Murdoch initiative reveals first recipient
A Pinsent Masons scholarship honouring the life and work of Scottish lawyer Kirk Murdoch has named a University of Edinburgh student as its first recipient.
The Kirk Murdoch Scholarship (KMS) will support 20-year-old Demi Scorfield in her third and fourth years as an undergraduate and she will be offered summer internships at Pinsent Masons, where the late Murdoch was chairman of Scotland and Northern Ireland operations.
Ayrshire-born Murdoch, recognised as one of Scotland’s most distinguished lawyers, spent more than 40 years in senior roles with Mcgrigor Donald and Pinsent Masons.
KMS is supported by the Lawscot Foundation, a charity establishedbythelawsociety of Scotland to help academically talented students from less advantaged backgrounds to access a legal career.
The scholarship will also provide further backing when Scorfield undertakes the post graduate diploma in Professional Legal Practice, which is required to qualify as a solicitor or advocate, and could lead to a legal traineeship at Pinsent Masons.
Richard Masters, who succeeded Murdoch as chairman, said: “The Kirk Murdoch Scholarship is a fitting tribute and a lasting legacy for a man who went out of his way throughout his career to help others to progress and to make the best of their opportunities.
“I have met Demi a number of times and I can tell she will be a fitting recipient of this award and we sincerely hope she will go on to become our first KMS trainee solicitor within the firm.”