Becoming a solicitor takes a lot of commitment. You must study and train for at least six years full time , and competition for training contracts is high. Try to find out as much as you can about what a career in the law is like by:. Read more about career options for solicitors. The amount you could earn will depend on a number of factors. A strong academic background is important, but employers also look for personal skills and attributes, for example:.
You do not usually need to have taken A level law to do a law degree, although a few universities have specific subject requirements. You should research and compare courses to see what universities are looking for.
There are routes to qualifying that do not involve a law degree, such as completing an apprenticeship or through the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives. These routes may also take longer. It usually takes at least six years to qualify as a solicitor if you study law full time.
It will be longer if you study a different subject for your degree and decide later you want to follow a legal career. The LPC helps you develop your practical skills and legal knowledge. It can be taken full time for one year, or part-time for two years.
The LPC is an expensive course, so before you commit, consider whether you can meet the character and suitability requirements to be admitted as a solicitor. This will usually last for two years. Solicitors advise clients privately, draft legal documents including but not limited to court pleadings and negotiate with opposing parties, among other activities. Solicitors can become involved with a wider variety of cases than barristers can, including commercial contract drafting, estate planning and real property transactions, among other practice areas.
Solicitors can also work for a wider range of organisations that barristers can, including both commercial and non-commercial firms, government bureaus, private companies, banks and corporations. Solicitors also sometimes appear in court, typically at lower levels.
The legal training regimen for barristers and solicitors does not begin to diverge in a major way until undergraduate studies have been completed. If your undergraduate degree is in some subject other than law, one more year of study is required before your training starts to diverge. This gives you plenty of time to learn about what barristers and solicitors do, explore your own interests and aptitudes, and compare them with the ideal qualities of barristers and solicitors.
An aspiring solicitor, by contrast, must complete a two-year training contract at a law firm. It is not only your abilities but your inclinations that matter. You are more likely to be successful and more likely to enjoy your job if you select a career that lines up with your personality and character.
A percentage of their earnings also goes to pay their clerks and administrators. Unlike employed barristers and solicitors, those at the independent Bar get no sickness pay, holiday pay, parental leave or monthly salary. What they do get is a good accountant. To enter practice, law grads need to complete the Bar Course formerly known as the BPTC, now by different names at each provider before starting a much sought-after year of pupillage at a barristers' chambers or other employer.
If you want to learn more about the recent changes to the Bar Course, you can read more about these here. The competition to become a barrister is truly fierce. The main difficulty is that there are many more aspiring barristers than can possibly achieve a career at the Bar. If you want to know more, peruse the Bar section of this website, where we provide details on the recruitment process , practice areas , terminology and the difficulties that aspiring barristers may encounter.
The Chambers Reports give invaluable insight into the lives of pupils and junior barristers at some of the best sets. Most lawyers qualify as solicitors: in fact, there are almost nine times as many solicitors as barristers in the UK. Their role is to provide legal services directly to lay clients, who could be individuals, companies private or public or other bodies.
In short, clients come to solicitors for guidance on how to deal with their business or personal proposals and problems. These could be anything from drafting a will to defending a murder charge or buying a multibillion-pound business. The solicitor advises on the steps needed to proceed and then manages the case or the deal for the client until its conclusion.
They will bring in a barrister if and when a second opinion or specialist advocacy is needed. Many thousands work in-house for companies, charities or public authorities. At present, those on the path into the solicitors' profession attend law school after an undergraduate degree.
0コメント