- Exam: Date: Location: Fee: MCT. Registration with Kaplan QLTS for the July 2021 sitting will open on 3 February 2021.If you have previously registered for the MCT exam, you are not required to submit a new registration form unless you have been granted exemptions or are applying for reasonable adjustments.
- Eligibility to Take the QLTS Assessments There are no formal requirements to comply with before you can take the QLTS assessments. You can simply contact the assessment provider and register to sit the assessments.
The QLTS is a series of tests recognised by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority of England and Wales, and is designed for foreign licensed lawyers seeking re-qualification to practice in the legal jurisdiction of both UK countries England & Wales. QLTS Exam Stages The QLTS Exam consists of two stages: QLTS MCT – Multiple Choice Test.
We are living in uncertain times and competition levels in the legal sector worldwide seem to have risen higher than ever. It’s a profession which boasts many talented professionals – those who’ve worked hard and done well in school, made sacrifices to progress their career and are working to distinguish themselves. Law firms have the pick of the bunch, and now more than ever, it’s important to be able to differentiate yourself from your peers. As a qualified lawyer in the U.S. and UK, I’ve learnt a lot during my career so far, including what you need to do to stand out from the crowd. So, I wanted to share some of these lessons with you.
Make yourself an expert in something
Now, this doesn’t need to be in the area of law that you practice or even necessarily in the field of law. However, when in an interview scenario or when you’re trying to get your foot in the door, it can prove helpful. It demonstrates that you’ve been a student and became an expert in something beyond your legal studies. Research from Time magazine shows that experts in the top 10% in high complexity jobs produce 80% more than average and 700% more than the bottom 10%. Developing an expertise is very appealing to employers and can help you become an essential asset to your firm or company. For example, if you’re an expert in utilising AI within your practice, you’ll be the person the wider team will go to for advice, making you an invaluable addition.
Consider cross-qualification
Most people don’t realise that there’s a clear route into cross-qualification in the UK and I certainly didn’t when I initially moved here from the U.S. When I first arrived, I felt that there were opportunities here for me in the legal sector, but I was restricted by the fact that I didn’t have a UK qualification – you can’t practice to a full degree without this. Although the Solicitor’s Regulation Authority still allows legal professionals to register as a Foreign Registered Lawyer (2,758 of whom did so in June 2020) or a Registered European Lawyer (781 in June 2020), there’s uncertainty around how long this will continue following the official implementation of Brexit. However, the Qualified Lawyers Transfer Scheme (QLTS) offers a viable alternative. Currently, over 10% of all those on the roll in England and Wales qualify through the QLTS route, and it’s viewed with credibility by employers. If you’re looking to operate on an international level, this qualification will help you to develop important skills which, I believe, can help you to become a better lawyer, and fully understand the differences between UK law and your qualifying jurisdiction. Personally, I found the differences between the law in England and Wales, and the U.S. quite apparent. Despite many overlaps, there are elements that are very unique, and I believe that you can better serve your clients in an international practice if you understand more than one legal system.
Focus on soft skills
I touched upon this in my introduction, but I wanted to reinforce the message that the legal industry is fiercely competitive. If you’ve entered into this world, you’ll already know that. Everyone is capable, they’ve done well in school, they’re driven and will likely have made sacrifices for their career. If that sounds like you, that’s fantastic – but what makes you different? Throughout your career, you’ll need to be able to distinguish yourself amongst your peers. After all, we must remember that as lawyers, we effectively carry out a service that involves working and interacting with others. It is important that we communicate and manage projects effectively, whilst compartmentalising your work to the best of your ability. These are skills that will need to be developed throughout the course of your career. The more investment you make, the more progress you will see.
Embrace technology
LawTech isn’t going anywhere. Clients will expect law firms and lawyers to have an understanding of the concepts that it presents. (Side note: it is a good area to make yourself an expert in some aspect of legal tech). It remains to be seen how much it will become a part of daily practice. Although many have certainly worked to make predictions in this area. A report from 2017 estimates that robots will take over a third of British jobs by 2030. It is not hard to envision that some aspects of legal practice will soon be handled by AI. But first and foremost, it’s important to be a good lawyer – understanding the law and how to communicate it in a simple fashion. Plus, according to Forbes, AI is still far from mastering critical thinking, leadership and listening skills. Being on the cutting edge of technology must come second and it is moving at an incredible pace, so it’s unlikely that anyone will expect you to have all of the answers. However, if you’re working in an industry that is technology-focused or if you are working alongside businesses in this sector, you’ll need a clear understanding of this in order to represent them effectively. After all, you need to understand the basis of your client’s legal matter.
