CILEX members celebrate graduation

Some 140 new Fellows and Advocates swore the CILEX oath to mark their qualification at the annual graduation ceremony in November.

At the event, held at Central Hall, Westminster in London, they were joined by a further 237 members, who were recognised for becoming Graduates.

In all, 1,500 members, friends and family gathered to celebrate, hearing speeches from CILEX President Caroline Jepson, CEO Linda Ford and guest speaker Millicent Grant, a former CILEX president and an honorary QC.

Ms Grant, the first CILEX member to be made an honorary QC and the first Black person to lead a legal professional membership body, encouraged graduates to embrace the opportunities now open to them, noting the “great progress” made by CILEX during her time in the profession.

“You are ascending in a profession that is richer and more representative because individuals like you are entering it,” she told the audience. “That is important for the people we serve – the public. They need to have confidence that they are talking to someone who understands them, not someone who is elite or distant. Social integration matters, social mobility matters and representation at all levels matters. Without it, we see distrust in our profession, and in the rule of law itself.”

Ms Jepson praised graduates for their hard work and perseverance, recognising that so many achieved qualification while studying alongside full-time work.

Reflecting on the recent membership survey that showed many CILEX Lawyers held themselves back at work due to a lack of confidence, in part caused by the perception of CILEX Lawyers by other professionals in the legal sector, she urged graduates to take the opportunities presented to them to progress in their careers.

She said: “I have a plea for you today, and it is this – let us hear your voice. Join us in elbowing our way through the elite snobbery and let us together shut down those perceptions which have held us back for far too long.

“Build pride in CILEX and help us reach the point where CILEX Lawyers are automatically recognised and valued as specialist lawyers.”

The ceremony also recognised 10 members made CILEX Companions, a status awarded to those who are leaders in the CILEX community.

One companion, Ian Ashley-Smith, the first appointed CILEX judge, was not able to attend but his reflections on his journey from solicitor’s clerk to CILEX Fellow, member of the Law Society's family law panel and eventually deputy district judge, were read by former President Matthew Foster.

Mr Ashley-Smith said: “I could never have achieved this were it not for the immense efforts of the Institute and its officers, past and present, in creating the opportunities that we have been given to advance our careers and our Chartered status on a par with barristers and solicitors.

“I am pleased and immensely proud to have been appointed as a CILEX Companion.”

First CILEX employment tribunal judges named

Graham King and Daniel Wright have become the first CILEX Lawyers to be appointed as fee-paid judges of the employment tribunal. At 37 and 35 respectively, they are also the youngest members of CILEX to take up judicial roles.

Graham King

Mr King was also appointed as a fee-paid judge of the First-Tier Tribunal, assigned to the health, education and social care chamber. He is a CILEX Fellow and currently works in contract law for Lyons Davidson in Bristol. He began his legal career specialising in defendant personal injury claims, qualifying with CILEX in 2013 whilst working at what was then Morgan Cole.

Mr King spent 12 years sitting as a magistrate as well a working as a funeral director for a number of years before returning to the law in 2019.

Daniel Wright is a member of the Government Legal Department and is an advisory lawyer in the children’s law team at the Department for Education. He is a qualified CILEX Litigator and Advocate, having also previously worked for Lyons Davidson, where he specialised in claimant personal injury work, appearing in more than 500 hearings.

Daniel Wright

Mr King, who took part in CILEX’s judicial development programme, explained that the application process was tough but “with the right skills and expertise – in my case acquired both through working in the law and outside it – it is a goal that is well within reach for many CILEX Lawyers”.

He highlighted the benefits of CILEX’s training programme and “valuable support” from his mentor, His Honour Judge Mark Horton.

“I hope we see many more CILEX Lawyers taking up the opportunity of a judicial career,” he said.

Mr Wright said a judicial career was always in the back of his mind and recalled finding himself appearing before Ian Ashley-Smith, the first-ever CILEX judge.

“I saw that this could be an option for me,” he explained. “Five years later and I am looking forward to taking up my first judicial position.”

CILEX chair Professor Chris Bones said: “It’s fantastic to see both Daniel and Graham become the first CILEX members to sit as employment tribunal judges.

CILEX Lawyers are increasingly making it to the top of the legal profession, as judges, partners and business owners.

“In 2021 Elizabeth Johnson became the first full time CILEX judge and the then Lord Chancellor Robert Buckland said he wanted to see ‘more judges from a CILEX background’, recognising the important role CILEX has to play in working towards a more representative judiciary.”

Sarah McCarthy wins Chartered Legal Executive of the Year at Family Law Awards

Sarah McCarthy

Sarah McCarthy, senior CILEX Lawyer at Hill Dickinson, was named Family Law Chartered Legal Executive of the Year at an awards ceremony held in November.

The Family Law Awards celebrate the successes and achievements of family lawyers and the vital contribution they make to society.

Ms McCarthy was announced as winner of the award from a shortlist of four, selected by a judging panel made up of the heads of the Family Law Bar Association, Resolution, the Association of Lawyers for Children and CILEX. Winners are then voted for by the family law community.

Other nominees were Bindmans’ Melissa Arnold, Claire Holland of Holland Family Law and Claire Ward from Langleys.

Sarah said: “The Family Law Awards celebrate the work of everyone who specialises in this area of the law. I am passionate about the work I do, in particular private child law, where I focus on complex issues relating to child arrangement orders and international relocation of children. To have that recognised by my peers and be voted this year’s Senior Chartered Executive of the Year feels very special. My thanks to the judges and all who voted for me.”

Ms McCarthy joined Hill Dickinson in 2016 and is based at the firm’s Liverpool office, handling family law matters for a wide range of national and international clients.