We have received clarification from the SRA of their ambiguous word concerning legal work experience. In their helpful tool summarising what they want with regard to those qualified in certain jurisdictions which they have considered, the SRA write:
"xx months legal work experience post-qualification as a xxx advocate (substitute in the description of a qualified lawyer in your jurisdiction)"
a) Does that mean legal work experience gained after qualifying as a xx advocate (the SRA have recently stated that the work must be to the level of the qualification).
Or
b) Does it mean that the post qualification work must be done working as a xxx advocate.
The SRA has now confirmed that it is b). You have to be working in your capacity as a lawyer, as qualified in your home jurisdiction. The example we saw related to a qualified US attorney working in Vietnam. The SRA was asking for proof that he was employed as a US attorney and the work he did was in his capacity as a US attorney.
This seems to us like the SRA tightening up the criteria for exemption from the SQE2 exam. Anecdotally, we have heard that they have had many more applications for exemption from the SQE2 than they expected.
Here is a copy of the guidance:
For general advice & assistance with applications for exemption from the SQE2 exam: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/sqe2-exemption-for-foreign-lawyers-review-advice/
For Videos about SQE2 exemptions & QWE:
https://www.youtube.com/@hunningsconsultancy999/videos
External Solicitor QWE Confirmation Service
If you are NOT qualified as a lawyer in any jurisdiction, you will have to have a minimum of 2 years' Qualifying Work Experience confirmed to a the SRA by an SRA regulated solicitor. If you do not have anyone in your company to do this, we can help.
https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/external-qwe-certification-service-2/
This applies to all SRA-regulated firms and people.
Here is a link: https://www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/guidance/financial-sanctions-regime/
Below is a summary of the changes, taken from the SRA web page:
This guidance was first published on 28 November 2022. This version provides updates based on legislative changes and our more recent proactive supervision. The major changes from our previous version are as follows:
We Can Help with:
a) Completion of the SRA Questionnaire - fee: £100 + VAT
d) AML Training
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email: [email protected]
The SRA has now started to send this out. You will have until 23rd September 2024 to complete and submit the form.
Here is a link to a copy of the email received by one of our law firm clients: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/SRA-Email-re-AML-Sanctions-Questionnaire-Aug-2024.pdf
Their questions are the same as those they shared in their warning email of 2nd July. here are the questions - but please check your own email form them. You complete them through your mySRA profile. https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/aml-data-collection-2024-questionnaire.pdf
Here is a link to the page of advice on the SRA website: https://www.sra.org.uk/sra/news/firm-anti-money-laundering-sanctions-data-requirements/
What is noticeable is that it is mandatory for every firm to complete the Sanctions section, whereas the AML section will only need to be completed by certain firms (read the questions & criteria).
This may come as a bit of a shock to many firms who are not up to speed with compliance with the Sanctions Regime. ALL businesses are within scope with regard to Sanctions Compliance.
We Can Help with:
a) Completion of the SRA Questionnaire - fee: £100 + VAT
d) AML Training
Contact Us
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or
email: [email protected]
We have obtained clarification from the SRA concerning the requirement for the Letter of Reference being on Headed Paper.
The SRA requires the form you submit for your application for exemption from the SQE2 exam to be accompanied by a Letter of Reference from the applicant's supervisor - who directly supervised the legal work that they wish the SRA to consider when looking at their application (see here a link to our page giving advice on this: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/sqe2-exemption-for-foreign-lawyers-review-advice/) We have sought clarification from the SRA as a client told us that his supervisor's current employers refused to allow the supervisor to send this letter on their letterhead.
Please see below the advice received from the SRA:
"Dear Ingemar Hunnings
Thank you for your email of 14 July 2024.
We can consider references that are not provided on headed paper, but this may mean that a decision takes longer while we verify/validate them. In the event that we are not able to verify/validate the reference(s) then the applicant may need to seek alternative referees or potentially receive a decision to refuse the application.
If you have any further questions please let me know.
