How To Become A Lawyer
July 15th, 2010 by Clare Westwood
There are many roles available in the legal profession and not all the lawyers in the completed a degree in law. 18.5% of a poll of 7000 UK solicitors have a degree in another area and 23% have transferred from other careers. The industry is prosperous and continuing to look for skills offered from a range of backgrounds and different countries.
If you are a non-law graduate, you can undertake a ‘Graduate Diploma in Law’ as an alternative way to qualify. It is also known as the Common Professional Exam or a Law Conversion course and allows graduates with a non-law degree to ‘convert’ their existing education with a one year course.
Even if you have completed a law degree or qualification you will still be required to complete a ‘Legal Practice Course’. The LPC is the last compulsory academic qualification before becoming a solicitor. The qualification ensures trainee solicitors have the knowledge and skills they need. This course can be taken all over the UK and takes one year full time. Before becoming a fully qualified solicitor you need to under take a two year ‘Training Contract’ which is usually a paid position and involves practice based learning.
If you are a qualified lawyer within the EU then there is a range of rules you must follow if you wish to practice law within the UK. Otherwise EU member states are free to do business and offer legal services amongst themselves.
If you are from outside the EU and wish to practice Law in the UK you must obtain a ‘Certificate of Eligibility’ from the Law Society of England and Wales in order to sit the ‘Qualified Lawyers Test’. The QLT is a conversion test which enables foreign lawyers to practice in the UK. In order to qualify for the QLT you must have more than 2 years legal practice experience of which at least one year must have been gained by practising the law of England and Wales, supervised by a solicitor who has been admitted as a solicitor in England and Wales.
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