Swansea University law student Mari Watkins has been named as a runner up in a search for the nation’s brightest legal prospect.
For her entry into National Accident Helpline’s Future Legal Mind Award 2020, Mari Watkins spoke about her passion for land law to help to improve access to land when exploring the countryside.
As a runner up in Future Legal Mind, 20-year-old second year student Mari will receive a £500 prize fund and will take part in mentoring with experienced lawyers.
Mari said: “I was in disbelief when I heard that I was a runner up, it was a lovely surprise. There are lots of books I’m looking to buy for my course, so the prize fund will help with that.
“A lot of people have become aware of access to land during lockdown when they’ve been out on daily walks along paths where they probably wouldn’t have been before, so that has helped to raise the profile of land law.
“It’s something I feel strongly about and I’m proposing to do my dissertation on.”
Future Legal Mind is in its sixth year, and previous winners and finalists have gone on to become barristers and solicitors.
Mari’s aim is to complete the bar course after her undergraduate degree and go on to a pupillage in Swansea.
Jonathan White, Legal Director of National Accident Helpline, said: “Mari’s topic of access to land was timely as it was something I had noticed while out walking more during lockdown.
“As a judging panel, we thought that Mari was a passionate advocate of the topic and made her case clearly and concisely, which really impressed us.”