Overview

Osbornes Law is a London-based, full-service personal legal firm with a long-established reputation in family law, housing & social care, personal injury (including cycling cases), medical negligence, property and private client work. Founded from a Camden practice that dates back to the 1920s and relaunched under the Osbornes name in the 1970s, the firm has grown into one of the larger private-client practices in London, recognised repeatedly in The Times Best Law Firms guide, Chambers UK and The Legal 500. The firm combines high-end international family and HNW work with a strong public law and legal-aid capable housing and welfare practice, and stresses client care, community engagement and internal career progression as distinguishing features.

Headquarters: London, Camden (Livery House, 9 Pratt Street)
Founded: 1973
Lawyers: 160+
Offices: 2

Values & Culture

Practice Areas

Family Law
Personal Injury & Clinical Negligence
Housing & Social Housing
Public Law
Real Estate
Private Client & Wealth
Dispute Resolution & Litigation
Immigration

Geographic Focus: Based in North West London (Camden and Hampstead) the firm primarily serves clients across Greater London and the rest of the UK while regularly acting for international clients. The international family team and private client teams handle cross-border work across Europe (France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Switzerland), the Middle East (UAE, Qatar, Israel), North America (USA, Canada), Asia (Singapore, Hong Kong, India) and Australia / New Zealand. The firm is positioned as a London hub for both UK

Training Contract

Academic Requirements: Work experience advert requirements: Minimum 3 Bs at A level; undergraduates must be studying for a Law degree; postgraduates will be considered if studying for a GDL or LPC. (These entry criteria are published for the firm's one-week Work Experience placements.)

Mentorship

The firm describes active investment in staff development and long-term retention; senior partners and supervisors are former internal trainees and the firm highlights a culture of internal promotion which implies structured on-the-job mentoring and partner-led supervision across departments.

Apply on the Osbornes Law website →

Programmes & Schemes

Work Experience

A one-week, supervised placement within the Family Department. Participants can expect hands-on experience: attending court hearings, sitting in on client interviews, conducting legal research and undertaking administrative duties while working closely with a partner or senior solicitor.

Duration: 1 week
Places: A limited number of placements each year
Deadline: 2026-03-31

Apply →

Notable Matters

Harrington v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2023] EWCA Civ 433

Osbornes (William Ford) represented a disabled child in a successful Court of Appeal challenge on child disability benefit entitlement under EU coordination rules; the Court of Appeal allowed the appeal and clarified the interaction between Articles 11 and 21 of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004, restoring entitlement to sickness benefits on residence grounds.

Public Law

Legacy benefits uplift – High Court / Court of Appeal litigation

Osbornes acted for claimants challenging the government’s decision to apply a Covid-era £20-per-week uplift to Universal Credit but not to legacy benefits. The firm brought judicial review proceedings and pursued permission to appeal; the matter progressed through the High Court and to the Court of Appeal (reported updates and appeal permissions published on the firm site).

Public Law

Ramona Cerbu – Universal Credit appeal (backdated award £34,405.70)

Osbornes represented an injured client (Ramona Cerbu) in an appeal relating to Universal Credit eligibility despite pre-settled EU status; the First-tier Tribunal found refusal to award UC violated fundamental rights, the DWP granted UC going forward and paid backdated sums totalling £34,405.70.

Welfare Benefits / Public Law

Seven-figure settlement – fatal cycling accident claim

The personal injury team at Osbornes secured a seven-figure settlement in a fatal cycling claim (headline case reported on the firm site), demonstrating the practice's capacity to prosecute high-value catastrophic and fatal injury claims.

Personal Injury & Clinical Negligence

High Court judicial review - Westminster housing allocation scheme (successful challenge)

Osbornes brought and reported judicial review challenges against local authority housing allocation schemes, including a High Court victory where Westminster City Council’s housing allocation scheme was found unlawful, securing relief for affected applicants.

Housing & Social Housing

What Osbornes Law Looks For

Key Competencies

Client-focused advocacy and excellent client care
Experience or demonstrable commitment to working with vulnerable clients
Strong litigation and public law analytical ability (judicial review experience valued)
Commercial awareness for international family / HNW work
Teamwork, resilience and practical problem-solving
Language skills / multilingual ability (French, Spanish, Slovak, Polish and other languages are highlighted across the teams)

Evidence Signals

Experience in public law / judicial review or welfare benefits appeals
Direct experience with housing, homelessness or community care matters
Practical client experience (work experience, legal clinic, advice volunteering)
Multilingual client work or international family law experience
Personal injury litigation experience (particularly cycling or catastrophic injury matters) for PI roles

Benefits & Wellbeing

Fertility testing benefit for staff (announced November 2024)
Opportunities for volunteering, fundraising and community engagement via corporate social responsibility programme
Pro bono and legal aid work in eligible departments (firm holds Legal Aid contracts in welfare benefits and community care in appropriate cases)
Supportive mentoring and internal promotion culture (high level of internal partner promotions)
Paid work experience placements (limited number each year) — advertised with application support and guidance

Wellbeing

The firm operates an employee wellbeing policy (referenced in internal staff welfare materials) and promotes staff welfare through partner/supervisor support; training and safeguarding policies highlight regular safeguarding training and supervisory availability for staff handling vulnerable clients.

Awards & Recognition

Featured in The Times Best Law Firms guide (multiple consecutive years; firm page notes 8th consecutive year)
Rankings and recognition in The Legal 500 (multiple practice areas and 30 lawyers noted in Legal 500 2023)
Rankings and recommendations in Chambers UK (family, housing, personal injury and other departments acknowledged)
Outstanding Place to Work (Best Companies accreditation/news announcement, 25 November 2024)

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Fertility testing benefit (introduced to benefit 70% female staff)
Family Department Safeguarding Policy and dedicated safeguarding partner
Corporate social responsibility programme encouraging fundraising, volunteering and increasing access to justice
Support for a range of local charity partners (Headway East London, Limbless Association, London Cycling Campaign, Z2K, Camden Foodbank, etc.)

Pro Bono

The firm encourages staff involvement in community and pro bono work and holds Legal Aid contracts in specific areas (welfare benefits, community care). The firm's CSR programme explicitly lists increasing access to justice, volunteering and pro bono support as aims; the firm also acts in legal-aid funded matters and applies for Exceptional Case Funding where appropriate.

Innovation

Quick Application Angles

Reference the firm’s public-law and housing strengths (for example William Ford’s reported Court of Appeal successes) when applying for roles in housing/social care or public law — show direct experience of judicial-review style issues or working with vulnerable clients.
For personal injury roles, highlight cycling-accident or catastrophic-injury experience: the PI team is frequently instructed in high-value cycling and brain/spinal injury cases and is official legal partner to the London Cycling Campaign.
If applying to family/international teams, cite cross-border or multi-jurisdictional experience and any language skills (Osbornes runs an Anglo‑French service and has Spanish- and Slovak-speaking lawyers).
Demonstrate commitment to access to justice or legal aid/pro bono work — the firm holds welfare/community care Legal Aid contracts and emphasises representing vulnerable clients.
Mention the firm’s community/CSR involvement or the fertility testing benefit as a cultural fit point: Osbornes values community engagement and staff wellbeing initiatives.

Osbornes Law