A popular misconception is that this area of law is just about employment contracts. In fact, employment lawyers handle a variety of issues, including discrimination, workplace monitoring, staff restructuring and whistleblowing. There has been a massive increase in employment law cases in recent years, due to a combination of new European legislation, government policies and employees' increased awareness of their work-related rights. At trainee level, lawyers assist with the employment aspects of corporate transactions and with preparations for tribunal claims, as well as attending hearings and meetings with clients and helping to draft documents.

Alexander Robson applied to Littleton Chambers for a pupillage in the full knowledge that he wanted to practise employment law. His early aspirations had centred on becoming a criminal barrister, but he readily accepts that this was in no small part due to the romantic portrayals of the job in the modern media. "I think there is a little bit of everyone who applies to the Bar that wants to be a criminal barrister," he suggests. "Because you like the idea of the drama of the jury, the exciting clients, the cross-examination and the advocacy. I found that idea very attractive, but I found that reality was slightly less salubrious than you see on TV and read about in books."

After a little research, employment law struck Alexander as the ideal alternative, as there is plenty of advocacy from an early stage, a healthy dose of intellectual challenge and, last but by no means least, good money to be earned from a relatively early stage of your career. But it was the mental simulation that primarily attracted him, although he agrees it might not be for everyone. "What you don't always get with criminal law is the intellectual challenge in every single case that you do," he explains. "Even the most basic set of facts in a rudimentary employment relationship can give rise to fiendishly difficult issues in employment law. A claimant who is earning £8.94 an hour might ask you what appears to be a very straightforward question, but in order to find the answer you end up locked away with a wet towel over your head for three days because without knowing it, they've walked into a crossover between various strands of European law, English law and different Court of Appeal decisions. So you really do get to exercise your legal judgement and analysis in almost every case you do. That's something that some people like and some people don't, but I quite enjoy it."

Alexander found pupillage challenging, and admits that as a pupil you will inevitably feel constant pressure to impress your potential colleagues. However, he also points out that many barristers tend to remember only the negative side of pupillage, and that there are fun and even exciting times as well. This is particularly so at the employment Bar; due to the way in which costs are apportioned, pupils can often find themselves involved in big cases.

"As in employment law clients do not get their costs back, there are times when the client can only afford someone who has just started their second six," he says. "My co-pupil had a five-day case in week three of her second six, which was particularly daunting because she was up against a very senior junior in a League Two set, but it was terrific fun. That's what you sign up for, and the opportunity to do that so early on is exhilarating. Pupillage is like that: it can be exhilarating and nervewracking in equal measure."

Alexander remembers being at tribunal or court on average around two days a week during his pupillage - after three years of tenancy, that has risen to three. He sees a good spread of cases, with clients evenly split between claimant and respondent, and work ranging from fairly standard unfair dismissal suits to complicated sex discrimination matters or even injunctions to prevent strike action. Alongside the advocacy there is also, of course, the paperwork, which he describes as "substantial" and which needs to be fitted in around tribunal or court commitments.

"If you want a controlled, predictable workstream, then this might not be the best area of law to choose," he says. "Because of the nature of the work, you will often be instructed quite late in the day. The papers might be voluminous, but not well organised, so you will have to spend time working out what documents are relevant and identifying the real issue in the case. You will then complete your prep overnight in advance of an intense hour with your witnesses before the hearing to take further instructions and finalise your case strategy before going into battle. Some people, like me, love that. But if you are the sort of person who needs to have everything sorted days in advance, then that could cause a lot of unwelcome stress."

Something else that stands out for Alexander is the insight you get into people's lives and the responsibility that comes with that. "After people's families, their jobs are often the most important things in their lives and you come to realise this very quickly," he explains. "So when somebody feels that they have been unfairly dismissed or when they think they've been treated unfairly or differently because of their sexual orientation, then - regardless of the correct legal analysis - the emotion with which they will approach their case is palpable. Very early in your career, you are given the responsibility of managing that person's case. It's a great privilege."

For those considering a career at the employment Bar, as with many other areas, Alexander thinks it is important to have some sort of relevant real-world experience. This doesn't necessarily mean that applicants need to have had another career prior to the law, but he suggests that potential candidates might be in a stronger position if they have experienced an employment relationship first hand - whether that be a Saturday job or summer work at Tesco. It's also advantageous to have seen employment barristers at work and to gain as much relevant experience as possible. "Go and sit in an employment tribunal," he says. "Observe how proceedings work. If you can, qualify with the Free Representation Unit and take some cases on with them, or get involved with other pro bono activities and organisations."

As more general advice to future barristers, Alexander suggests spending time researching practice areas, and indeed the types of work within those areas, as seemingly small differences can lead to wide variations in lifestyle later on. "I think one of the hardest things for people coming into the profession is the requirement to choose an area of specialism so soon in their careers," he says. "Realistically, you're making that choice when you haven't properly had a chance to experience what different types of law are like, so I'd give the same advice to someone who is interested in any type of law: just get out there and see how it works in practice, because two different types of barrister can have two entirely different careers. One will work in chambers for the vast majority of their time, and another will be in court every single day moving around the country. They are completely different lifestyles and require very different skills."