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Legal Professions and Social Mobility
Bridge Group Inaugural Seminar
10 November 2010
Richard de Friend
Agenda
• “Mobility Significance” of Legal Professions
• College’s Role and Concerns
• Steps and Initiatives
• Responses to notified questions
Why legal professions might be particularly “mobility-sensitive”
• Role of professions generally• Milburn agenda
• Legal professions comparatively accessible • Entry conditions relatively flexible• Most especially re “academic disciplinary” requirements
• US and (more recent UK) experience• Cautionary note:
• Decreasing significance of “professional” qualification?• Already and possibly even more so after full implementation
of 2007 Legal Services Act
Why of particular concern to College of Law 1: Its Role• Charity
• Under a Royal Charter • Devoted exclusively to legal education
• De facto only to “post graduate” professional/ vocational education
• Power to award own degrees from 2006
• Major “gateway” to profession• c50% of intending solicitors and c20-25% of intending
barristers take “vocational stage” programmes with the College.
• Highly diverse student body• See Table 4 in paper
Why of particular concern to College of Law 2: Destinations and Diversity• Key Findings
• Paper “Overview and Summary”
• Concerning BUT…• Reflect market forces, and “rational” decision
making rather than prejudice, eg:• Corporate sector (c50% of training contracts) and
selection of “academic elite”• Smaller firms and “lateral hiring” + paralegals
Steps and Initiatives1:Structural Changes
• Most radical• Fusion of the two professions
• Less radical• Fusion of qualification process up to end of vocational stage• Limited “qualification to practise” post vocational stage
• Already being piloted• Introduction of “WBL” as Training Contract replacement/
addition• Particularly relevant to post “LSA” era
Steps and Initiatives 2:Specialised Careers/Employability Services• Specialised guidance and know how• Recruitment • Work experience
• Pro Bono• Mentoring scheme
• Evidence of some success re “diversity factor” students • Training contract acquisition +• c90% of “Destinations Completers” obtain Law-related work
Steps and Initiatives: 3Special Projects• Targeted @ minority ethnic students eg
• Global Graduates • Black Lawyers Directory• Both combine know-how; mentoring; networking opportunities• Very well received by participants but relatively limited impact on acquisition of TCs
etc• Pathways to Law
• With Sutton Trust, 7 leading unis, c20 major law firms and Law Society• 375 “Year 12” students pa• Selected on basis of both academic and socio-economic criteria• Provision over Years 12 and 13 of
• Specialised guidance (re Law & HE); • Work experience; • (e)-mentoring via Brightside Trust; • Annual summer school
• Evaluation by ST + UCAS• Thus far 1st cohort only
• Promising enough for funder to commit through to 2015• But Impact of Browne ??
Notified Questions
• What action could be taken consistently across legal education and professional practice what would facilitate this?
• Regional variations and thus a regional approach?
• Lessons for ‘the professions’ generally eg• ‘Kite mark’ for HE/professions engagement?• How would it be implemented?
• ‘Top 3’ (or however many is relevant) recommendations for encouraging realistic and fruitful collaborations between HEI and the professions?