SRA review to put QLTT standards under scrutiny

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is to launch a wide-ranging review of the Qualified Lawyers Transfer Test (QLTT) in a move set to usher in tougher requirements for foreign lawyers coming to the UK.

January 09, 2008 at 09:28 PM

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The SRA is currently debating areas to cover, but consistency among QLTT providers, which have been criticised for lowering standards to gain course fees, are expected to be a central thrust of the process.

The review will also look at whether the QLTT is compatible with ongoing changes to the Legal Practice Course and the training contract, which are putting more emphasis on business law and vocational training. 'Character suitability' checks, including examining criminal records, are likely to be included under the changes.

The Qualified Lawyers Transfer Regulations, which date back to 1990, are likely to be updated to allow lawyers from additional jurisdictions, for example South America, to apply to take the UK qualification. Expansion of the European Union has also meant some areas of the regulations are out of date.

The SRA has already introduced some changes with immediate effect, including changing the requirement for foreign lawyers to have two years' common law experience to two years' experience under a UK-qualified lawyer.

From March, the SRA will refuse to recognise any additional providers until it has completed the review.

The SRA's education and training committee is due to debate the review in March, prior to kicking off a wider consultation. The body does not anticipate any changes coming into force before 2010.

A SRA spokesperson told Legal Week: "It is time to take a step back and look at this significant route of entry. We need the same goalposts for UK lawyers and foreign lawyers looking to qualify in our law. The SRA is making this one of its priorities."

College of Law chief executive Nigel Savage (pictured) said: "It is a matter of quality assurance. Lawyers qualifying with the QLTT are at a significant global competitive advantage."

Currently around 20% of lawyers who qualify in the UK each year do so via the QLTT route, with foreign lawyers accounting for 1,075 of the 1,434 lawyers that qualified under the test in 2005-06.