Written by Polina Krivosejeva
Podcasts are a great medium for aspiring lawyers to boost an understanding of the legal profession in general, get unique insights into law firms and learn about application strategies. Equally, podcasts are very helpful if you are working on building up your commercial awareness, which is very important if you aspire to pursue a career in commercial law.
One of the best things about listening to podcasts is that you can fit them into your busy schedule and listen to them on the go. I tend to listen to at least one podcast every morning on my way to work or when I cook or clean the house – multitasking is key these days. It is a perfect way to combine business with pleasure.
With that in mind, we have compiled 10 podcasts that we believe will help you on your journey to becoming a lawyer.
1. Wake Up to Money (BBC Radio 5 Live)
This podcast is my absolute favourite. It is hosted by Sean Farrington and Felicity Hannah and covers developments and recent trends in the business world, as well as the very latest from the financial markets around the globe. This podcast is very easy to listen to not least because Sean and Hannah are relentless in inviting their guests to unpack technical concepts. Equally impressive is the breadth of coverage. One episode covers news in multiple industries and countries. This is extremely helpful as you get to understand how events happening/trends emerging in one country spread or have effects around the world. Wake Up to Money is your go-to for developing commercial awareness, which is essential skill aspiring lawyers need to demonstrate in applications, during interviews and assessment centres.
2. Commercial Awareness with Watson’s Daily business and financial news
If you are pursuing a career in commercial law, or any other career that involves advising businesses a former stockbroker, Peter Watson, and his Watson’s Daily newsletter and podcast, are worth checking out. Watson’s Daily is a go-to podcast for those looking to improve commercial awareness. Peter and his ambassadors release daily episodes, where they choose a couple of headlines (WHAT) and analyse them in detail (SO WHAT). This podcast is a great resource for aspiring lawyers as it teaches listeners how to analyse wider implications of business/economic/political news and market trends on law firms and their clients.
3. The Allen & Overy Podcast
A&O, one of the five Magic Circle law firms, have a great podcast, where the firm’s lawyers discuss and analyse the most significant legal, regulatory and commercial news. From ESG, data protection and M&A to the latest developments in the capital markets and the wider financial services industry. This podcast is quite technical but it’s a great way to put into context the way business news and global developments shape legal advice, given by lawyers. You can also check out Allen & Overy Launch: The Careers Podcast hosted by A&O’s associate, Bianca Vasilache. It gives a brilliant insight into commercial areas of law and what job of lawyers/trainees in those areas involves. Many law firms have their own podcast that will provide you with similar insights. You can choose your own list of podcasts hosted by law firms based on your own criteria, such as firms you are interested in applying to or areas of law in which they specialise.
4. Legally Speaking Podcast
Legally Speaking is hosted by Rob Hanna and is a great source of inspiration. Robert is an expert in legal careers and content creation, he is a proud CEO & Founder of a variety of business ventures and regularly speaks to notable organisations within the global legal industry. Guests of the podcast range from qualified lawyers to legal consultants, entrepreneurs, policy makers, coaches and influencers. This podcast is a testament that the world of legal is well placed to question the status quo and drive creative solutions. It is a go to whether you are a lawyer, aspiring lawyer, involved in the legal industry or simply curious to know more about the world of legal. Episodes include exciting interviews, intriguing stories, tips to supercharge your legal career and so much more. Our founder, Meg, featured in one of the episodes and it’s a must listen!
5. Chambers Student Podcast
If you are applying/considering to apply for legal vacation schemes or training contract, you are 99% very well familiar with Chambers Student’s True Picture page, which provides life-saving insights into the leading law firms in the UK. Chambers Student Podcast is equally as great resource for aspiring lawyers. I like this podcast because its guests are lawyers who are working in the firm. It’s a great way to get a better understanding of the firm’s leading practice areas, the type of clients they work with, the challenges those clients face in their respective industries and the type of work lawyers do to help their clients.
6. FT News Briefing
The Financial Times can sometimes be overwhelming but the FT News Briefing podcast, hosted by Marc Filippino, is smooth and an easy listen. One of the greatest things about this podcast is that it provides you with a rundown of business news within 10 minutes. When I studied at university, I remember only listening to this podcast because time was always of the essence. I would then do further reading on the headlines that caught my attention when I had a minute to spare to increase and refine my commercial awareness further.
7. The Next Five Podcast
The Next 5 Podcast launched just last winter and is produced in partnership with the Financial Times’ Commercial Department. I can’t find words to describe the depth with which it covers the most pressing global issues. Although the episodes are very infrequent, one episode will leave you with the desire to find out more about thought-provoking topics it covers. For example, one of the discussion points in “The Future of Energy” episode is fusion, an alternative form of power generation. There is a lot of practical and technological difficulties to make this source of energy commercially viable at this stage but it certainly blew my mind that, as a humanity, we will potentially reproduce the process powering the Sun and all other stars. Maybe, in 10 years time, current generation of aspiring lawyers will be at the fore front of advising on formation of joint ventures to fund fusion power stations?
8. The Legal Room UK
Herrington Carmichael’s Legal Room UK Podcast features a diverse range of practising lawyers offering expertise and insight on a wide range of legal topics, such as Employment, Corporate Governance, Data Protection, Insolvency, NFTs and Real Estate. The episodes are short yet very comprehensive and easily digestible. It explains technical legal concepts and issues that lawyers must consider when advising their clients. This is an amazing channel for aspiring lawyers to follow!
9. The LawCareers.Net Podcast
If you are an aspiring lawyer, you are most likely very well familiar with the LCN platform which provides a lot of great resources for those pursuing a career in law. The LCN Podcast covers a different topic each month. The guests of the podcast are lawyers, recruiters, students and members of the LCN team. It provides insights into various practice areas and gives listeners valuable tips on the application process and interviews. It also covers wider trends in the legal industry, such as D&I, Social Mobility and benefits of Pro Bono work.
10. UK Law Weekly
UK Law Weekly is, as the name suggests, a weekly podcast on legal decisions and news. Marcus Cleaver, a former university lecturer in law looks at the latest cases and reviews from the courts. This channel will help you to stay on top of new updates and legal precedents across all legal markets. Another huge advantage of this podcast is that all the episodes are no more than 10 minutes long, so listening to them will not overwhelm you. One of the recent episodes looks at the insolvency case of BTI 2014 LLC v Sequana SA [2022] UKSC 25. The point of discussion considers a difficulty of striking the right balance between the duties that companies’ directors owe to its shareholders vs its creditors. At what point is a company deemed to be probably heading towards insolvency? Find the answer in the episode.
As you can imagine, the list of podcasts in this article is by no means exhaustive. There are so many great channels out there and it’s simply impossible to cover them all in one post. If you have a favourite podcast that you think is a must-listen for an aspiring lawyer, feel free to share it in the comments. I hope that list will help you find, or encourage you to revisit, a podcast that aligns with your interests and help you on your career journey or simply stay on top of the latest legal and business trends.
For further suggestions, please check out It’s All Hearsay’s two-part series on Instagram:
PART ONE:
PART TWO:
it's all hearsay 