With law firm efforts to boost diversity failing to make a big enough impact on the profession, Frances Ivens asks whether a new solicitor apprenticeship scheme – which could allow those without degrees to qualify as solicitors – has the potential to transform the route to legal qualification

The legal sector has long struggled to shake off the view that it is traditional and elitist, but plans announced in August to introduce a solicitor apprenticeship could fundamentally overhaul entry to the profession.

A group of law firms and in-house employers are coming together to devise an apprenticeship scheme intended to lead to full qualification as a solicitor without the need for prospective lawyers to first pay their way through university. The planned programme is part of a wider government initiative for employer-led apprenticeships, known as Trailblazers, which launched in March. 

With the backing of a host of law firms and in-house legal teams, the Trailblazer Apprenticeships in Law initiative is intended to open the profession up to those from a wider range of backgrounds, with plans to draw up new standards allowing apprentices to qualify as a solicitor, paralegal or chartered legal executive.

It is the route to qualification as a solicitor that sets it apart from apprenticeship schemes already offered by a number of firms as, in theory, it means entry to the profession could come full circle – effectively reintroducing an articled clerk-style route to qualification.

The legal sector – like the other professions involved in Trailblazers – will have to come up with a statement of competencies defining the standards individuals must reach by the end of the apprenticeship. The new route is expected to come into force in 2017, subject to consultation.

"This is going to allow the legal sector to bring in a large, diverse range of individuals in a way that we have not been able to before," says DAC Beachcroft head of learning and development Karen Ramsay.

Mayer Brown graduate recruitment partner William Glassey adds: "Apprenticeships give a business advantage to employers because they will have access to talent from more diverse backgrounds. It will give people from disadvantaged backgrounds, [who may be] wary of high levels of debt, an opportunity to join the profession without the threat of debt hanging over them."

DLA Piper graduate recruitment partner Alexander Griffith agrees: "It is a business realisation that we are missing out on talent and that we are missing out on really good people."

Another advantage for law firms is that the employer-led structure of the proposed scheme means there is the potential for more flexibility in the way firms implement apprenticeships once the standards have been established, allowing them to personalise training at a far earlier stage.

"Changes to the way we work will require changes to the way we go about training because we are used to the idea of business service apprentices training and working at the same time," comments Glassey. "We are going to have to adopt the same model for solicitor apprentices."

Not the easy option
One of the issues being looked at as part of the ongoing consultation is the risk of a two-tier qualification route, in which apprentice qualifiers are not regarded as equals of those who take the traditional graduate-intake route. However, partners at some of the 18 firms involved in the consultations, which include Addleshaw Goddard, Simmons & Simmons and Mayer Brown, are eager to stress their intention that the apprenticeship will not be viewed as a softer option for entry into the legal industry. "I don't think this is going to be an easier route – it is just going to be a different route," argues Glassey.

Ramsay adds: "Once people can see what the assessments look like it may help people understand that the quality will be there."

The content and nature of the apprenticeship is still subject to discussions, but it is thought it will last for a total of five years. Apprentices may also be able to study for a law degree at the same time as working for a firm – a move that would bring the legal profession in line with the apprenticeship qualification route already in place at a number of the big accountants.

"If you are trying to attract a young person they must get something at the end of the apprenticeship, not just a job," insists James Hamill, director of professional apprenticeships at training provider BPP. "It makes it a much stronger sell and this is what accountancy has done so well."

Furthermore, Hamill suggests that if the programme were to include a university-backed degree then apprentices would complete the scheme with the same qualifications as graduate entrants and with the same academic rigour.

The consultation group, chaired by Addleshaws HR specialist Gun Judge, is currently developing a curriculum and assessment for the apprenticeship so that it complies with the Solicitors Regulation Authority's competence statement. The statement is itself subject to a review at the moment, which will conclude in 2015. "The group is taking the time to do it properly and really thinking about it," says Hamill.

Before the announcement of the Trailblazers initiative, BPP had approached firms about the possibility of developing a solicitor apprenticeship that would have come into force in September this year. However, because the government-created apprentice scheme is employer-led rather than training provider-led, BPP had to stand back, allowing law firms and in-house employers such as Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland to lead the discussions. 

Several firms have already stated their interest in implementing a solicitor apprenticeship if it comes to fruition; however, only Addleshaws and Dentons have confirmed that they expect to take on an annual intake of solicitor apprentices once the standards have been established.

Fulfilling different needs
The two non-solicitor apprenticeships could be used by firms to formally recognise the expertise of those working in alternative legal services structures such as low-cost legal services centres.

With firms employing growing numbers of such workers, some argue that there is a need to introduce new legal qualifications to reflect the shift in the market. "Firms are looking for more skilled workers," explains University of Law apprenticeship adviser Alan Woods. "Alternative business structures are looking at different skill needs in their structures. The Legal Services Act has led to an increased interest in paralegal careers. These skills are needed and there has been a rise in the number of people who wish to work in the area."

