Mayer Brown partners in London appointed to Aspiring Solicitors Foundation Advisory Board

13 July 2020 — Three Mayer Brown partners in London have been appointed as members of the Aspiring Solicitors Foundation (AS Foundation) advisory board. Amy Jacks, Stuart Pickford and Jim Oulton join the newly-convened board drawn from people across the profession, which will help the trustees deliver AS Foundation's objectives. 

The AS Foundation is a UK social mobility charity that was launched in 2019 with the support of 18 founding member firms and organizations. The charity provides grants between £25 and £500 to assist eligible applicants who require financial assistance whilst pursuing a legal career. The grants fund laptops, study resources, travel and clothing for interviews/open days and vacations schemes.

The full list of advisory board members includes: Any Jacks, Stuart Pickford, Jim Oulton, partners at Mayer Brown; Lily Manser, solicitor at Shepherd and Wedderburn; Alex Thornton de Mauroy, associate at Stephenson Harwood and Mark Mifsud, London managing partner at Fried Frank, who will chair the advisory board.

The board of trustees are: Tim Smith, partner at Byan Cave Leighton Paisner; Stuart Sinclair, partner at Akin Gump and Sunil Samani, co-head of legal at XTX Markets. 

Commenting on the appointments, Chair of Trustees, Chris White said: “The importance of social mobility has taken on a whole new dimension post COVID-19, so I am delighted that we are able to welcome such a high calibre mix of Trustees and Advisory Board members to the AS Foundation board. These individuals bring with them a wealth of legal experience and I am confident that, together, we will be able to help remove some of the financial barriers that prevent so many people from entering the legal profession.”