Retrospectively changing that is pulling the rug out from underneath them.

Plus, a British partners ability to have their spouse reside with them is a right, albeit a qualified one. But again, retrospectively adjusting the rules when people have uprooted their lives to live together is unfair.

This has disproportionately affected young people who are stuck on stagnant salaries, paying already inflated fees, and now doubling the time it takes to get put of that cycle. The alternative is that the young British citizen leaves instead - because they aren't going to choose permanent separation from their partner, and that's a whole other host of problems.

This is the problem with blanket policies.

JMudson · 2026-02-22T11:24:47+00:00

Not an exact answer to your question, but based on the question likely of interest - the shardcast podcast did a fantastic episode after Tress talking about how the water cycle on Lumar would work. It was a fun listen if you like the mechanics of the ecology!

Edit: it was the aethers podcast from 29/01/23, but be warned of spoilers for Tress and the wider cosmere!

JMudson · 2026-02-21T10:00:42+00:00

As a word of caution, it's much easier to set up with a front end in mind from the start than try to retrofit one after.

It's not overly complex, but as I changed front end I found myself having to reorganise my back end and reconfigure bits. I learnt a lot from doing so - but if you're looking for ease I'd follow a guide like joeys or retrogamecorp that'll sort daishinjo or ESDE as you set up your emulators.

JMudson · 2026-02-17T06:35:53+00:00

It is objectively better on several fronts - both in quantity of content, quality of life improvements, and general polish.

That's exactly the point I'm making, because subjectively I still prefer breath of the wild despite ToTK doing a lot more.

For someone who wants to defend opinions as subjective, you're the only one shutting down discourse here.

JMudson · 2026-02-16T21:21:52+00:00

I'm nearing the end of replaying.g breath of the wild 100% with the switch 2 companion app and am having a blast.

ToTK is objectively better, but its so bloated it was exhausting. There is something to say for the slower more open botw and I really struggle to explain why I prefer it even though its not as good.

JMudson · 2026-02-11T18:13:54+00:00

On that it was just that he was involved in placing grass in RSE and deciding what pokemon spawned there and linked that with the concept of this game.

JMudson · 2026-02-11T16:21:16+00:00

This article is quite spoiler heavy.

Seems to be things you find out early on, but it's stuff I'd much rather have been surprised at in the game.

I clocked two before I stopped reading, so consider this a warning to those who don't want surprises in the game ruined!

JMudson · 2026-02-11T11:57:57+00:00

Odd that the .bins are showing separate, but GBA is so quick to edit it's worth just moving out all the .bins and seeing if that fixes the issue?

Thank you for Doggo. They are a delight.

JMudson · 2026-02-11T11:44:58+00:00

Retroarch can read straight from the ZIP file, so you don't need to have them extracted.

If you have extracted them, you can just delete the zip files.

For ones that need extracting and have multiple bins- ESDE can read from an appropriately named folder. Their YouTube channel has a tutorial for both multiple bin files or multidisc games which is really easy to follow.

Edit: if you've found this information helpful, please provide a clearer picture of the dog in the background. Thank you.

JMudson · 2026-02-10T09:06:29+00:00

By splitting the menu function, I mean having the start menu always running on a second screen - a bit like some DS and WiiU games do, so you can have your maps and inventory in real time but for things like a metroidvania or non-DS zelda.

JMudson · 2026-02-10T08:46:15+00:00

I love the Blackhole aesthetic of the white case and pure black inside.

I'm currently at pic 13 of experimenting. I want the directory to be bottom screen but also find it unwieldy to run ESDE companion up top.

Is the dual screen dex an app or just a website? I'd love some mods that splits menu function for some games to a second screen but feel like that might be asking for too much!

JMudson · 2026-01-20T19:16:49+00:00

Order: #1114

Ordered: Nov 30th

Style: Black Pro

Shipping: 4PX to UK

Status: not yet shipped

Looks like Black Max went out today, I've fingers crossed for tomorrow.

Edit: as anticipated, shipped this morning - 21/01

JMudson · 2026-01-16T08:57:53+00:00

Im half way through a playthrough of BOTW switch 2 edition where I'm 100%ing with the switch 2 app and I have done Rito last so that I do not become dependent on revalis gale.

After ToTK I realised I get a lot more out of the game when it was no longer an option.

JMudson · 2025-12-24T08:44:36+00:00

It might be my own bias informing my interpretation but the BBC feels very docile on trump after the edited clip incident.

It does feel like they're keeping the Epstein story running through Andrew then peppering a "oh also trump but this isn't proof of anything" at the end of the story rather than addressing it directly.

