The lived experience of disability in law school: hidden barriers, professional identity and possible futures

One in five UK students is disabled, yet disability remains underexplored in legal education research. Existing literature on disability in higher education offers generic analysis of disability but fails to explore it through a law-specific lens. This article presents an original empirical analysis of the lived experience of disability in law school, drawing on semi-structured interviews with seven disabled law students as they transition through law school. Using phenomenology and Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) – a novel methodological tool for legal research – the study explores how phenomena regulated by the law are subjectively lived and experienced by law students. Findings reveal that disabled law students often self-select away from certain areas of legal practice not because of lack of capability, but because of perceived barriers and an absence of disabled role models in the profession. Centring student voice improves our understanding of how disability is experienced and can lead to better support in law school. Incorporating disability experiences in employability narratives enables disabled law students to envisage a place for themselves in the legal profession. Disability has reach into many areas of society and should form part of a truly inclusive legal education.