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31 July 2015
Issue: 7663 / Categories: Features , Training & education , Profession
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An alternative route

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CILEx examines why employers are embracing on-the-job training

The changing legal marketplace, rising university tuition fees and the sheer volume of law graduates vying for the ultimate prize, the training contract, has led to savvy graduates opting for an alternative route to qualification.

These days funding an LPC or BPTC is harder than ever and a large proportion of law students will unwittingly end up joining the ever-increasing “paralegal club” with hopes of career progression and one day, perhaps, a practising certificate.

A growing proportion of graduates are now considering the Graduate Fast-track Diploma route from the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEx) which leads to qualification as a chartered legal executive lawyer. This on-the-job qualification is a fraction of the cost of the traditional postgraduate options and develops a law graduate into a specialist lawyer tailored to the needs of their employer.

It’s not just graduates who see the benefits in the alternatives—employers do too.

Clive Thomas, managing partner at Watkins & Gunn Solicitors says that the CILEx route “provides an ideal opportunity [for

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Signature Litigation—Catherine Naylor

Signature Litigation—Catherine Naylor

International fraud and asset recovery offering boosted by partner hire

Stevens & Bolton—Alexa Payet

Stevens & Bolton—Alexa Payet

Private wealth disputes team adds contentious probate specialist

Morgan Lewis—Paul Feldberg

Morgan Lewis—Paul Feldberg

Firm strengthens investigations and sanctions capabilities with London partner hire

NEWS
Cheshire West, which established an ‘acid test’ for deprivation of liberty safeguards, has been overturned by the Supreme Court
The Chancery Division and other segments of the High Court are to be replaced by a new Business and Property Division (BPD), in a major civil justice shakeup
Law firms that hold client money will need to file annual accountants’ reports and make a declaration, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) confirmed this week
Two district judges and a tribunal judge have been sanctioned for delays in delivering judgments and orders
Private equity (PE) investment into UK law firms halved to £250m last year, but deal volume rose, according to research by Acquira Professional Services’ Momentum private equity market tracker
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