There has been quite some confusion on this. We have sought clarification from the SRA and have published below the guidance they have given us.
An application for exemption from the SQE2 exam is open to those who are already qualified as lawyers. This could be outside the English & Welsh jurisdiction (often referred to as Foreign Qualified Lawyers) of indeed people qualified as lawyers [but not solicitors] in the jurisdiction of England & Wales.
Where they do not have an agreed exemption granted by the SRA (because their jurisdictional qualifications have been studied and approved by the SRA) you may apply for an individual exemption (link for more info).
If you are UNable to state that your qualification grants you ALL of the practice rights enjoyed by a solicitor of England & Wales, then you will have to fill in section 8 of the form as well as section 7. We have sought clarification from the SRA on this. Please find this published below for your assistance.
Email from the SRA:
Sensitivity: General
Our ref: AUTH/SQE/SP/Hunnings
Dear Ingemar Hunnings
Thank you for your email of 28 November 2023.
Anyone who has at least one practice right listed in section 2.2 is eligible to apply for an exemption from the SQE assessments. Section 8 is required for those who do not have all the practice rights, or in certain instances where they are not able to demonstrate two years of practical experience.
If they do not have all of the practice rights they should answer the appropriate question in section 7 based on their circumstances, and they will also need to complete section 8 in full. The Section 8 assessment table should include specific examples of work completed by the applicant, and explanations as to why they consider this demonstrates each topic/competence. The section 8 narrative should then be supported by documentary evidence (where available) to show the work they have done. The applicant’s evidence must also be supported by corroborative references from those responsible for supervising that work.
Section 8 asks applicants to demonstrate transferrable skills. Applicants are not expected to demonstrate these skills in practice areas not covered by their professional legal qualification. They will however need to show they have the required abilities across the full list of topics in Section 8 through the experience they have gained to date.
We are in the process of updating both the web guidance and the application form to better explain these requirements. However, I can confirm that this advice will apply to anybody who has at least one, but not all, of the practice rights.
If you have any further questions please let me know.
Yours sincerely
Simon Prior
Authorisation Officer
Authorisation
Solicitors Regulation Authority/Awdurdod Rheoleiddio Cyfreithwyr
sra.org.uk "
You will see that this is quite an exercise. As a rule, we do not get involved in assisting with the completion of section 8 other than giving the advice above. If we did, we would need to charge at our normal consulting rate of £200/hr. That ends up being uneconomic for foreign qualified lawyers.
We hope the guidance and advice will enable you to move forward with the preparation of your application.
Other help from HCL
(May we ask you to ‘Subscribe’ & ‘Like’ to help others find these resources.)
External QWE Confirmation Service
If you need an SRA regulated solicitor to confirm your QWE but have no-one in your organisation to do so - we can help. [QWE confirmation is ONLY required for people who are NOT already 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
The SRA uses the Pearson VUE centres in the UK and overseas for people to sit the SQE1 and the written part of the SQE2 exams. You book them through your 'mySRA' account or profile on the SRA website. The oral part of the SQE2 exam currently (2023) has to be sat in person at test centres in England or Wales (currently in London, Cardiff & Manchester).
There are variations which may apply in different times of the year or from time to time, particularly currently in North America, Australia and New Zealand.
Here is the link to the relevant page on the SRA website. It is best to check this for the current situation. The SRA state that the exact locations are confirmed when the booking for an exam opens.
https://sqe.sra.org.uk/exam-arrangements/dates-and-locations
Here is a link to a tool that the SRA has created to find the closest Pearson Vue centre to you
External QWE Confirmation Service
If you need an SRA regulated solicitor to confirm your QWE but have no-one in your organisation to do so - we can help. Please see the link below and feel free to signpost them to us:
QWE - External Confirming Solicitor Service - for Aspiring Solicitors
SQE2 Exam Exemptions
For information about this - please follow this link:
https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/sqe2-exemption-for-foreign-lawyers-review-advice/
YouTube
There are may videos on our YouTube channel giving information about the SQE, QWE & exemptions. Here is the link to the channel. Please feel free to subscribe:
https://www.youtube.com/@hunningsconsultancy999/videos
The SRA have written:
“There will now be a programme of on-site inspections and desk-based reviews to assess firms’ sanctions risk exposure and how they are mitigating their risk.”