Yours sincerely
Simon Prior
Authorisation Officer
Authorisation
Solicitors Regulation Authority"
Applications for exemption from the SQE2 exam: Help
We help aspiring solicitors who are already qualified lawyers with their applications for exemption from the SQE2 exam. This involves advice & assistance, a basic template for the Letter of Reference, reviewing what you draft for your referee and your application form. (Please note that we do not assist with the completion of section 8 of the form.) Please fill in the form on this or any of the web pages on this website for more info or help. Here is a link to more info: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/sqe2-exemption-for-foreign-lawyers-review-advice/
Help with Confirmation of QWE
This is only relevant where you are NOT already qualified as a lawyer anywhere. If you do NOT have an SRA regulated solicitor willing or able to confirm your QWE to the SRA, then we can help. We have already confirmed the QWE for over 100 aspiring solicitors from all over the world. Please fill in the form on this or any of the web pages on this website for more info or help. Here is a link to more info: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/external-qwe-certification-service-2/
The SRA asked to review our process for confirming QWE as an External Solicitor for an Aspiring Solicitor we'd helped: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/external-qwe-certification-service-2/ We've always been very careful to ensure our process follows what the SRA requires and that each step is carefully documented (Ingemar is a litigator and so naturally prepares his work as if he is expecting the judge to view it!). We received the news last week that the SRA had told our client that they found the process acceptable and so they admitted him as a solicitor of England & Wales. 🙂
We have long held the view that the SRA should audit those who confirm QWE to ensure there is no abuse. We are pleased that we have now gone through a review by the SRA and they have found that our approach meets their requirements.
We have so far helped over 100 Aspiring Solicitors from around the world by acting as their external confirming solicitor, where they did not have an SRA regulated solicitor to confirm their QWE. We are a port of last resort to help them move forward and qualify. If they already have an SRA regulated solicitor who can confirm their QWE we advise them to use that person.
External QWE Confirmation
Link to the service: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/external-qwe-certification-service-2/
We have so far confirmed the QWE of over 100 aspiring solicitors from all over the world.
It seems that the SRA sent out emails en mass on 2nd July 2024 informing many, if not all, law firms that it regulates that they will be sending out to them a Financial Crime Questionnaire in early August that they will want completed by mid-September.
Here is a link to the Sample of the Questionnaire they have shared: https://www.hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/aml-data-collection-2024-questionnaire.pdf
Here is a copy of the message received by one of our client firms. Here is a link to the page of advice on the SRA website: https://www.sra.org.uk/sra/news/firm-anti-money-laundering-sanctions-data-requirements/
What is noticeable is that it is mandatory for every firm to complete the Sanctions section, whereas the AML section will only need to be completed by certain firms (read the questions & criteria).
This may come as a bit of a shock to many firms who are not up to speed with compliance with the Sanctions Regime. ALL businesses are within scope with regard to Sanctions Compliance.
We Can Help with:
a) Completion of the SRA Questionnaire - fee: £100 + VAT
d) AML Training
Contact Us
Fill in the form below
or
email: [email protected]
We are delighted to add this service to the suite of services we provide. It complements other support for the people delivering legal services, such as mentoring, business review, review of cashflow, compliance policies & procedures and training.
For a long time we have been looking for the right person to launch this service. Vicky Simpson has joined the team. She has many years of experience in coaching people and teams in law firms at all levels, leading strategy days and suchlike. This may be provided on-site or remotely. Vicky will work with the firm to run through all aspects of the business from back office to Managing Partner/CEO and all the roles in between. Typically, this involves an initial scoping day, followed by a Strategy Day, before the firm embarks on a 12–18-month programme. Vicky will also work with individuals of the business for those who would benefit from 121 coaching.
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or
Fill in the form below
We support for those firms using the Clio case management system.
Help with:
Contact Us
Please use the form below to contact us. We look forward to hearing from you.
We have worked with over 800 businesses on their case management systems; implementing, set & training & general advice. We provide similar support for users of the Proclaim eclipse Case Management software: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/proclaim-support/ and for firms using the LEAP Case Management software: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/leap-assistance/ and for firms using the Actionstep Case Management System https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/actionstep-support/
We have seen some confusion amongst aspiring solicitors when completing the form for applying for exemption from the SQE2 exam. So, we thought it best to seek clarification from the SRA, as it did not appear that that there was anything clear about this on the SRA website. (This is for people already qualified as lawyers and wanting to qualify as solicitors of England & Wales through the SQE route.)
We have placed a copy of the correspondence below. However, we also explain here.
