Beatrice secures prestigious Middle Temple law scholarship

Sam Wood

University of Kent Law student Beatrice Fatungase, has been awarded the £14K Duke and Duchess of Cambridge Scholarship to pursue studying for the bar from The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple.

Middle Temple is one of four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call members to the Bar of England and Wales as barristers. The Inn’s Duke and Duchess of Cambridge Scholarship, is given to only three candidates deemed specially deserving of assistance, with the interview criteria assessing character and ability to overcome adversity.

During Beatrice’s virtual interview for the scholarship with three Queen’s Counsel, Beatrice reflected on her previous mini-pupillage at the High Court of Justice in London. She was asked for her thoughts on the suspension of jury trials due to COVID-19, the resultant backlog in courts, and her opinion on a scenario in which a defendant refused for his case to only be tried by a judge.

She was also asked whether she felt the government had been proportionate in lockdown; to describe a time where she had seen good or bad advocacy; and to identify the greatest obstacle she had faced in her path to becoming a barrister.

Medway local Beatrice, 21, said of being awarded the scholarship: ‘This is a wonderful experience, and I’d like to thank all my mentors at Kent Law School for their support in guiding me to this point. The mooting provision at the School really helped me in being able to tackle the questions from the Queen’s Counsel, it is an absolute must for highlighting the skills a barrister needs.’

Kent Law School Employability and Careers Development Officer Jayne Instone said: ‘It has been a pleasure to see Beatrice take off on her path to becoming a barrister, as her superb efforts and enthusiasm as a student at Kent Law School make her entirely deserving of so prestigious a scholarship.’