Legal Women – The Path to Qualification in Scotland

Legal Training

Legal Women – The Path to Qualification in Scotland

Glasgow’s Madge Easton Anderson was the first woman lawyer in Scotland. © Public domain.

The UK’s first ever woman lawyer, Madge Easton Anderson, became a Scottish law agent in 1920. Her battle to become a lawyer was not easily won – and women before her, such as Margaret Howie Strang Hall, were unable to qualify. Historically, law was not a profession for women.

Yet today we now have a solicitor profession in Scotland where the majority of lawyers are women. In the 100 years since Madge Easton Anderson, herself a Glasgow girl, became the first woman lawyer in the UK, the demographics of the profession at junior levels have changed dramatically.

So while women like Margaret and Madge faced great challenges in their path to qualification, what route do aspiring lawyers today have to follow to be admitted? The key stages in any aspiring Scots lawyer’s journey are set out below. From the LLB to Professional Education and Training (PEAT 1 and 2), we’re here to explain how to go about qualifying as a lawyer in Scotland.

Step 1: The LLB

Those seeking to qualify as a solicitor in Scotland traditionally study for an undergraduate LLB degree. There are 10 law schools in Scotland accredited by the Law Society of Scotland which offer the LLB. During their studies, students generally take certain core subjects which are required by the Law Society of Scotland. While the subjects will vary between institutions, the central themes and learning outcomes will be the same, covering areas from Scots criminal law to the law of succession, to constitutional law. These subjects provide students with an understanding of the areas of law considered central to legal practice. Students must pass these core subjects in order to gain entry to the Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Legal Practice.

Step 2: The Diploma

The Diploma in Professional Legal Practice is a one-year postgraduate qualification (if studied full-time) that aspiring solicitors must pass before they can become trainee solicitors. The Diploma prepares students for life as a lawyer and focuses on the more vocational and practical elements of legal study. The Diploma is often referred to as ‘PEAT 1’ – PEAT being the Law Society of Scotland's Professional Education and Training stage.

Following the Diploma, students can begin their traineeships. While some students have traineeships lined up before they start studying for their Diploma, many will not and may get a traineeship offer during or after their Diploma studies. It is important to understand that there is an ‘expiration date’ on the validity of the Diploma. This means that Diploma graduates must begin their traineeship within five years from 1 January in the year after they completed their Diploma. There are options to apply to the Law Society to have this period extended, but generally speaking traineeships should begin during this period. If a traineeship has not begun, students may be required to reenrol in the Diploma.

Step 3: The Traineeship

Part 2 of the Law Society of Scotland's Professional Education and Training programme (PEAT 2) is the Traineeship.

Traineeships are paid, usually two years long and involve working under the supervision of qualified solicitors. In smaller mixed practice firms, trainees are often involved in a variety of work from the outset of their traineeship, whereas in larger firms it is common to have ‘seat’ rotations every 6 months, where trainees move departments and gain experience in different areas of law. At the end of the training contract, trainees can apply for a practising certificate and begin work as a qualified solicitor in their own right.

In 2020/2021 67% of trainees were female, with 33% male. This is in part reflective of the picture in Scottish Law Schools, where the majority of students are women.

Becoming an Advocate

Some who qualify as a solicitor wish to pursue careers as Advocates. Advocates in Scotland have rights of audience in the highest courts and are members of the Faculty of Advocates. To become an advocate, candidates must generally have completed their Scots Law LLB and Diploma as well as a traineeship. Candidates undertake a 9-month period of training known as ‘devilling’ (similar to pupillage in England and Wales) before being admitted as an Advocate. This period of training is unpaid, although Scholarships are available and have become more extensive in recent years. Often, Advocates will spend a number of years as solicitors before beginning to Devil.

Alternative Routes

While the above represents the most common path to becoming a solicitor, there are alternatives. For example, graduates of non-law degrees have the option of pursuing the postgraduate Accelerated LLB, which is a 2-year programme. There is also the option of not going to university at all and instead embarking on what is known as a pre-PEAT training contract. This allows individuals to work in a law firm while studying for the Law Society of Scotland exams.

Finally, no discussion of legal careers today would be complete without acknowledging the many alternative careers available to LLB graduates. From journalism to public policy, to accountancy, law graduates have long used the skills from their LLB in alternative fields.

In fact, the Law Society of Scotland reports that 50% of law students go on to pursue alternative careers after their LLB studies. Today, new opportunities are also opening up for graduates in emerging legal fields. For example, Ashurst Advance in Glasgow recruits graduates as Legal Analysts to take on work traditionally undertaken by trainees, paralegals or junior lawyers. For such roles, you don’t necessarily need to have a Diploma and there is no formalized ‘traineeship’.

Seonaid Stevenson-McCabe

LLB (Hons,) LLM, DipLP, PgCAP, FHEA. Lecturer in Law Glasgow School for Business & Society