Dear all

Does anyone know whether it is possible to qualify as a solicitor in England and Wales after having graduated from a Master´s in Law degree programme at a university in the UK? Is it mandatory to attend the LPC or can you sit the exams right away? Moreover, how long does it take to prepare for the exams?

Thanks for your advice!

It depends on where you come from and your pas working experience.

From my understanding, If you are basically from the EU, you can take the QLTT but if and only if you are already qualified in your own jurisdiction AND with two years experience.
Otherwise, you will have to take the LPC. I have a Chinese friend (not qualified in China) who got a training contract to a top city firm, but he has to take the conversionnal Year AND the LPC.

Thanks Ronin!

I looked it up on the Law Society's webpage which says that qualified lawyers a eligible to take the QLTT (you don't need to have experience as a EU lawyer though). Still, I haven't found out if graduates with a Master's degree from a UK law school have to take the law conversion course. To my mind, this would be ridicolous since foreign graduates, even if they don't have a law background, are already eligible to do so.

Basically, to become a UK solicitor, there are two routes (if you are not qualified in your own jurisdiction and therefore eligible to take the QLTT).

Either you have an LL.B from an English university or you take the conversion course (CPE/GDL). If you studied law at an undergraduate level abroad and then study for an LL.M in the UK (which seems to be your case), you do not have a "qualifying law degree" and therefore need to take both the conversion course and the LPC before beginning the training contract.

That's what I discovered when investigating this issue (I'm considering becoming a solicitor in the UK as well).

Thanks for your advice! That's quite disappoiting though. I wished it was like in the State of New York, where you can sit the bar exam and become an Attorney-At-Law quite easily after graduating with a Masters in Law. I will thus probably go back to Germany after my Master's degree and qualify there as a lawyer first.

You are right, it is tough.
So go back in Germany will definitely be the most simple.
I will also go back in France, wait for two years after qualification and then take the QLTT.

1. an LLM will make no difference either way to anyone

2. qualified EU lawyers (and some other lawyers such as those from Australia, NZ, Canada) with 2yrs + pqe can qualify via the QLTT (see http://www.qltt.co.uk/)

3. any other foreign qualified lawyer who doesn't fit into a QLTT category must take the LPC/GDL.