Qlts Qualification
Have as much fun as you can
I wanted to finish on this point because the legal sector demands a lot from you. The industry is known for its extremes and is renowned for attracting high achievers. But in recent years, the mental health impact of this has come to the fore. In April 2020, the Law Society Gazette reported that stress, depression and anxiety cost businesses almost 70 million days off sick, and £26 billion every year through lost working days, staff turnover and lower productivity. So, it’s important to find ways to make the process as enjoyable as possible. Keep things in perspective and seek out peers who can offer you support. You may find that the culture may vary amongst firms and companies. I believe it’s all about finding your tribe and where you belong so you can truly come into your own and ultimately, enjoy the process.
For more information about our QLTS prep course, please get in touch today: https://barbriqlts.com/contact/
Chris Jorgenson, director of Institutional Partnerships at BARBRI
This article is for information purposes only.
ORIGINAL ARTICLE PUBLISHED 14 JUNE 2020.
UPDATE - 28 OCTOBER 2020:
The decision from the LSB came in and no extensions or changes were proposed.
The full decision can be found here: https://www.legalservicesboard.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/20201027-Decision-Notice-SQE.pdf
Qlts Dual Qualification
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UPDATE - 25 AUGUST 2020:
The initial challenge of the SRA’s policy, surrounding its unfair and unequal treatment of LPC graduates, bizarre QLTS deadlines and the refusal to accept the impact of the global pandemic on qualification in England, was unsuccessful despite lengthy correspondence with the SRA’s Head of Legal Policy.
However, the Legal Services Board has agreed to admit our representation against the application made by the SRA on 31 July 2020 for the final approval of the SQE.
We hope that our representation, together with the representation made on 21 August 2020 urging the LSB not to grant the SRA’s application, will receive positive consideration.
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UPDATE - 20 JUNE 2020:
It has come to my attention that the current wait times for admission overseas have now been delayed for up to a year. One of those jurisdictions is New York where, from the moment of application for admission, the processing takes between 6-12 months due to the pandemic, therefore, disadvantaging MCT-exempt individuals who were unable to attempt the Bar exam in 2020. It will be impossible for those taking the Bar in February 2021 to be sworn in before the current SRA deadline of 31/08/2021 (if MCT-exempt). Furthermore, considering the situation in the US at the moment and the uncontrollable spread of the virus, MCT-takers might be affected as well.
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Background
The QLTS is an exam for foreign lawyers wanting to cross qualify in England. It is administered by Kaplan and is made up of two parts: MCT (Black letter law) and OSCE (Practice).
Most aspiring solicitors have three options to qualify in England; options that all of us see at the law fairs and networking events every time that we attend one. These are:
a) the traditional training contract which, for many, is impossible to secure due to very high demand and not enough available places;
b) equivalent means for which one must do specific work under the direction of another solicitor for 2 years, and
c) pass NY or CA Bar followed by the QLTS to become dual-qualified.
Equivalent means route is difficult due to the high burden of proof and the fact that most who did not obtain a training contract are mature students who, like me, hold the most senior legal position in their company and not working under the direction of a solicitor. This is why the QLTS is the only option for many of us. Option, which due to the delays caused by the pandemic and the arbitrary policy of the SRA, is being more difficult to achieve.
My story
I am an LLB and LPC graduate. I intended to pass the New York Bar in July 2020, QLTS in November 2020 and qualify in England and Wales by January 2021. I started my bar prep with Barbri in September 2019 with 200 other participants, many of whom intended to qualify in England.
Due to the global pandemic, the NY Bar exam was postponed to February 2021. Bearing in mind the introduction of the SQE in September 2021, I suspected that there may be issues passing the QLTS in time. This situation led me to my own little investigation into deadlines.
MCT-exempt
The last MCT will be administered in the summer of 2021. Those who attempt it then will have an additional year (until summer 2022) to pass OSCE (“Transition Period”). However, the Transition Period DOES NOT apply to those exempt from the MCT requirement such as LPC graduates. MCT-exempt applicants have to complete their OSCE in the summer of 2021, the latest, which leaves us with two sittings in November 2020 and summer 2021. Those MCT-exempt individuals MUST apply for admission by 31 August 2021 and in order to do so, one must be fully qualified and admitted overseas.
This creates an issue for those of us who are unable to pass the Bar in 2020 due to the pandemic. This means that our last chance to qualify in England will be the bar exam (for NY and CA) in February 2021. If we fail or if due to the pandemic the exam is postponed till July 2021, we will be unable to qualify in England at all as our results won’t come in before 31 August 2021, therefore we will not be qualified foreign lawyers before the deadline for admission application in England. This means that we will be out of pocket for the cost of the LPC, Bar preparation course, and the OSCE exam (this is over £40,000).