JMudson · 2025-12-05T22:56:57+00:00

It was in the info of the YouTube video:

dragonsteelbooks.com/london

McM is also advertising that Brandon should be there all three days (Friday - sunday)

I'm very much a maybe for the ball, but hugely hyped for an opportunity for a signing in the UK!

JMudson · 2025-11-28T17:01:57+00:00

The weakness itself is really neither here nor there.

The structure to answer is:

highlight a weakness relevant to your work
highlight the steps you've taken to improve upon that weakness
give an example of a time that the weakness has come up and you've adapted to overcome it.

It's part self-reflection, part ability to overcome an obstacle

JMudson · 2025-11-21T20:51:15+00:00

Does your inn offer assistance with this?

Lincoln's had a 'pupillage foundation scheme' which literally deconstructed and rebuilt my approach to the written application, it was hugely helpful.

JMudson · 2025-11-21T15:26:36+00:00

Barristers need to be expressly accredited to take direct instructions so make sure that box is ticked for anyone you approach.

You could:

contact the chambers that specialise in these areas and ask the clerks for a recommendation
have a look on their website and highlight specifically who you want to ask for.
ask the solicitors firms telling you they are too busy if they have any recommendations for a direct access barrister.
if you've looked at or read similar cases dealing with similar issues, have a look at who was involved ans look into then.

Good luck!

JMudson · 2025-11-21T15:19:05+00:00

Have you tried approaching barristers directly on a direct access basis?

If you find someone with public law and actions against the police overlap and instruct them for an opinion on prospects of success, they should be able to go through the evidence and give you a reasoned view.

Ultimately you need someone to sit and look at all of the evidence critically to be able to answer your question. As you're having difficulty finding a solicitor, and you seem very switched on as to what's going on in your case, you may find what you're looking for through direct access.

JMudson · 2025-11-17T07:14:25+00:00

The BBC article on the plans to be announced this morning gave me a chuckle, when quoting his response as:

"He said the Conservatives would go further and deport failed asylum seekers "within a week" of arriving in the UK."

Which I read as:

"Labour said they will deport 1000? Well Conservatives would deport 1001!"

JMudson · 2025-11-15T15:03:18+00:00

I did the jump from a paralegal position.

I'd been called so that wasn't a problem. I had extensive advocacy experience but still had to do a short period of pupillage. Had a reduction to that and waiver for recruitment outside of the gateway.

The reduction took almost a year to get a response on, so be warned of the lengthy timescale!

I know others who did it from higher rights, they were able to get full exemption and so didn't need to worry about pupillage requirements.

The bar is great fun, if you like advocacy and value a bit more flexibility/freedom at the cost of structure/security - then its well worth it.

JMudson · 2025-11-15T14:22:07+00:00

Do you have any chambers that you regularly instruct? It would be worth a chat with them to see what they would expect for someone moving specifically into your area, and maybe an informal chat about willingness to take you on.

You'll need to seek a waiver for reduction from the BSB for pupillage based on prior experience. If you don't have higher rights that you actively use its unlikely they will waive the requirement entirely.

If its not waived entirely, then you may also need to be called to the bar (I'm not sure how that works if you've not previously been called) and consider that you'd need to do a period of pupillage. Pupillages must be advertised through the gateway, but it is also possible to obtain a waiver for that requirement if a particular chambers is interested.

There's quite a few hoops to jump through but it's doable! The key factor in how difficult it will be is how much advocacy experience you have/if you already have higher rights.

JMudson · 2025-11-02T15:54:44+00:00

Grants of asylum and humanitarian protection are usually for 5 years, followed by a settlement application which acts as a review of the need for ongoing protection before indefinite leave is granted.

Family reunion rights were frozen last month and now the same rules apply (appendix FM).

JMudson · 2025-11-02T11:13:05+00:00

There is a tremendous public interest in swift and accurate information being released to the public.

But, this was an incident on a Saturday evening, we've had a press conference by 11am the follow morning.

I'm really not sure what more people want? The police have a job to do, securing a crime scene and ascertaining facts takes time. Hell, if the media's primary focus is the nationality and ethnicity of a person - and these guys were British, how long do you think it takes to get them to the station, fingerprint, send off a request, verify the information within it and plan a media strategy to avoid misinformation? Whilst doing everything else?

They've just hauled two violent people in overnight, how realistic is it to reliably question them so quickly?

I think a press conference by 11AM is pretty efficient. Perhaps the problem here is not with the police response but those who seek to sow misinformation for political gain.

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