Review successful applications with commentary by top lawyers to help secure your

Our detailed analysis will teach you why applicants succeed - and how you can too.

Learn about our case studiesSearch application database

Used by candidates like you to win training contracts at

Benchmark yourself against the best apps

Most candidates read a few well-meaning articles about how to draft an application and then start writing.  

But most candidates don’t get training contracts. In fact, ~90% of candidates are rejected before interview.

You need to go further than just understanding the theory if you want to excel.  

You need to see what successful candidates actually did that made their application stand out.  

You need to review real examples of winning applications.

But is looking at someone else’s successful application enough?

Proportion of training contract applicants who secure interviews

Learn what made them successful

You need to understand why the application was successful in order to effectively apply best practices to your own draft.

Every application in our database includes detailed commentary by our team of qualified lawyers.

Our commentary:

  • identifies why the application was successful
  • sets out how we would have taken it to the next level
  • explains how you can apply the same best practices to your own application

Brexit, Covid-19 and the growing adoption of Legal Tech has made competition for training contracts more intense than ever before. Our improvement points will help you stand out from the crowd.

And for those candidates who want to truly maximise their chances of success...

An illustration of a marked-up document

Use our detailed, realistic commercial case studies to fully prepare for your assessment centre

‍The NCL written and live case studies provide a crucial opportunity for you to practice and learn.

Each case study replicates a real-life exercise at a law firm assessment centre with ~15 pages of emails, memos and news articles to quickly review and analyse.  

You can then check your answer against the 12 page model answer prepared by our expert team of qualified lawyers.  

It will help you to build the commercial knowledge that you need to stand out in your assessment centre.

Invest 45 minutes of your time. Save yourself another application cycle.

Learn about our case studiesSearch application database
Success rate of training contract applications
Proportion of training contract applicants who secure interviewsAn illustration of a marked-up documentSuccess rate of training contract applications

Customer testimonials

Will you be our next success story?

“Their advice is always very thorough, precise and straightforward. I would 100% recommend Next City Lawyer. Thank you!”
Anonymous NCL customer

Future Trainee Solicitor

“This is more than a proofreading service. They catch your errors in logic and areas where your writing is ambiguous and unclear”

Future Trainee Solicitor

“The great thing about NCL is that they’re actual lawyers who are dedicated to helping you get a career in law”

Future Trainee Solicitor

"I wanted to let you know that I have been invited to an assessment centre at Macfarlanes. Thank you once again to your team for helping me with the application"
Anonymous NCL customer

Future Trainee Solicitor

"Thank you for your help this cycle...I'm amazed that after three years being stuck as the initial application phase, I managed to secure a training contract less than a month after my first direct application (which undoubtedly would have been impossible without NCL)"
Anonymous NCL customer

Future Trainee Solicitor

“The quality of resources is absolutely unparalleled”

Future Trainee Solicitor

“Another update - I got the training contract! Thank you so much for all your help, I definitely think it made a difference!”

Future Trainee Solicitor