Important notice for Regulation 8(3) and 8(5) applicants (closing date for applications)

New Solicitors Vocational Training Course in the North West (Posted 12 March 08)

The Law Society of Northern Ireland as the governing body of the Solicitors' profession in Northern Ireland, has in exercise of its statutory powers, prescribed the legal education and training necessary to qualify as a solicitor in Northern Ireland.

There are several routes into the profession which are detailed below.

1. THE LAW DEGREE ROUTE

An applicant using this route must, before being accepted as a student of the Society establish to the Society's satisfaction:-

(a) that he/she possesses an acceptable law degree and
(b) that he/she has been offered a place in the Institute of of Professional Legal Studies.

Please note that the applicant's law degree must contain eight core subjects (see at 2). Those applicants who have not been examined in the Law of Evidence should advise the Society and the Institute at the time of the relevant application so that arrangements can be made for them to sit the appropriate examination.

All applicants to the Institute must sit an entrance examination in the December prior to the year they wish to take up a place at the Institute. Examination registration forms are obtainable from the Institute. It should be noted that completed forms should be lodged with the Institute by 15th November.

2. NON-LAW DEGREE ROUTE

An applicant using this route must

(a) satisfy the Society that he/she possesses an acceptable degree in a
discipline other than law and has attained a satisfactory level of knowledge of the following subjects:

Constitutional Law Law of Tort Law of Contract
Criminal Law Equity European Law
Land Law Law of Evidence

Please note that students who commenced their degree course prior to September 1996 should have Company Law as a core subject. Company Law has now been replaced by European Law. (See above).

(b) that he/she has been offered a place in the Institute.

For applicants using the above route the Bachelor of Legal Science awarded by Queen's University, Belfast will be accepted as sufficient evidence of the satisfactory level of knowledge of the relevant subjects. All enquiries regarding this course should be directed to the Faculty of Law, Queen's University, Belfast.

3. ALTERNATIVE ROUTES

An applicant may apply to be accepted as a student of the law Society if:

(a) The applicant has attained the age of 29 years and has served as a
bona fide clerk or employee of a solicitor for a continuous period of 7
years and has achieved a satisfactory standard of general education
and attained an acceptable level of knowledge and experience of the
work of a solicitor.

Applicants using this route should note that the standard of general education required is matriculation standard i.e., the general standard required for admission to Queen's University Belfast or the equivalent thereof.

(b) The applicant can satisfy the Society that having attained the age of 30 years he/she has acquired such special qualifications and/or experience as to render him/her suitable to be accepted as a registered
student.

APPRENTICESHIP

The underlying principle of the professional education of a solicitor is that if involves a combination of practical in-office training and formal academic instruction. The period of apprenticeship as it is known will commence on the first Monday in September each year for applicants using routes 1 and 2 the period of apprenticeship will be 2 years. For applicants choosing route 3(a) it will generally be 4 years and for route 3(b) it will be whatever period the Society determines.

The 2 year apprenticeship runs as follows:

(a) September to December - spent in-office,
(b) January to December - spent at the Institute of Professional Legal Studies,
and
(c) January to August - spent in-office.

In order that a student can take up their place at the Institute of Professional Legal Studies (of which there are 95 for solicitor students) he/she must register with the Law Society by 5.00 p.m., on the Monday two weeks before the first Monday in September (i.e., the date of commencement of apprenticeship). He/She must have a master (a solicitor with whom the applicant proposes to serve his/her apprenticeship). Registration involves the completion and lodging of a set of forms provided by the Society. Finding a master is the responsibility of the applicant although help may be available from the Society in certain circumstances.

It should be noted that applicants do not need to wait until they have been offered an Institute place before registering with the Society and re advised, on securing a
master, to register conditionally. If they do so they will be in a position to take up a
place even if it is offered late. If they do not receive an offer the conditional registration will lapse.

