The legal profession offers a variety of roles which can provide a prosperous career, but it may surprise you that not every solicitor has completed a degree in law with nearly 19% of a poll saying they had done their degree in another area with a further 23% moving from different careers. Despite the recession he legal industry continues to thrive and look for skills offered from a range of different backgrounds and skill sets.
If you do not have a degree you can qualify by completing a Graduate Diploma in Law also known as the Common Professional Exam or a Law Conversion course which enables 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 solicitor 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 Solicitors Test’. The QLT is a conversion test which enables foreign solicitors 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.
These tips are brought to you by Macclesfield solicitors Hague Lambert, who specialise in wills and conveyancing
The legal profession is a popular one with the potential to earn a large salary and have a secure career. The process of becoming a solicitor or barrister is fairly complicated and exceptionally competitive. If you can get the grades at school to study Law at university, you will need to spend four years before graduating, then a further year in a Legal Practice Course (LPC) before spending two years in a ‘training contract’ at a legal organisation (assuming you can get one). All this is very competitive from the outset and lends itself to recruiting the ‘best of the best’.
The best legal jobs go to those who had the best a-levels in order to get into the best universities; they will have performed at the top of their class and taken on plenty of extra curricular activities. Legal recruiters are looking for the cream of the crop and being ‘perfect’ will help your chances. So will a criminal record stop you becoming a lawyer?
Your chances of getting any job can be harmed by a criminal record depending on the severity and you can be sure Law is no different. A criminal record can make it difficult enough to get into university, let alone get a job so what can you do?
The solution is honesty! If you are frank and honest about your entire criminal record from the start it will better your chances, if you can provide by providing evidence of personal development and possibly some decent character references might help too.
Most universities will do random background checks and if you are found to be lying you will get banned from applying to all higher education institutions. Employers will do a background check anyway so if you lie and they discover you weren’t being honest, you’ll have no chance of getting a job.
Don’t expect to become a lawyer if you did 25 years for murder however, as it does depend on the severity of your offence(s). If you were ‘young and stupid’ and had a run in with the law when you were young it will most likely not affect you. Most young offenders’ institutes actively encourage education and will help you pursue a career in Law if you wish as well as a variety of education institutions.
In any case you need to lay yourself out for judgement and be prepared to be judged very harshly, you may not like what you hear but the reality is that if you can’t get in with your history, maybe Law is not the profession for you.
If you are looking for helpful legal recruitment then talk to Saccomann recruiters who recruit for the best lawyer’s jobs
categories: jobs,recruitment,employment,criminal record,legal,law,lawyers,solicitors,recruitment,job,hiring
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 do not have a degree you can qualify by completing a Graduate Diploma in Law also known as the Common Professional Exam or a Law Conversion course which enables graduates with a non-law degree to ‘convert’ their existing education with a one year course.
Once you have completed a law qualification of any sort including a law degree you will still need to complete a Legal Practice Course. The LPC is the final qualification to become a solicitor and is compulsory. It is designed to ensure trainee solicitors have the knowledge and skills they need. This course is offered all over the UK and takes one year full time. To be finally qualified as a solicitor you need to under take a two year ‘Training Contract’ which involves practice based training almost like an apprenticeship.
There is a range of rules you must follow if you are a qualified lawyer from within the EU and wish to practice law in the UK. Otherwise EU member states are free to do business and offer legal services amongst themselves.
Qualified Lawyers from outside the EU who wish to practice Law in the UK must first get hold of a ‘Certificate of Eligibility’ from the Law Society of England and Wales and then sit the ‘Qualified Lawyers Test’. The QLT is a test which permits foreign lawyers to practice in the UK. To be considered for the QLT you must have over 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.
If you are looking for the best legal recruitment then get in contact with Saccomann for help getting the best legal jobs
