Learning how to become a solicitor

Learning how to become a solicitor, reading documents, applying for legal aid, corresponding with other parts of the criminal justice system, taking instructions from clients, advising clients.

Most of your apprenticeship is spent working

You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.

What you'll do at work

• Reading documents
• Applying for legal aid
• Corresponding with other parts of the criminal justice system
• Taking instructions from clients
• Advising clients
• Once accredited, attending the police station to represent clients

Where you'll work

430 HIGH ROAD
LONDON
N17 9JB

Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.

Training provider

BPP UNIVERSITY LIMITED

Training course

Solicitor (level 7)

What you'll learn

Course contents

• Obtain relevant facts by effective questioning and active listening.
• Find, analyse, and assess documents to extract relevant information including recognising when additional information is needed, interpreting and evaluating information obtained, recording and presenting information accurately and clearly.
• Recognise when legal research is needed and use appropriate methods and resources including identifying, finding and assessing the relevance of sources of law, interpreting, evaluating and applying research results, recording and presenting findings of research accurately and clearly.
• Develop strategies and solutions including an understanding of a client’s commercial and personal circumstances, their needs, objectives, priorities and constraints.
• Provide advice which is informed by appropriate and factual legal analysis and identifying the consequences of different options.
• Draft documents from scratch and use precedents which address all legal and factual issues, complying with all formalities and using clear, accurate and succinct language.
• Undertake effective spoken and written advocacy in court and outside of formal court hearings including: effective preparation by identifying and mastering relevant facts and legal principles, organize facts to support an argument or position, present a reasoned argument in a clear, logical, succinct persuasive way, make appropriate references to legal authority, comply with formalities, deal with witnesses appropriately, respond effectively to questions or opposing arguments, identify strengths and weaknesses from different parties’ perspectives.
• Negotiate solutions to clients’ issues including: identify all parties’ interests, objectives and limits, developing and formulating best options for meeting parties’ objectives, presenting options for compromises persuasively, responding to options presented by the other side, developing compromises between options or parties.
• Plan and manage legal cases and transactions including applying relevant processes and procedures to progress matters effectively, assessing, communicating and managing risk, bringing a transaction or case to a conclusion.