Legal Cheek Careers chats to lawyer-turned-ULaw programme and student lead Karen Watts
Karen Watts has spent her entire professional life in London, first as a student, then as a trainee and disputes lawyer, and now as one of The University of Law’s (ULaw) key faces at its Moorgate Campus. In a chat with Legal Cheek Careers, she reflects on the hustle and bustle that drew her to the capital, what she learned from life as a City lawyer working in disputes, and her passion for helping the next generation navigate law school and qualification.
“At university in London, I initially studied history before deciding to move to a law and history degree,” Karen tells us. The two subjects weren’t so disparate, she says, and she found there were plenty of transferable skills she could bring across.
At the same time, Karen began exploring the world of corporate law and going to events run by City law firms. “At one of these events, I met representatives from Kennedys,” she recalls. “They were recruiting and offered sponsorship for the LPC and a training contract, which was very attractive.” She did consider a career at a firm in the regions, but London ultimately won out. “I decided I liked the atmosphere and the ‘cut and thrust’ of being at the centre of the legal world in the capital, so I joined Kennedys.”
When Karen was a trainee, ULaw didn’t yet have a Moorgate branch, so she studied at Bloomsbury. “I studied with the College of Law, as it was then known.” Moorgate opened later in her career, “geared much more towards corporate and commercial firms”. By then, Karen had built up around seven years’ experience in dispute resolution across Kennedys and Fieldfisher. In 2008, she made the pivot to legal education, joining ULaw about a year after the Moorgate branch opened.
The campus has a “corporate, ‘City’ vibe”, and the area is very familiar to her: “I know the local sandwich bars like the back of my hand because Kennedys and Fieldfisher were both nearby.” But tucked behind the building are the HAC’s (Honourable Artillery Company) historic grounds. “It is a great place to be because you are at the heart of London but still have green space and classic car shows to look at through the window.”
During her years as a practising solicitor, Karen dealt with high-value disputes. “At Kennedys, I handled big-hitting insurance litigation and some general commercial dispute resolution.” That intensity had its own pull: “Dealing with high-stakes environments where so much is at risk has a unique attraction,” she tells us.
She was also drawn to disputes because it meant working closely with people, something she also enjoys about teaching. “I wanted to do dispute resolution because of the contact with people, such as interviewing witnesses and letting them tell their story,” Karen explains. “Listening to people is a skill that translates directly from practice into my current role.”
The move into teaching, though, wasn’t a simple extension of practice. Karen had never taught before, so starting at ULaw initially felt like quite the jump. “I had no teaching experience when I started, but ULaw invested in and developed me as a teacher.” Along the way, she completed the Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education and became a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Her teaching started in litigation, but the substance has shifted over time in a way that mirrors broader trends in disputes. What began as litigation has “changed to focus more on ‘dispute resolution’ and out-of-court settlements,” she says. Karen is also a certified mediator, which allows her to bring a different angle into the classroom and connect the theory back to what happens in practice.
That practical grounding is central to ULaw’s approach, with many of its teachers being experienced City lawyers. “It is about having ‘war stories’ from being on the front line,” she says. “You can’t fully recreate the experience of being in the moment of litigation or the adrenaline of a trial through paper-based learning alone. For the students here that are looking to also become solicitors, giving them our experience of what it is really like in those moments adds to their perspective.”
These days, her role is broader than a single module. As Programme and Student Lead, she deals with over a thousand vocational students at Moorgate. The work is, as she puts it, “part logistics, part problem-solving, and part something closer to pastoral care”. She helps students “whose paths may not be straightforward” get over the next hurdle, while also liaising with the programmes to make sure firms are receiving the training they need.
Karen recognises the SQE can be intense, and she stresses that students must build in time for themselves to avoid burnout. “Students can be their own harshest critics, so it is important to be kind to yourself,” she says. “Acknowledge that you might not be able to juggle all of your commitments, and that is not an insurmountable problem. Reach out to your tutors and keep them in the loop.”
“Everyone struggles with their workload from time to time, whether they are a solicitor or a student,” she continues. “Don’t beat yourself up; just keep looking forward.” Karen is also a trained mental health first-aider, and she stresses that support is there when students need it.
As for what makes successful students excel in the SQE, Karen says they use all the resources ULaw makes available. “Successful students use the tools available to them, such as the SQE1 revision app. It is a brilliant resource because you can tailor it to throw questions at you in areas where you are weak. It takes time to become familiar with it, but it is time well spent.”
Employability support is close at hand too. With the SQE pathway, students may be at very different stages of qualifying work experience, and not everyone arrives with a training contract in place. Karen points to the employability team’s on-campus presence: “Students can book onto clinics, and the team offers a tailored approach because every student’s needs are unique under the SQE.” There’s also embedded QWE: “We offer four weeks of qualifying work experience (QWE) through our pro bono clinic as part of the LLM offering.”
If she could give one final piece of advice, it’s a mindset shift. “Be adaptable and flexible,” Karen says. “This applies to your learning as well, as the SQE requires a different approach than an undergraduate degree. While the assessment style may change, it is still fundamentally about testing your legal reasoning.”
Secrets to Success London — with Ashurst, Osborne Clarke and ULaw takes place in-person THIS AFTERNOON, Thursday 5 February. The event features a panel discussion delivered by top law firms as well as networking with the speakers, early talent and graduate recruitment teams. This event is now fully booked, but check out our upcoming events.
View this post on Instagram
About Legal Cheek Careers posts.
