Trainee solicitor

Trainee Solicitor
16th-century painting of a civil law notary, by Flemish painter Quentin Massys
Occupation
Occupation type
Profession
Activity sectors
Law
Description
CompetenciesInterpersonal skills, literacy, advocacy, analytical mind, critical thinking, commercial sense
Education required
Law degree / Non-law degree + GDL, Legal Practice Course (and possibly Common Professional Examination)
Fields of
employment
Law firm, government, in-house
Related jobs
Solicitor, pupil barrister, barrister, judge

In the United Kingdom, Australia, Hong Kong, Ireland, and certain other English common law jurisdictions, a trainee solicitor is a prospective lawyer undergoing professional training at a law firm or an in-house legal team to qualify as a full-fledged solicitor. This period of training is known as a training contract and usually lasts for two years.

The barrister's equivalent would be twelve months' pupillage under a pupilmaster, in barristers' chambers, or for advocates in Scotland, eight or nine months devilling under a devilmaster.