Sir Robert Buckland made honorary CILEX Companion as 250 members celebrate graduation
Sir Robert Buckland MP has been made an Honorary CILEX Companion, in recognition of his support for CILEX over the years. Speaking to some 250 graduates at the annual graduation ceremony held in October, he congratulated attendees for their achievements and CILEX for its contribution to modernising the legal profession by “injecting fresh perspectives, outlooks and approaches”.
At the event, held at Central Hall Westminster in London, 850 members and guests gathered to celebrate graduation. This included 100 new CILEX Fellows, CILEX Lawyers, Advocates and practitioners and a further 150 members who were recognised for becoming Advanced Paralegals.
They were joined by Sir Robert, CILEX President Matthew Huggett, CEO Linda Ford and chair of the CILEX Foundation, HHJ Marc Dight CBE.
CILEX’s Honorary Companion status is awarded to those who have publicly supported the work of CILEX and who share its values and mission to ensure the legal profession is diverse, progressive and can adapt to the changing needs of consumers.
A King’s Counsel, former defence barrister and part-time judge, Sir Robert has served the government as Solicitor General, prisons minister and Lord Chancellor. In his time as Lord Chancellor, he recognised the important role CILEX Lawyers have to play in the justice system and judiciary, and committed to working with CILEX on the legal barriers its practitioners face.
Speaking at the event, he told the audience: “You will know, having worked as hard as you have to earn your place at today's ceremony, how much grit, resilience and stomach are required to practise law. I have had the immense privilege of working alongside some formidable characters during my time in law – people from all walks of life – and I know that our profession is all the better for opening up, for tearing down obstacles for those with the stomach for the fight, for diversifying and helping people up and in. Law is fundamentally about people, so it is plain common sense that a mixture of perspectives and experience will better equip us to do our jobs.”
President Matthew Huggett recognised the achievements of graduates, so many of whom qualified while studying alongside full-time work. He said: “It is challenging and admirable to study to become a lawyer whilst working. It requires a level of determination that many people do not possess. It requires resilience to achieve what you are here today to celebrate, making us who we are and equipping us for the challenges that both our personal and professional life will no doubt present us with in the future.”
CILEX goes on the road to meet members
The CILEX team, including President Matthew Huggett, former President Caroline Jepson, head of membership Patrick Cullen and strategic partnerships director Lynne Squires went on the road at the end of last year, meeting members and employers across the country to hear their views and questions on the issues important to them.
Over 200 members and 50 different employers attended the member events and employer breakfast meetings that took place in Manchester, Newcastle, Leeds, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter and London from September to November.
Topics discussed included practice rights, transition to the CPQ, the future regulation of CILEX, salary and career progression, the employer and consumer perception of CILEX, and feedback on how CILEX communicates with its members.
The conversations were hugely informative and CILEX has already taken action to respond to some of the issues raised, including by creating a practice rights guide and a CILEX Lawyer eligibility checker, and increasing communication with students on L3 and L6 routes to provide clarity around transition to CPQ and/or completion of their existing route to qualification.
CILEX took on board feedback on member communications and is currently reviewing its communications strategy, as well as putting an increased focus on employer engagement.
Matthew Huggett said: “It was a pleasure to get out there, meet so many CILEX members face to face and gain a real insight into their experiences. The last few years have seen significant changes for CILEX, with the launch of the CPQ, our initiative to encourage uptake of practice rights and the discussions around the future of regulation. The roadshows gave us the opportunity to answer members’ questions, to hear their feedback and to build closer relationships with the employers of CILEX professionals.”
Membership insight survey highlights career ambitions
Over 1,750 CILEX members completed 2022’s membership insight survey, once again giving CILEX an important insight into the working lives of its members.
Analysis of the data demonstrated a similar pattern to the 2021 survey which found that although the majority of members were very positive about being CILEX Lawyers, they felt that their employers did not treat them the same way as their solicitor counterparts, despite being equally qualified for their roles.
There was a great deal of ambition amongst members, with top priorities being the creation of a clear career path for CILEX members, support for career development and the removal of barriers to progression in the workplace.
The survey highlighted the importance of support at work, with increasing numbers of CILEX members benefiting from mentoring or sponsorship.
CILEX head of membership Patrick Cullen commented: “A huge thank-you to all the members who took the time to complete the survey. The findings once again demonstrated the importance of our campaigning activity across government, employer organisations and the wider legal profession, focused on promoting the specialist skills and fresh perspectives that CILEX members bring, and working to remove barriers to progression.
“The survey’s findings corroborated what we heard from our roadshows, that members are ambitious and are looking to CILEX to improve their working lives by engaging positively with legal sector employers and providing support for those looking to further their careers.”