Remember that they have gathered responses from all firms they regulate on how they comply. Now they will check.
We have anticipated this and have in place support & assistance packages which match that which we provide regarding AML compliance.
Sanctions Compliance Assistance
Sanctions Policy Documents & PWRA Review
Sanctions Regime - Independent Compliance Audit
Sanctions Compliance Update Retainer
Contact Us
Fill in the form below or email: [email protected]
Useful guidance below to avoid data breach by mistakes using BCC in emails. One of the most common data breaches is user error! Should you suffer a data breach each out to use. We provide a lot of Data Protection & GDPR support: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/gdpr-support/
"Failure to use BCC correctly in emails is one of the top data breaches reported to us every year – and these breaches can cause real harm, especially where sensitive personal information is involved.
When you use the ‘BCC’ field to send an email, the recipients can’t see each other’s email addresses. You can use this if the personal information you’re sharing isn’t sensitive and there’s little risk. But if your email may reveal sensitive information about the recipients, you should assess whether using other secure methods would be more appropriate.
You could:
· set rules within your email system to provide alerts and warn email senders when they use the Carbon Copy (CC) field;
· set a delay, allowing time for errors to be corrected before the email is sent;
· turn off the auto-complete email function to prevent the system suggesting email addresses in the recipient’s box; and
· use the NCSC email security check tool.
Under data protection law, organisations must have appropriate technical and organisational measures in place to ensure personal information is kept safe and not inappropriately disclosed to others.
Organisations that use and share large amounts of data, including sensitive personal information, should consider using other secure means to send communications, such as bulk email services, so information is not shared with people by mistake.
Organisations should also consider having appropriate policies in place and training for staff in relation to email communications.
For non-sensitive communications, organisations that choose to use BCC should do so carefully to ensure personal email addresses are not shared inappropriately with other customers, clients, or other organisations."
From the ICO
LEAP have issued a new, updated spec sheet (they call it System Requirements) on 31st July 2023.
Here is a link for easy access.
For assistance with using your LEAP:
We have worked with LEAP since 2015 as implementation consultants, implementing into hundreds of businesses in the UK & abroad. In addition to implementing, setting up & initial training we also
Contact Us
Fill in the form below or email: [email protected]
A few Testimonials:
(For more visit our Testimonials page)
Jade Collier - Finance Manager at Wilson Davies Solicitors
"Excellent service from Brenda and Ingemar. They went above and beyond to ensure the transition to our new system ran smoothly. Would Highly recommend."
Vas Constantinou – Partner at Tyrer Roxburgh:
"A huge thank you to Ingemar and Brenda at Hunnings Consultancy who have provided clear, precise and excellent training in installing Leap as our new case management system. You have provided an excellent service throughout and have always gone over and beyond to help us, making this transition a smooth process."
Maxine Johnson:
"The training was excellent. I found Ingemar to be incredibly helpful, knowledgeable and easy to work with. I would highly recommend Hunnings Consultancy Ltd."
Helen Dickie MD of MD Law in Cardiff:
Thoroughly enjoyed my training with Ingemar! Not only did I have the opportunity to expand my knowledge in the firm’s investment into LEAP it was very useful to consider profit revenue and risk/compliance utilising the tools within LEAP to assist. Enjoyed the remote training session- thank you!!
Law firms regulated by the SRA must publish their diversity data. Here is a link to guidance from the SRA on where and how this should be done: https://www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/resources/diversity-toolkit/your-data/ This was guidance was updated in June 2023.
The SRA a very active in carrying out AML Audits. We help firms navigate their way through such an audit and then with any work the SRA ask them to do to comply. In addition we can assist with carrying out an Independent AML audit after a few months to check the actual implementation & operation of those AML policies & procedures.
It is best to contact us as soon as you receive notification from the SRA. They will ask you to answer some preliminary questions and submit your policies for review. How you answer them can help or hinder how the audit or inspection goes.
