SRA To Withdraw From Graduate Recruitment Code

Mar 05, 2015

Written By Billy Sexton, Editor, AllAboutLaw.co.uk

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is considering withdrawing from the Graduate Recruitment Code. But what does this meaning for aspiring solicitors?

Currently, a training contract cannot be offered to a student before September 1 of their final year. However, if the SRA withdraw from the Graduate Recruitment Code, training contracts could be offered to students at an earlier stage in their studies. Competition for training contracts is fierce enough without an introduction of first years into the mix.

The purpose of the Graduate Recruitment Code is to ensure that students can get a bit of experience under their belt and are not pressured to apply to work at a firm at such an early stage of their studies. It’s a not-well-kept secret that US-based firms have been known to bend the rules in the past, but firms in the UK have been kept in line by the Graduate Recruitment Code. Now, applications for a training contract will become a free-for-all.

It is also likely to mean that training contracts will be awarded on a rolling basis. The sheer volume of applications will mean that firms have little choice but to consider each application as it is submitted, meaning that all available training contracts could be snapped up before the July 31 even comes to pass. This is because firms will want to secure their prospective trainees before they are offered an opportunity at another firm. You could say it will add an element of urgency into the process, others are saying it will make it chaotic. Either way, it increases pressure on aspiring solicitors.

The Junior Lawyers Division (JLD) and AGCAS (Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services) have released a joint statement saying they will consider “the possibility of alternative signatories to ensure the survival of this Code, in order to promote continued fair recruitment practices”.

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