Those exempt from the MCT requirement are already put at a disadvantage as we are not allowed to benefit from the Transition Period and have only until 31 August 2021 to apply for admission. However, even the MCT-takers are in trouble as due to the delays and cancellations of the exams abroad, they do not have an opportunity to prepare for the MCT unless they study for both, overseas bar examination and the MCT, at the same time which is not feasible because most students have full-time jobs and it would be very difficult, if not impossible, to prepare for 2 life-changing exams in two completely different jurisdictions all whilst going to work, vulnerable, shielding and taking care of other family-related obligations. Furthermore, studying for 2 exams is unlikely to result in success in either one which will increase the already challenging time commitment and financial and mental pressure.
This information is not easily accessible to the applicants and the QLTS providers do not seem to be aware of this either and keep advising students that they can apply for admission at any time after passing QLTS. Having spoken to a few of them, despite numerous meetings and guidance from the SRA, I was informed that all were informed of the long stop rules being given to students but there was no mention that LPC students would not be treated the same as all the rest of the applicants. For example, I decided to have a one-year break between completing the LPC in 2018 and starting the NY Bar prep course. Had I known that there is a deadline, I would not have done that. Only in my own Barbri course group, there are at least 25 affected individuals who were not aware of this situation.
SRAChallenge
In the light of my findings, on 16 May 2020, I have written a formal letter to the SRA (CC: Kaplan and the Law Society) challenging the current policy. I have asked for a general extension of the QLTS due to the pandemic and in the alternative, to allow MCT-exempt individuals to be treated equally and fairly and benefit from the same Transition Period allowed to the MCT-takers.
Three weeks later, I received a letter from the SRA. Unfortunately, they are unwilling to consider a policy review, in respect of the QLTS extension and those exempt from the MCT negatively impacted by the unavailability of the Transition Period, due to the global pandemic and the inequality of the current policy respectively.
The SRA proposed that the MCT-exempt individuals apply for the MCT anyway in order to benefit from the Transition Period. This idea is unreasonable as it would result in additional studying and expense from which we are exempt under the SRA’s own policy. Such a move should not be necessary under any circumstances.
The SRA has stated that they allowed the MCT-takers to benefit from the Transition Period because they made a “financial commitment” by paying the exam fee (approx. £700). I have completed the LPC with a view of passing the NY bar and subsequently completing the QLTS. This will cost me over £40,000 in total and I consider this a financial commitment to the QLTS even without paying the £700 for the MCT exam specifically. Furthermore, I believe that by applying for the MCT exemption we are showing our commitment to the QLTS - it is not something that we would have done without having the intention to go down that route.
The whole reason that the SQE was set up was to provide access to legal qualification to all and therefore it is not reasonable to now be disadvantaging one group over another. According to the SRA, the introduction of the SQE meant to ensure that all trainee solicitors, no matter which route they take, have the same opportunities and to ensure consistency and high standards across the board and silencing the notion that one route to qualification is better than another. The SRA also said that the SQE will make the law profession more accessible by lowering the cost of study (in comparison with the GDL and LPC.) In reality, not only not every applicant is treated the same and the only proposal by the SRA to cure that lack of equality involved spending more money by taking an exam from which many are exempt.
The extension does not have to result in the postponement of the SQE. I understand that the SRA has an obligation to roll out the SQE as soon as possible, which I note has not yet been signed off by the LSB, but there is no reason why both can’t run consecutively for a year especially as the SRA already planned for the OSCE to be available at the same time as the SQE for the MCT-takers. Furthermore, OSCE exams will continue under the current policy until 2022 for those that completed the MCT, therefore, those exempt from the MCT should be allowed to attend also. Such an allowance will not result in any additional effort for Kaplan/SRA. On the contrary, it will have commercial advantages to both, as there will be more OSCE applicants spending almost £4,000 each for an additional year.
I have further replied to the SRA setting out those points on 15 June 2020 and I currently await their response. Kaplan, the Law Society, Barbri, and leading QLTS course providers have been made aware of this situation.
Conclusion
QLTS route has been established to provide international lawyers with the ability to qualify in England and Wales. This has been a viable option to qualify for years and many students embarked on this path already just to face delays and barriers during the process due to the pandemic.
At this difficult time, when the exams and qualifications around the world are being postponed, there is uncertainty surrounding traveling restrictions and the fact that the NY is prioritising their own students, it would seem reasonable for the SRA to prioritise us - those who want to qualify here and those who spent a lot of money on the LPC in England already, to consider an extension of that route to qualification or at least to ensure that everyone has the same chance of success and ensuring that their regulation applies to MCT-exempted individuals.
Let’s keep our fingers crossed that the SRA listens to our pleadings and makes the right decision.