We charge at £200 + VAT
Below are the Agenda's the SRA send out in their letter giving notice of an inspection.
Agenda to Prepare for The SRA Inspection
| Deadline | Activity | |
| 1. | Within 7 days | We will arrange a date for the inspection |
| 2. | 14 days | Provide: a list of the fee earners at your firm open and closed matter lists for your fee earners your response to our questionnaire your firm wide risk assessment your firm’s proliferation financing risk assessment your firm’s AML policies and procedures your firm’s template client and matter risk assessment copies of any audits on your firm’s policies and procedures AML related training records and content High risk matters list if applicable File review template and list of file reviews completed in the last 6 months |
| 3. | 3-5 days before the inspection | We will provide a list of the files we wish to review on-site and confirm if fee earners have been selected for interview. |
AML Inspection Day Agenda
| Approx Time | Activity | |
| 10.00am | Introductions and context | |
| 10.15am | Interview with the Money Laundering Compliance Officer (MLCO) and Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO) | |
| 12.00am | Break for lunch | |
| 12.30pm | File reviews and review of SARs/DAML / opportunity to interview fee earners | |
| 2.40pm | Feedback to MLCO on files reviews and fee earner interviews. Thank you and close |
AML Support from us (HCL)
We provide a lot of AML support to businesses in the Legal Sector. Please see below for a summary and links for further information.
(Sanctions Regime compliance - see separate services for this on our website.)
Contact Us
Feel free to contact us, ideally by using the 'How can we help you?' form below.
This guidance on the Proceeds of Crime Act applies to all people and firms regulated by the SRA, whether or not they fall within AML scope. The SRA have given notice that they will have regard to this guidance when exercising it's regulatory functions. The guidance has been issued to help people understand the SRA's expectations.
Below is a link to the guidance. It has some useful examples, a list of Red Flags to watch out for, how to make a Suspicious Activity Report (SAR), exemptions and emphasises the need for the training of staff [with which we can assist].
Here is the link to the Guidance.
AML Support we offer
Independent AML Audit - an audit to ensure the implementation & exercise of your AML policies & procedures
AML Training - for those regulated by the SRA and by the FCA
OPM - an up to date Office Procedures Manual (SRA regulated firms)
MLRO Support Retainer - for MLROs in certain FCA regulated sectors
MLRO Reviews & Reports - for MLROs in certain FCA regulated sectors
Contact Us
Fill in the form below
From 12 June, the SRA are introducing an additional verification step to make your mySRA account more secure. This means when you log in you will need to register a phone number. You will then need to have this phone with you every time you log in to mySRA and use a text message code or call to verify your identity. Because of this, you will also need to replace any saved mySRA website links.
More info here: https://www.sra.org.uk/mysra/updates/verifying-mysra-account/
For assistance with Compliance
Hit this link: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/compliance-services/
For help with QWE Confirmation
Hit this link: https://hunningsconsultancy.co.uk/external-qwe-certification-service-2/
Contact Us
Fill in the form below
We thought it would be helpful to write a post explaining the actual process, with images, of how a solicitor actually does the confirmation of the QWE on the SRA website - as a resource for solicitors and also for Aspiring Solicitors who want to know.
The actual process is quite simple. It remains so if you have an SRA regulated solicitor on your organisation who will confirm your QWE. However, the SRA does allow an Aspiring Solicitor to reach outside of their organisation to an External Confirming Solicitor to confirm their QWE (for example if they do not have an SRA regulated solicitor in their organisation (perhaps working inhouse or in a charity and/or abroad). We have so far helped over 60 Aspiring Solicitors (at the time of writing) in that situation. Follow this link and/or fill in the form for more information.
The Process - how a solicitor confirms
Please note that the process will need to be repeated for each period of QWE to be confirmed.
The SRA has now produced a video taking you through this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxakIEOO-OQ
External QWE Confirmation Service
If you need an SRA regulated solicitor to confirm your QWE but have no-one in your organisation to do so - we can help. Please see the link below and feel free to signpost them to us:
QWE - External Confirming Solicitor Service - for Aspiring Solicitors
