Lawyers wait to see how equivalent means route to qualifying as a solicitor works in practice

A survey on the 'equivalent means' route to qualifying as a solicitor resulted in mixed responses from lawyers.

The equivalent means route to qualifying as a solicitor bypasses the traditional training contract, with the Solicitors Regulation Authority requiring candidates to prove that they have the necessary skills and training to be granted newly-qualified solicitor status by evidencing their achievements while working in other, non-solicitor legal roles (such as working as a paralegal).

Leeds Law Society conducted an online poll which received approximately 250 responses from legal professionals of all types, including partners and paralegals, according to Legal Futures. The survey was pretty inconclusive - with 27% of respondents saying that they approved of the new qualification route, 34% registering disapproval and the remaining 38% remaining unsure. The small sample size of the survey also means that there no clear conclusions to draw other than that at this early stage of the equivalent means route’s introduction, how it will work in practice remains largely unknown. Conductors of the survey at Leeds Law Society also pointed out that the results indicate that "there remains a large amount of paralegals in the legal community who are struggling to find training contracts or advancements in their careers."