Solicitors and Barristers: AS Law

Solicitors and Barristers: AS Law

1. Solicitors

   • 120,000 practising in England and Wales
     • 87,000 in private practice
     • Rest in: employed work, industry, local government or Crown Prosecution Service
     • Represented by the Law Socitey
   • The Law Society
     • Used to regulate profession but fuction is now given to the independent Solicitors' Regulation Authority
     • Used to deal with complaints but = conflict of interest, could not be impartial in investigation, function now overseen by Office for Legal Complaints
     • SRA now in charge of regulating profession: setting down education, training , qualifacation requirements and rules practised by
   • Training
     • Degree in another subject = Common Professional Examination (CPE) or Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL)
     • One-year Legal Practice Course
       • Can be taken as one-year full-time or two-year part-time course
       • Practically based as it includes: Client-interviewing, negotiation, advocacy, drafting documents and legal research
     • Training Contract
       • Work in a solicitors firm 2 years
       • Can be undertaken in legal organisations e.g. Crown Prosecution Service or legal department of a local authority
       • During 2 year training contract, trainee is paid, do own work supervised by a solicitor
       • Complete a 20-day Professional Skills Course builds skills learned on LPC
       • At the end Trainee will be admitted as a solicitor by the Law Society, name added to list, keep attending education courses to keep up knowledge
     • Non-Grad Route
       • 1st become legal executives
       • Only open to mature candidates
       • Takes longer than normal route
     • Criticsms
       • Financial Problems
         • Pay fees of LPC (£12,000)
         • Degree in another subject (CPE/GDL) have to pay £10,000
         • Poorer families not able to afford = prevented from becoming solicitors
         • Bank loans = large debt
       • Lack of Legal Knowledge
         • Non-law Grads only do one year of law (CPE/GDL)
         • 25% have not taken a law degree
       • Over-Supply
         • Students who have passed LPC unable to get training contract
   • Solicitors Work
     • Some become legal advisers in commercial or industrial business, 30,000 employed
     • In private practice, may work as sole practitioner or in a partnership
     • 10,000 firms, small high-street pratcice to big city firms
     • No. of partners not limited, some big firms have 100+ partners and employed assistant solicitors
     • Type of Work
       • Small high-street firm = a general practice, advising clients (consumer problems, housing, business matter and family problems)
         • Normally dealing with paperwork: writing letters on behalf of clients, drafting contracts, leases

2. Barristers