Sparks debate on LinkedIn
A solicitor has sparked debate online after appearing to suggest there might be a need for a club exclusively for lawyers who attended private school.
Posting on LinkedIn, employment law specialist Elliot Hammer said he is proud of being a privately educated lawyer and noted that he was among a minority who don’t have a “club”. This, he said, is in contrast to “the massive majority 93% state school peeps do, which I think terribly unfair.”
Hammer, a partner at London firm Branch Austin McCormick, went on to ask if anyone would be interested in setting up such a club. “If you’re bored of virtue signalling on LinkedIn, or if you’ve got an employment or litigation case, DM me and we can discuss.”
One of Hammer’s LinkedIn connections questioned whether the post was satire, while another said it had made them “chuckle”.
Others, however, took it more seriously. “Just to explain,” wrote fellow lawyer Rebecca Taylor-Onion, “if you’re not at any disadvantage due your socioeconomic background and education, you don’t need a club to help level the playing field 🤷♀️”.
“It’s a club just to enjoy, not to level any playing field,” Hammer responded — to which Taylor-Onion replied, “What a luxury!”
Elsewhere, pupil barrister Avaia Nightingale Williams commented that “it’s about disproportionate representation” and added that “whilst only 7% of the population are privately educated, they make up 33.5% (on available stats) of the Bar and 22% of Solicitors.”
Meanwhile, Weightmans partner Henry Bermingham said he didn’t care where his colleagues went to school, preferring instead to focus on whether they were “nice people” and “can they do the job?”
In another response, legal recruiter Jason Connolly commented: “An interesting take — and one that highlights how much of the diversity conversation in law gets framed through a single lens. The truth is, whether you went to a state school or a private one, everyone brings their own background, challenges and perspective into the profession.”