Solicitors provide clients with legal advice and assistance. The best solicitors combine legal expertise with people management skills to help their clients with things like divorce, bereavement or arrest.
The role of a solicitor can vary a great deal in the UK. You could end up working for a huge law firm in the city, or on your own in a small office. You could also work in central or local government, an in-house legal department (at a bank, company or NGO), the Crown Prosecution Service or the magistrates' courts.
Career path of a solicitor
After studying at University you will need to do one or possibly two years of professional training at an academic institution before you can begin working for a law firm. You may choose to apply for a Training Contract whilst at University.
Training Contract
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Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL)
If you have successfully obtained a Law degree from a UK University, you will be able to do the LPC straight away. If you have not studied Law, you will need to do a Law conversion course first, called the "Graduate Diploma in Law" (GDL).
The GDL is a high pressure, fast moving course that is less academic and more practical than studying Law at University. Rather than studying the ethics and morality of the law, you will be studying how, when and why certain laws are applied - rather than learn what the law is, you will learn how to be a lawyer.
Legal Practice Course (LPC)
Before you become a solicitor you will need to complete the Legal Practice Course (LPC). The LPC will help you to develop the skills needed to work in a firm of solicitors. It must be completed by everyone who intends to qualify as a solicitor in England and Wales.
The LPC is even more vocational than the GDL. The course teaches you exactly how to work as a lawyer, including how to work, how to research and how to complete specific forms and processes required for certain legal issues (for example divorce or Litigation).
In Training
Conventional training contracts last for two years. During this period you should experience at least three distinctive substantive areas of English law, including both contentious and non-contentious work.
Seats
Training contracts at law firms will almost certainly be divided into "seats". These are three to six month long placements that involve you working with different teams and various areas of the law. You may be offered a choice of seat at your firm, although popular specialises (such as media law and intellectual property) may be difficult to get into due to high competition from your training contract colleagues. Some firms offer seats abroad (secondments), or even at client offices.
Professional Skills Course
Your training period also requires that you attend lectures and seminars which make up what is known as the Professional Skills Course. You will need to achieve pass this course to qualify as a solicitor.
Newly Qualified (NQ)
You will qualify as a solicitor after two years of training at a firm and after passing the Professional Skills Course. In exceptional circumstances trainees may be required to undertake an extra year of training.
Once qualified your salary will increase by at least 50% and you will usually receive job offers from rival firms. Many newly qualified solicitors choose to switch firm at this point, because of the large financial incentives recruiters may offer.
After training contracts end firms usually offer newly qualified lawyers full employment. If your performance has not been satisfactory however, firms are under no obligation to offer you further employment, and may simply show you the door. This happens to approximately 10% of all newly qualified solicitors, more during times of financial crisis and when firms are doing badly.
Your salary can increase very quickly as a lawyer particular at corporate firms. In the city, five years after qualifying you should expect to be earning in excess of £100,000 with associated benefits.
Partners & Partnership
Most law firms are run as partnerships rather than companies. This means that the partners own the law firm, rather than external shareholders. Partners also take legal responsibility for the firm, so if the firm were sued it would in fact be the partners who would be pursued. Equally, partners spread the profits between them, typically allocated on position, responsibility and experience.
Lawyers working at a firm may be offered the opportunity to become a partner if they are deemed elidgible by the other partners. Partners are selected wisely and sparingly as profits must be shared out further. Partner salaries vary from firm to firm, but will start in the region of £300,000 and proceed upwards. Partners deal directly with clients and typically work very long hours.
Exceptional performers can make partner in 10 years, but when and if this occurs will vary between situations and individuals.
It is generally considered an unrealistic career expectation to state that you wish to become a partner at a graduate level interview. Although many people become lawyers, few ever progress to partner.
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