Only people already qualified as a lawyer may apply for an exemption from the SQE2 exam (more info on how to do so & how we can help: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/sqe2-exemption-for-foreign-lawyers-review-advice/). In section 4 of the application form people have been ticking section 4a when that does NOT apply to someone qualified in their jurisdiction. Section 4a reads:
"4a. Agreed exemption(s) for your jurisdiction
Use this section if you are applying for the exemptions that we have agreed with your jurisdiction."
Instead they should have been completing section 4b of the form. This starts off:
"4b. New exemptions
Use this section if you are applying for a new exemption for your qualification or are using a personal qualification or work experience to request an exemption to the SQE assessments. "
The SRA has granted an 'Agreed Exemption' for people qualified as lawyers in certain jurisdictions because they have examined the content of their qualification, what it permits them to do and that 2 years' legal work experience is a mandatory requirement of their qualification. Thus the qualification itself proves the work experience. People qualified in those jurisdictions as lawyers only need to complete sections 1, 2, 3 and 4a of the form & submit that to the SRA through their 'mySRA' profile together with the SRA fee and proof of their qualification.
You may check the SRA's website to see if lawyers qualified in your jurisdiction have been granted an 'Agreed Exemption'. Here is the link: https://www.sra.org.uk/become-solicitor/qualified-lawyers/sqe-exemptions/
If your jurisdiction is not listed as having an 'Agreed Exemption', you may make an Individual Application for an exemption from the SQE2 exam. Further info about making this and how you might ask us to help may be found here: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/sqe2-exemption-for-foreign-lawyers-review-advice/
If you believe that your jurisdiction should have been granted an 'Agreed Exemption' - that is for you to take up with the SRA. We have no influence on their decision.
Below is a copy of our enquiry of the SRA and their reply. We hope this will be of some assistance to you.
Our enquiry to the SRA:
"Good morning,
I have a question. This has been asked of me and I cannot see anything on the SRA website to answer it.
“Would the ‘agreed exemption’ mean someone qualified in such a jurisdiction can apply as soon as soon as they qualify, without having to gain 2 years’ legal work experience?”
Thank you for your kind assistance.
Regards
Ingemar Hunnings"
The reply from the SRA:
"Dear Ingemar Hunnings
Thank you for your email of 19 April 2024. I am sorry for the delay getting back to you.
Yes that is correct. Applicants who have completed the full route to qualification in an agreed exemption jurisdiction (and subsequently been admitted as a qualified lawyer) complete at least two years of regulated experience as part of their route to qualification. Consequently, they are not required to complete additional post-qualification experience in order to apply for an SQE2 exemption.
Individuals who have not been formally admitted as a qualified lawyer in their home jurisdiction are not eligible to apply for an exemption until they complete this step.
Yours sincerely
Simon Prior
Authorisation Officer
Authorisation
Solicitors Regulation Authority/Awdurdod Rheoleiddio Cyfreithwyr"
............................................................................................................................................
External QWE Confirmation Service
This is relevant to people who are NOT qualified as lawyers already. If you know of someone who needs an SRA regulated solicitor to confirm their QWE but have no-one in their organisation to do so - we can help. This service would apply to someone who is NOT qualified as a lawyer. Please see the link below and feel free to signpost them to us:
QWE - External Confirming Solicitor Service - for Aspiring Solicitors
YouTube Videos on SQE, SQE2 Exemptions & QWE:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOC0Ce13KlxZryhvZpmORpLB2hLIMTSQu
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The SRA is turning its attention to this. It is anyway a sensible thing to do for any business - risk assess a client and a job before taking it on. This is referred to in quality marks across many industry and service sectors as well as the legal services sector. As well as this the SRA has a focus on the prevention of financial crime. In July 2024 the SRA started to include a request to see this when doing AML Inspections.
In a webinar by the SRA in February 2024 the SRA said:
"Our recent thematic review of client/matter risk assessments found that less than half of those produced within firms were compliant with the rules. This led to us issuing a warning notice on the issue."
The SRA have created a template for Client & Matter Risk Assessments (CMRA). We have put a copy here which you may download.
https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/cmra-template.docx
Here you may view the Guide the SRA produced in 2024 into Completing the Client & Matter Risk Assessments:
Here is a link to their web page from which this came and which has other information from them:
Assistance with your AML & Onboarding Compliance
We provide a lot of AML support to businesses in the Legal Sector. Please see below for a summary and links for further information.
Feel free to contact us, ideally by using the 'How can we help you?' form below.
