Christopher McMahon

Pump Court Tax Scholarship

Name: Christopher McMahon

College: Oriel College

Scholarship: Pump Court Tax Chambers Scholarship

Summary of yourself:

I studied law and political science at Trinity College Dublin, graduating with a first-class honours degree and gold medal for academic performance. I also graduated first in my class. During my time there I was a member of the editorial boards of the Trinity College Law Review and The University Times, which helped foster my interest both in academic and journalistic writing respectively. I spent part of my summers working as an intern in three large commercial law firms in Dublin. I have also worked as a judicial assistant for a judge of the Supreme Court of Ireland. I have also won national moot court competitions in Ireland where I have argued before judges of the Superior Courts.

What are your career ambitions?

I hope to practise as a barrister. However, I would also like to devote part of my career to academia and I intend to continue on to do a doctoral degree before I go to practice. My interests include EU law, competition law, constitutional law and media law.

What do you enjoy most about studying law in Oxford?

The Oxford tutorial system is an extremely stimulating part of the studying at Oxford. Having the opportunity to discuss your work with a leading academic and one or two of your peers is really useful and not something that I’d ever been exposed to before. Although, even the larger seminars are still relatively small groups. The emphasis on seminars and tutorials instead of lectures is very distinctive and interactive. There is also a tendency for more than one professor to lead the class which helps structure discussion.

What do you find most challenging about your programme?

Certainly the most challenging thing about the BCL is adapting to the very precise style of writing that is demanded of you in tutorials, particularly for more theoretical subjects. The breadth of the reading material is considerable and distilling focused arguments from so much is challenging, but obviously an excellent way to develop skills applicable both to academia and legal practice.

What do you find most rewarding about your programme?

Despite the inevitable intellectual bruising involved, the tutorials can also be really rewarding.

Are you involved with any projects or societies? 

I have acted as a guest editor for the Oxford University Undergraduate Law Journal and have judged undergraduate mooting competitions which I really enjoyed. While the demands of the course don’t leave a lot of time for societies Oriel’s MCR organises plenty of social events for a somewhat less structured way of getting away from academic work.

What advice would you give to a new or prospective student?

I would advise new BCL students to make room for even a moderate amount of diversity in their subject choices. Even if your interests are fairly focused, I think that taking at least one subject that is different to the rest of your choices is beneficial, even just as a change of academic scenery. It can also help you to make new and interesting connections in your writing.