Middle Temple Pupillage Hardship Awards

The Middle Temple is able to make awards to members of the Inn who are in pupillage, or who have pupillage arranged, to alleviate cases of serous unexpected hardship. Their purpose is to ensure, so far as possible, that members of the Inn with the potential to succeed at the Bar are not prevented from doing so by some unexpected financial setback. The funds available are limited.

It is not possible to define in advance every situation which may qualify, but an application for a Hardship Award would be appropriate in cases such as the drying up of expected funds because of the illness of the applicant, or the death, illness or loss of employment of a breadwinner: cases which might loosely be described as an unexpected catastrophe. Such developments are in principle unforeseen, though not necessarily sudden.

The awards are not there to deal with the historic debts, however large, which many students now have by the end of their academic and professional studies, or with the shortfall in funding in the rare cases where unfunded pupillages are permitted. They are not a supplement or substitute for an Inn scholarship.

Applicants must:

• be members of the Middle Temple;
• have 12 months' pupillage either begun or definitely arranged and accepted;
• have not yet completed pupillage;
• provide evidence of potential to succeed at the Bar;
• have suffered some serious and unexpected financial hardship.

Application forms can be obtained from the Treasury Office. The completed form should be sent to the Deputy Under Treasurer (Education), accompanied by a full curriculum vitae and a copy of any past application, to any Inn, for a scholarship. In the nature of these awards there is no closing date for applications: the committee meets to consider applications from time to time.