Legal Intern

  Job description

Position title

Legal Intern

Contract

6-9 months, 0.8 (3 days per week)

Salary and benefits
*pro-rated
according to terms
of contract

Location

•  £28,860 p/a pro-rated
•  25 days annual leave pro-rated + public holidays + the days in

between Christmas and New Year

6th Floor, 72-75 Red Lion Street, London WC1R 4NA

Line management

•  Reports to Co-Directors

Work specification

Under the supervision of members of APPEAL’s casework team:

•  Assisting APPEAL’s lawyers to identify and challenge wrongful
convictions and unfair sentences in England and Wales, by
bringing them to the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) and
making applications to the Criminal Cases Review Commission.

•  This will involve assisting with new case enquiries to identify

grounds of challenge and conducting legal research.
•  Assisting APPEAL’s lawyers on casework tasks on existing

conviction cases including legal research, instructing experts and
counsel, investigation and research tasks.

•  Working on sentence appeals to identify grounds and draft

supporting arguments.

•  Supporting APPEAL in its campaign and resource development

efforts.

All duties must be carried out with the charitable aims and objectives of
APPEAL in mind, and in compliance with APPEAL’s duties as an SRA
regulated law practice.

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Key
responsibilities

Under the supervision of the Co-Directors key responsibilities will include:
•  Screening applications from prisoners to identify miscarriages of

justice relating to convictions and sentences.

•  Conducting investigation of potential wrongful conviction and unfair

sentence cases, including obtaining and analysing records, reviewing
evidence and crime scenes in search of fresh evidence;

•  Attending Court of Appeal hearings alongside other members of the

casework team.

•  Assisting with applications for funding for legal aid on cases
•  Compliance with SRA and Legal Aid Agency regulations and guidelines

as well as in-house Practice Manual.

•  Supporting our campaign efforts including advocating for legal reform,
attending in-house and external events and drafting social media
content.

•  Assisting with APPEAL’s fundraising efforts.

Person specification

Selection criteria

Essential

Desirable

Educated to graduate level

ü

Interested in pursuing a career in criminal
practice

Experience working as a criminal paralegal

Successfully completed/obtained a place on
Bar Course in England and Wales, OR

Successfully completed SQE exams/training
contract or currently studying SQE

Experience of working with vulnerable clients
and their families, who have experienced
trauma or mental health challenges and
holistic client care skills

ü

ü

ü

ü

Experience,
Knowledge and
Skills

How to Apply:

•  Please send a CV and cover letter explaining how you meet the essential and desirable
criteria of the person specification to operations@appeal.org.uk by 5pm on 18th March
2026.

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Include the Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form as a separate document (these will not be
looked at as part of your application and are for data monitoring purposes only).

Important information

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SALARY
As advertised. We are Living Wage employer with a flat salary scheme. All team members
are paid within 20% of each other and salaries are reviewed annually.

ANNUAL/TOTAL LEAVE
Annual leave is 25 days pro rata per annum from 1st April to 31st March plus public holidays
and the days between Christmas and New year. Additionally, staff accrue one additional
day of leave per year of service.

PENSION SCHEME
We offer the statutory minimum pension scheme for all team members.

LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT
We have a small training budget and encourage staff to commit to their own personal
development. We allow flexible working so if staff want to take on additional training or
qualifications, they can discuss this with the manager.

EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY
APPEAL particularly encourages applications from people with a BAME background, with
disabilities, who identify as LGBTQ+, or who were the first generation to attend university,
who are currently underrepresented in leadership in the legal profession. We are an equal
opportunities employer and are committed to promoting principles of inclusion and
diversity in our work.

We are open to considering flexible working arrangements, particularly to support parents
with childcare or those with caring responsibilities.

PROBATIONARY POLICY
New appointments are subject to a 3 month probationary period. At the end of the
probationary period the outcome of the assessment may be confirmation of post; notice of
dismissal; or at APPEAL’s discretion, an extension of the probationary period by a further 3
months.

LOCATION
As advertised. Please note that flexible working is can also be discussed.

HOURS OF WORK
7.5 hours per day excluding lunch break. Typical working hours are 9:30am – 5:30pm but
flexible working arrangements can be discussed.

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