As Glassey puts it: "I do not think each client demands a solicitor for every piece of work."

The Chartered Institute of Legal Executives already provides legal service apprenticeships for paralegals and legal executives; however, these programmes are likely to be transferred onto the Trailblazers apprenticeship model, alongside the solicitor apprenticeship.

Although the details of the solicitor apprenticeship remain uncertain, firms seem
to be relatively positive about its potential impact, with some partners noting the similarity between the proposals and the old articles process of qualification.

Despite widespread belief that solicitor apprenticeships could, in the long term, open up the profession to a much more diverse group of would-be lawyers and allow firms to choose from a larger pool of candidates, there are fears that if the new scheme is not implemented properly it could be ineffective and have only a limited impact on diversity. Some are also worried that the traditionally conservative approach of a few current partners could hinder the adoption of solicitor apprenticeships if perceptions are not changed.

"It is quite a traditional profession," says Glassey. "We may have to wait a generation before we see any real change."

"There will be some reservations from those who have taken the more traditional route, and for them that is the way it should be done," Ramsay comments. "I think it will be a slow change – it will not happen overnight."

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Firms participating in the Trailblazers consultation
Addleshaw Goddard
Browne Jacobson
Burges Salmon
Clyde & Co
DAC Beachcroft
Dentons
DWF
Eversheds
Gateley 
Kennedys Law
Lewis Silkin
Mayer Brown
Olswang
Pannone
Simmons & Simmons
Stephenson Harwood
Thomas Eggar
Withers

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'Loosening the reins' – other new routes to qualification
In July the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) announced details of its own new approach to qualification, intended to make it easier for those already working within law firms – for example as paralegals – to qualify as solicitors without securing a formal training contract from a single firm.

In a move unconnected to the Trailblazers scheme, the regulator confirmed that it would accept a 'period of recognised training' as a qualification alternative to the traditional training contract.

The overhaul means experience gained outside a formal training contract – for example as a paralegal at one or several firms – can count towards full qualification.
The new period of recognised training does not alter the substantial elements of solicitor training but allows a candidate to qualify if they have achieved the necessary training outcomes independent of a formal contract.

The SRA says it will recognise any individual who has achieved the required outcomes, irrespective of a formal training contract. "The overarching view is that we are concerned with quality and standards," it explains. "It is all about where you are and the skills you have, rather than the route taken to acquire them."

In response to the changes, several top 10 UK law firms – including Herbert Smith Freehills, Clifford Chance, Hogan Lovells and Ashurst – are understood to be reviewing their training and qualification processes.

DLA Piper graduate recruitment partner Alexander Griffith says: "For years the firm has been asking for a relaxation of the controls, but we have all been very surprised [that] they have come out with a loosening of the reins."

However, some partners believe that, while the move will help facilitate routes to qualification, the need for supervision by a firm and to meet stringent assessment criteria means that, on its own, it will not make a huge difference. "We want to ensure that we get the right quality of training in the firm. If the work is of the right calibre then we would have no problem recognising it," Griffith adds.

Concerns voiced within the market centre on differences in the scope of work completed by trainees compared to that of paralegals. Also, while training contracts traditionally allow individuals to rotate within departments, taking up a number of 'seats' within the firm, paralegals are normally assigned to work with one team or project for a longer period of time.

"We are looking at it now it is out there," says DAC Beachcroft's head of training, Karen Ramsay. "The [recognised training approach] is much more evidence-based; it has to be supervised and there is an assessment placed in there while the training contract is signed off. It is an alternative."

"You need to make sure that it is more than glorified paralegaling, and that you are making the best of these people," comments one magic circle graduate recruitment partner. "We would want people to come in as quality trainees rather than coming in as paralegals. We need to make sure that people are not viewed as a cheap resource, which would be short sighted."

The University of Law has announced that it is establishing an 'articled apprenticeship', which is due to launch next year based on the period of recognised training. The programme will last six years, with apprentices completing a part-time LLB degree and part-time legal practising certificate with the University of Law while they work within a firm. It is envisaged by the university that individuals, who will be funding the cost of the LLB and LPC themselves, will spend roughly one day a week studying, and the rest of their time will be spent within the firms. So far only one firm has signed up to the scheme, but it is hoped that more will come forward.

The university is also offering firms the chance to sit down and discuss their training options, not only for qualified solicitors but across the firm including legal secretaries and legal administrators.

University of Law apprenticeship adviser Alan Woods says firms would be recruiting unqualified people and taking them through to full qualification as a solicitor, removing the traditional graduate "scramble" to get a training contact. "You could see people opting for career changes because we are tying training to working, and taking away some of the worry about studying and getting a job at the end of it."