Second solicitor ditched from hit BBC show by lawyer-loathing Lord Sugar
Felipe Alviar-Baquero, the former City lawyer, has been fired from The Apprentice.
The exit of Alviar-Baquero, who has worked at Latham & Watkins and Slaughter and May, comes after fellow solicitor Lauren Riley was sacked two weeks ago.
During his axeing of Riley, show host Lord Sugar slammed the St Albans family practitioner for being a “typical safe lawyer”. And the businessman again showed his dislike of the legal profession last night as he took issue with Alviar-Baquero’s lawyerly interpretation of one of the tasks: to buy an “anatomical skeleton”.
Rather than purchase an actual skeleton, Alviar-Baquero, noting that the instructions allowed for it, shelled out on a much cheaper flat-pack skeleton.
“Listen I am a lawyer. The description of Lord Sugar’s matches what I bought,” he said as he made the decision.
But although the move initially impressed his teammates, it infuriated Lord Sugar, who — demonstrating his own brand of constitutional legal theory — roared at the former magic circle solicitor:
“You are clearly a talented lawyer but I am the judge, jury and executioner here — and that’s not a skeleton.”
Lord Sugar added that Oxford-educated Alviar-Baquero was “trying to be too much of a smart person”.
In response, the desperate solicitor said his gamble was all about trying to demonstrate his business savvy.
But Lord Sugar wasn’t impressed, telling him:
“Felipe, this particular task was a kind of attempt to try and prove to me some tactical piece of genius. I don’t think it’s a tactical piece of genius. It’s a mixture between what you think you are — an entrepreneur and a lawyer.”
Then, conferring upon himself top judge status, he dispatched the solicitor with the closing line:
“Felipe, you fought your corner but Judge Sugar here says ‘it’s failed’. The Supreme Court Judge Sugar also says ‘it’s failed’. Felipe, you’re fired.”
UPDATE: There is a #JusticeForFelipe hashtag
— Thomas P Connelly (@LegalCheek_Tom) December 4, 2014
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