Oct 2019
At a seminar in London’s Middle Temple, students visited from Chuo University in Tokyo, which was originally founded as an English Law school. The University’s founding members were a group of lawyers who were students of Middle Temple - one of the four Inns of Court which have the exclusive right to call students to the Bar. In fact “chuo” means “middle” in Japanese.
The aim of the visit was to allow the students a taste of how solicitors and barristers practice law in England and Wales, as well as improving and developing cultural relations between the two countries.
Simone Horrobin, Senior Associate Solicitor at leading Surrey-based law firm, Downs Solicitors, is a member of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the UK. She is also a member of the British Japanese Parliamentary Group – so when Simone was invited by Ian Clarke QC and Middle Temple to join the students, it was the perfect opportunity.
Ian Clarke QC, who is Chair of the Inns of Court Conduct Committee and the Attorney General’s A Panel, addressed the students and spoke to them about behaving as a professional and professional ethics. Simone too had the opportunity to use her language skills in Japanese to introduce Ian and provide the students with some background on him. The students were also keen to get even closer to the job, trying on Ian’s wig and robe.
Simone said: “This is a very exciting opportunity to develop the students of tomorrow’s law practices. Downs Solicitors has an impressive international portfolio, so this is a great chance for us to introduce some of the things we do in English law and show how we work for other countries, as well as offering the opportunity for the Japanese students to experience some of our culture and embrace some of the difference practices that we have.
“I hope to meet the Dean and the students again next month when a visit Japan.”
