SQE introduction confirmed for 2021 as final regulatory hurdle cleared

The Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE) has been granted final approval by the Legal Services Board (LSB), confirming that the new route to qualifying as a solicitor will be introduced in September 2021.

The LSB – the legal ‘super regulator’ that oversees the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) and Bar Standards Board – said that the new system should have a “positive impact”. As Legal Futures reports, there had been concern that allowing candidates’ unpaid legal work experience to count toward the mandatory two-year period of qualifying work experience (QWE) could risk students being exploited, but the SRA responded by building in additional safeguards around QWE, while arguing that “stopping unpaid internships would create a barrier to entry for those who have struggled under the current system to gain admission as a solicitor because of the training contract bottleneck”.

The SQE has been opposed by legal academics, as well as the Law Society and the Junior Lawyers Division (JLD). Outlining its concerns, the JLD said that while it welcomes “the principle of a consistent, centralised examination” and “acknowledges that there is currently a training contract bottleneck… It now remains to be seen whether this bottleneck will simply move to the point at which junior lawyers apply for newly qualified roles.”

Concerns also included the SQE’s potential impact on diversity and inclusion if SQE preparation courses do not qualify for the postgraduate student loan, and the results of the SQE pilot exams which showed that Black and Minority Ethnic students received lower marks than white students.

But the LSB concluded that the potential benefits of the SQE should outweigh and mitigate the concerns. LSB chair Dr Helen Phillips said: “The SQE should ensure consistency of standards and improve diversity access to the sector. This should help increase consumers’ trust and confidence, create a profession that better reflects society, and widen access to justice.

“The SQE is untested, however, and not without risk. In reaching our conclusion, we have taken account of the assurances and commitments provided by the SRA, including to monitor and evaluate implementation and conduct research to understand the impact of the SQE on diversity and inclusion.”