TO be a lawyer

Lawyer is a general term referring to anyone who is qualified to give legal

advice as a licensed legal practitioner. This includes solicitors and barristers.
Solicitors provide legal support, advice and services to clients, who can be
individuals, private companies, public sector organisations or other groups.
Working in private practice, in-house for commercial organisations, in local or
central government or in the court service, they may specialise in certain areas of
law such as property, family or finance. Becoming a lawyer via the university route
requires you to complete a qualifying law degree (LLB) before taking the
Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE), which will eventually replace the
Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) and Legal Practice Course (LPC), although there
are transitional arrangements in place for those already studying these courses.
Those who studied an unrelated subject at undergraduate level may find it helpful
to embark on a law conversion course and/or an SQE preparation course before
sitting the exams.

The next step on the SQE route is to complete two years of qualifying legal
work experience, which can include a training contract, before passing the
Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) character and suitability requirements. You
can then apply for admission to the roll of solicitors. It’s also possible to complete
a Solicitor Apprenticeship, which is a six-year, Level 7 programme aimed at A-
level graduates, paralegals and chartered legal executives. Find out more about law
apprenticeships. To become a barrister in England and Wales you need to complete
at least three stages or components of training. These include the academic
component (law degree), vocational component (a Bar course, previously the Bar
Professional Training Course (BPTC)) and pupillage also known as the work-
based learning component. After completing all training components you'll be
ready to apply for tenancy as a self-employed barrister in chambers or go into
practice as an employed barrister.