Those who took part in the survey raised over £1,700 for the CILEX Foundation which works to broaden access to legal careers by removing some of the barriers to legal education and career progression for those from less privileged backgrounds.
Results out for new practice rights assessments
The University of Law last month published the results of CILEx Regulation’s first live practice rights assessments. The assessments, undertaken in December by 23 candidates, saw an overall pass rate of 96%.
Assessed in either civil litigation or conveyancing, those who were successful are now able to progress to the next stage of authorisation.
Richard Haggett, programme director for the University of Law, said it had been “particularly impressed with the dedication shown by extremely high-calibre delegates who produced such good work”.
Danielle Rowles, practitioner & authorisation team manager at CILEx Regulation, agreed, commenting that “the excellent pass rate for this first group of candidates is testament to the high quality of Chartered Legal Executives”.
She said: “The results demonstrate the viability of the alternative route and offer encouragement to other eligible Chartered Legal Executives looking to make an application for independent practice rights.”
CILEX head of membership Patrick Cullen said: “I’m delighted that 23 more Chartered Legal Executives have gained practice rights and are now eligible to use the CILEX Lawyer title. We look forward to celebrating their achievements at our graduation ceremony later this year.”
The University of Law is the nominated training and assessment provider for CILEx Regulation’s alternative route to practice rights. Participants who completed a survey following the assessments all said they would recommend the route to others.
All Chartered Legal Executives with at least five years’ qualifying employment experience have the option to choose this new route to obtain additional practice rights.
CILEX supports National Conveyancing Week
CILEX professional board member Yanthe Richardson will be taking part in a panel discussion on recruitment and retention in the conveyancing sector as part of a broad range of free-to-view panel debates and webinars taking place later this month for National Conveyancing Week.
Recruiting and retaining good staff is an important issue for the conveyancing industry, especially as the role of property lawyers is often viewed as stressful and undervalued. Recruiting can be time-consuming and expensive, and a high turnover of staff can cause service issues for clients and unsettle other employees.
Yanthe will join other industry experts to look at the strategies that actually work, sharing their own experiences and those of their firms.
National Conveyancing Week runs 20-24 March. The recruitment and retention discussion will be held on 20 March, with a range of informative sessions running throughout the week.
In addition to the online events, on 22 March many firms will be opening up their offices to offer coffee and cakes to local estate agents, independent financial advisors, property-related businesses, introducers, referrals networks, business people, and their clients.
CILEX joins with Shoosmiths and Aston University to support aspiring students
CILEX has joined a programme initiated by Aston University in partnership with law firm Shoosmiths, to support students from under-represented backgrounds towards a career in law.
The Pathways to Law programme, which has also garnered support from Virgin Media O2, was created as a response to the government’s plans to improve access to high-skilled and high-paid jobs. It offers a series of guidance, information and law taster sessions with the aim of equipping young people with the skills needed to complete a degree in law.
The 18-month programme kicked off in January with 33 students from less privileged socio-economic backgrounds taking part.
Professor Aleks Subic, vice-chancellor and chief executive at Aston University, said the programme would “extend learning opportunities to students aged 16-18 from under-represented groups across the West Midlands region”, providing them with the skills and confidence to apply to university courses leading to a careers in law.
CILEX CEO Linda Ford said: “CILEX is dedicated to improving social mobility by providing a flexible, vocational path to qualification as a specialist legal professional. This programme provides a welcome opportunity to showcase the range of entry points and opportunities that are available for anyone considering a career in the legal profession.
“Initiatives like these help the legal sector to attract the brightest future talent, regardless of background, bringing together organisations from across the sector to ensure a career in the law is open to all aspiring lawyers and that the profession more closely reflects the population it serves.”
CILEX member news
January saw Chartered Legal Executive Liz Stirk made partner at Worcester firm SME Solicitors. Liz, who is now head of its residential conveyancing department, joined the firm as a secretary in 2013.
Ms Stirk said: “I am delighted to have been invited to become a partner here at SME Solicitors. This is a busy and thriving time for residential conveyancing and I am very happy to be part of the strategic planning that the partners develop for the firm and to be heading the department.”
CILEX graduate Paul Clayton has joined Pen Underwriting as part of the claims business’s expansion in the South-East.
In December 2022, Pen Underwriting launched a new regional claims hub in Chelmsford, dedicated to managing commercial property and liability claims, complementing its existing team of specialists in Manchester.
Mr Clayton, a senior claims handler specialising in large and complex liability losses, joined from MS Amlin. He was one of a team of three recruited to the Chelmsford hub as the company looks to further enhance its in-house claims capabilities as a virtual insurer.
If you have appointments or promotions you would like to share, contact patrick.cullen@cilex.org.uk.