IWhy is there no legal requirement in UK to study law in order to call yourself a Solicitor?

Answer 1

I could be wrong, but don't you need a degree in law or something to become a solicitor or barrister?

Answer 2

There certainly is -Solicitors are heavily regulated, you cannot call yourself a solicitor or hold yourself out as a solicitor unless you have been admitted to the roll of solicitors (governed by the Solicitors Act 1974) and have obtained a certificate from the Law Society stating that you have complied with the required training regulations.

You do not necessarily have to have done a law degree (which is what you may be getting at?) as you can do a degree in another subject, followed by a law conversion course.

Whether you have a law degree or have done the conversion course, all students then have to complete the legal practice course.

Following that, they will have to work as a trainee solicitor for two years (plus pass other exams) before finally being admitted.

In total it will take 6 years to qualify as a solicitor if you do a law degree, or 7 years if you do a different degree -i.e. It takes a long time and a lot of law studying!

Answer 3

Hi Helene,

certainly a mixed bag of opinions. Some accurate, some a little way from the mark. The essncial issue here is always talk to someone who knows what they are talking about. I have an LLB but I am not a solicitior. I often get asked questions by friends and I like to think I give the best possible legal advice.... TALK TO A QUALIFIED SOLICITOR! I like to believe I know more about the law than the average person on the street, but that is all it is.

The law changes so rapidly it is difficult to keep up with it. This is what solicitors should do.

I have no intention of persuing a legal career. I have a BEng and an MSc as well, I am an engineer by profession who just happens to have a law degree as well. Very helpful in everyday life and for tying your boss up in knots when he/she tries to get too clever.

This does not make me a solicitor by any stretch of the imagination. But I do know how to interpret and apply the law correctly in the areas I have studied. I also know where to look for points of law and fully understand what I'm reading.

Should the situation arise then I would seek qualified advice, the only difference being, I would be able to check that what I have been told is correct.

For anyone to claim to be a solicitor who is not would be extremely stupid. They could end up in court themselves.

Answer 4

ummmm there is. You have to have a qualifying law degree to register with the law society; you cannot be a soliciter without being a member of the law society (the law society is the body that regulates all soliciters. N.B the bar council regulates barristers)

Rob: You have it all wrong. A soliciter isnt a 'title given to to a student that has completed an apprenticeship but doesnt have the privileges of a full lawyer' (thats more or less what you said)

You need to get rid of that conception of fully privileged lawyers and not. Barristers and Soliciters are COMPLETELY different things. Its easier to think of them in the context of their medical counter parts, a soliciter is like the general practitioner, and the barrister the consultant. Barristers are advocates and have rights of advocacy in all courts, where as the soliciter only has rights of advocacy in the lower courts. I think thats where your misconception came from. They are entirely different professions with different roles. Solicitors mainly draft wills, offer first point of contact legal advice, and represent clients in inferior courts. The barrister (who by the way cannot be contacted and absolutly cannot give any legal advice to ANYONE, even family and friends without being referred to by a solicitor) is more or less 100% advocate ie their job is soley representation. So no, solicitors arent just people with 'less privileges than a full lawyer' There is another career path which is the Solicitor Advocate, which is in essence exactly like a US lawyer. Would explain that a bit fuller but im late!!

Answer 5

It is a criminal offence to pass yourself off as a solicitor unless you have qualified as such. In the old days people could become solicitors by doing 5 years of articles, but they still had to pass exams in law while they did so. Nowadays candidates for the profession are expected to have a law degree or a degree in another subject plus a postgraduate Common Professional Exam (recently renamed the Graduate Diploma in Law), entailing the study of law. On top of that, they have to pass their solicitors' finals exams and do two years of articles. I would describe all that as studying law.

Answer 6

I respectfully suggest that you have it wrong or at least have two principals of law confused. All Solicitors are governed by the Law Society and as such would have to have qualifications to act as such.
The other principal is 'McKenzie Friend' whereby a person being
tried, mainly at Magistrates Court, is allowed to have a friend beside him/her in the court to advise and help during a prosecution.............

McKenzie Friend
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A McKenzie Friend assists a litigant in person in court. He or she does not need to be legally qualified. The crucial point is that litigants in person are entitled to have lay assistance unless there are exceptional circumstances. Their role was set out most clearly in the eponymous case McKenzie v McKenzie [1971] P.33; [1970] 3 W.L.R. 472; [1970] 3 All E.R. 1034, C.A. Although this role applies in the jurisdiction of England and Wales, it is regarded as having its origins in common law and hence will have relevance to other common law jurisdictions such as the USA. The role should be distinguished from that of an amicus curiae, a "friend of the court" who provides information for the benefit of the court.

In English courts, where a case is being heard in private, the use of a McKenzie Friend has sometimes been contentious. This is a particular problem in family court hearings, where it has been held that the nature of the case is so confidential that no one other than the litigants and their professional legal representatives should be admitted to the court [1]. This has resulted in litigants in person, often fathers seeking to preserve their relationship with their children, being forced to act in court entirely alone with no support and no witness to their treatment by a judge.

An Appeal Court case [2] in 2005 clarified the law in this area. The result of the appeal has legitimised the use of McKenzie Friends in the family court and allowed the litigant to disclose confidential court papers to the McKenzie Friend.

Answer 7

You can call yourself a solicitor if you wish... but to practice law you have to be registered with the law society as a qualified solicitor

Answer 8

The UK has an extensive title system for those who study and work in the law. Here in the US a lawyer is a lawyer but in the UK there are multiple levels and titles you receive as you progress in your legal career.

A Solicitor though, is a title given to a student of the law who has served an apprenticeship but does not have the privileges of full fledged lawyers.

Answer 9

Depends what you mean by your question.
If you mean that someone who is not qualified as a solicitor can represent you at court then no.
In this country you can call yourself anything you wish as long as you are not deceiving people into thinking you are a real solicitor,police officer doctor etc.

Answer 10

there is a code and exams to pass