Fiona Griffin is a barrister at Paradise Chambers, a common law set that is the largest in Sheffield. Fiona studied law at the University of Wales, Aberystwyth. She always knew that she wanted to be a lawyer and considered her options as both solicitor and barrister, but preferred her work experience in chambers. Following the BVC at Cardiff University, Fiona did a master's in child law - something which she says proved helpful when it came to securing pupillage: "It showed I had a definite interest in family and child law, and I think it helped me stand out when I was applying. Nowadays more and more people are doing a master's before getting pupillage."

Pupillage at Paradise was "very enjoyable", says Fiona, especially as her pupil supervisor was a family practitioner. Fiona has been building up her practice since being called to the Bar in 2003. She describes how things have progressed: "When I started, I did quite a mix of magistrates' court and CPS agency work, which was good in terms of establishing my trial skills. In addition, I was instructed in private family law cases, such as residence and contact disputes. I also conducted small claims and preliminary hearings in the civil courts. Now, my practice is approximately 80% family work and I do quite a number of care cases. For example, I recently did a case concerning a number of individuals who were accused of administering drugs to a young child. It was a finding of fact hearing, in which there are factual issues that a judge needs to resolve before the case can be disposed of. I have also been involved in cases where allegations of serious sexual abuse have been in issue. Cases such as these are often very technical and involve numerous lever arch folders and recorded interviews with the children." She also does ancillary relief, which can be a welcome break after the care work because "it's more technical and less emotive".

Fiona discusses her typical working day (and night): "If I'm doing a preliminary hearing, I spend time the night before I'm due to appear getting the papers ready. In the morning, I have a conference with the client at court. I am often in court until lunchtime or late afternoon, and the rest of the day is spent doing admin and research. Then it's home to do more work for the next day. In the early days, when I had simpler cases and less care work, there were times when I was finished in court by 11:00am, but that's not very common any more, especially as I'm dealing with more complex cases."

Fiona extols the virtues of working in Sheffield: "Compared to working in central London, I think we have a far better lifestyle. You're required to travel a lot in London, sometimes leaving home very early in the morning to get to some far-flung court. Here, the courts are generally very local - the furthest I have to travel is to Grimsby, which is only a 90-minute drive. You also get to know the court staff and judges very well due to appearing before them regularly. People have a good work/life balance and are family orientated, which is very important to me."

While the pace and the variety of cases in family law are huge pluses, the flipside can be hard to live with, explains Fiona: "The most enjoyable part of the job is the quick turnover of cases, so you are doing something different every day with interesting points of law. However, occasionally complex cases are briefed to counsel at the last minute and you have to be very flexible with your free time, often having to work late into the evenings and at the weekends. But I love the flexibility and you do get the odd early day to do your own thing." Fiona mentions that funding issues remain a problem, and the profession is concerned with the effects of a downturn in work and the increase in solicitors conducting their own cases in the higher courts.

Family law involves a different skill set to that required in civil or criminal work, mostly because of the emotive issues involved. Fiona explains: "The level of client contact means that you have to be able to listen and to explain complex legal issues in basic language, such as summarising a very detailed psychiatric report in a way the client can understand. Many clients have personality disorders or learning difficulties and find it difficult to absorb the information. Therefore, effective communication is hugely important. Negotiation skills are also key - a lot of your time is spent in conferences with other advocates, negotiating a positive outcome for all involved. There is less formal advocacy than in other areas of law because of the informal environment of the family courts. In addition, there is a difference in the presentation of a case because you're addressing an experienced judge rather than a jury."

Succeeding as a barrister takes some doing, says Fiona: "You need to be extremely determined, be able to work under pressure, have an eye for detail and be pedantic about your work. You have got to think on your feet and be prepared for things to go wrong. And you've got to be organised, especially when it comes to processing court attendance notes, which are required in almost all cases."

If you want to show you are committed to family work, Fiona has some tips: "It's difficult to go and observe family hearings because they are all private, but if you have time before pupillage, you might like to think about working in a solicitors' firm that does family work, something I did while I was doing my master's. You should also try to keep up to date with the law by reading the Family Law Journal and the court reports."

More broadly, Fiona would recommend undertaking mini-pupillages, but you should make this experience count: "Make sure they are relevant to the field you are interested in and take a note of the cases you were involved with, so that you can give details on your applications and during interviews. Relevant work experience in a firm or local authority is also valuable. I do worry when you see huge chunks of time on someone's application when they haven't done anything at all. Try volunteering at local advice units and centres. Make sure that you are signed up to a legal update website such as Lawtel, which sends through emails about recent cases and updates to the law."

While the necessary academic ability is a given, Fiona says that they are also looking for "people who are down to earth, who have got a good knowledge of the law and recent changes and who have used their time wisely". Having made the cut herself, Fiona can ultimately sum up her career as a family barrister as "a fantastic job".