Cracking the Code

Making the hidden rules of law firm interviews visible.

Download your free copy (below) of Cracking the Code.

Cracking the Code is a practical and easy to use interview workbook for first generation law students, giving them the inside track so they can compete on a level playing field at law firm interviews.

Hello I'm Simon, the author of Cracking the Code. I am a solicitor (non-practising) executive coach, academic and learning and development expert.

Cracking the Code is the workbook I wish I could have had access to as a working class law student, trying to break into the legal profession. I've helped thousands of law students in my career, navigate the transition from academia into legal practice and my hope is Cracking the Code can act as your coach for your next interview. So you don't make the mistakes I made.

The workbook can't guarantee success, but what it will do is level the playing field if you are first generation law student. You can now make sure you have access to the same inside knowledge as everyone else.

I would love you hear what you think about Cracking the Code, please do follow & connect by clicking on the LinkedIn buttons below.

What you will find inside

✅ Lots of practical exercises to help you structure and prepare answers that stand out.
✅ Hidden code insights. The unwritten rules top candidates know (but aren’t taught at law school).
✅ Confidence boosters to help you show up as yourself without feeling like an imposter.
✅ Reflection prompts & templates so you’re not just reading, but practising.

Why this matters

The data is clear. If you are working-class, you are half as likely to make it into the legal profession as your middle class counterparts. If you are state educated, you are 5 times less likely to become a solicitor than someone who has attended private school.

Law firm interviews are rarely just about “knowing the law.” They test whether you understand the rules beneath the rules. The cultural fit, professional polish, confidence, and networks. This workbook gives you the inside track so you don’t have to figure it out the hard way.

Who it’s for ?

Law students applying for vacation schemes, apprenticeships, paralegal positions & training contracts.
Early career lawyers preparing for interviews or assessments.
First-generation students or anyone without “insider knowledge” of the legal profession.

Praise for Cracking the Code

"Society deserves a legal profession made up of talented people with good values from all walks of life. For far too long, hidden cultural codes and unarticulated expectations have acted as barriers to candidates from non-traditional and working class backgrounds.

Cracking the Code is an important step in challenging those barriers and in empowering people to find a way to opening that first door into the legal profession."

Professor Michael Doherty - Professor of Legal Design | Faculty Education Director, School of Law, Lancaster University

“Cracking the Code is an excellent resource for students who want to improve their employability and perform well in legal industry interviews. It is a clear, easy to use resource that provides real insight into the interview and legal recruitment process.

Cracking the Code provides indispensable top tips, describes common pitfalls, and brings this together with practical exercises and action plans to help students prepare for interview. There are useful sections covering the key areas that students struggle with such as how to demonstrate commercial awareness. An absolute must-read for any law student preparing for an upcoming interview in the legal sector.”

Lorna Mitchell - Lecturer in Law and School of Law & Social Justice Employability Lead, Liverpool University

"A fantastic read. Cracking the Code is clear, concise, practical. The set of tools I wish I had access to at the start of my legal career."

Natalie Jade Parkinson

Head of Employment Litigation, After Athena

"Cracking the Code is brilliant. I wish I had this at the outset of my career"

David Alan Hughes

Costs Lawyer, Peak Costs

Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

Last updated: 8 October 2025

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