The Society would advise that arrangements to enter an apprenticeship should be made at as early a date as possible and would emphasise that anyone who fails to lodge the Apprenticeship Contract by the due date will not be considered for registration as a student of the Society.

Please note that applicants must satisfy the Society's Education Committee as to their suitability to be accepted as students of the Society and produce for that purpose such evidence as to character and fitness as the Committee may require. No applicant will be registered if he/she is an undischarged bankrupt or if he/she has been convicted of a criminal offence of such a nature as to make his/her registration undesirable or if for any other reason he/she fails to satisfy the Committee as to his/her fitness to be a solicitor.

It should be noted that the applicant's proposed master must also be acceptable to the Society. The acceptability of masters is governed by separate regulations. The principal requirements of these regulations is that the proposed mast must have been admitted for at least 7 years and must have been a principal for at least 3 years. Further details as to the requirements of these regulations can be obtained from the Society.

Both master and apprentice must co-operate with the Society should the Society require an assessment to be made of the quality of training during apprenticeship.

Permission from the Society should be obtained with regard to any proposed transfer of Apprenticeship.

Once a student has passed all the relevant examinations and satisfied the Society that he/she has received a proper training he/she can make application to be enrolled as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of Judicature in Northern Ireland. Once enrolled he/she may apply for a Practising Certificate.

Newly qualified solicitors are restricted from practising otherwise than as employees for a 3 year period. This can be reduced to 2 years by attendance at the Society's Continuing Legal Education programme which is a programme of lectures which attract points for attendance. A total of 160 points is required before the period can be reduced.

GENERAL

These notes are intended to be a guide only. It is the personal responsibility of each intending student to acquaint himself/herself with the relevant provisions of the Society's Regulations and requirements. Further information and assistance can be obtained, where necessary, by writing to Yvonne Blackstock, Law Society of Northern Ireland, 96 Victoria Street, Belfast, BT1 3GN. Any queries regarding the Institute of Professional Legal Studies should be directed to Mrs. Anne Fenton, Director, Institute of Professional Legal Studies, Queen's University, Belfast BT1 7NN.

Direct contact: info@lawsoc-ni.org

List of Available Masters for 2009

Solicitors Admission & Training Regulations 1988

Regulations 8(3) and 8(5)

Closing Date for Applications

In the past there have generally only been a few applications per year under these Regulations. However in the last year these have increased significantly. In order to deal with the increased number of applications and to tie in with the admissions procedure for the Institute, the Society is streamlining the procedure. This will allow applicants under Regulations 8(3) or 8(5) to have their applications processed and where applicable appeals heard and decisions made prior to the closing date for admission to the Institute in November 2008.

The Society is therefore introducing a closing date for applications under Regulations 8(3) and 8(5). Any person who wishes to apply under Regulations 8(3) or 8(5) with a view to admission to the Solicitors' Vocational Training Course at the Institute commencing in January 2009 will have to lodge an application with the Society no later than 5pm on Friday 15 August 2008 .

Applications can be made from now until 15 August 2008 . Applications will continue to be processed on receipt. You do not have to wait until August to submit your application.

Subject to the outcome of the Education Review, any applications received after 15 August 2008 will be considered for the next vocational training course for solicitors, which would be due to start in January 2010.

NEW SOLICITORS VOCATIONAL TRAINING COURSE

Post Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice

The Society is pleased to announce that the University of Ulster has been authorised by the Law Society to run a solicitors' vocational training course. The course will be based at the University of Ulster campus at Magee in Londonderry . There will be 28 places available for solicitor trainees. It is an integrated course combining office placement and vocational training course.

Before taking up a place at Magee a student must have found a Master and registered with the Law Society by 18 August 2008 . The apprenticeship starts in September 2008 and the course at Magee will start in January 2009.

Shaping the Future of Legal Education - A Consultation Document

Thank you to all who submitted a response to the Education Review. The consultation period closed on 4 April 2008. The Society is studying the responses in detail and will report in due course. Updates will be published in The Writ and on the Society's web site.