Query re qualifying

kronsington

Hi. My indentures are due to expire in april. My firm has offered me a maximum 3 months after that time. Is there some sort of procedure to go through? Can I continue basically working as a trainee after this time? I know once I go on the roll ill be eligible for a practising cert. I basically want to continue in my office as long as possible in the current capacity. any info on this would be appreciated

I hope that's clear. Basically they have said I can work in the firm until June/July. But since I wont officially be a trainee after 12th april when my indentures expire and wont be qualified until I am on the Roll, can i still work in the firm? Almost like an unofficial trainee?

shaneybaby

kronsington wrote: »

Hi. My indentures are due to expire in april. My firm has offered me a maximum 3 months after that time. Is there some sort of procedure to go through? Can I continue basically working as a trainee after this time? I know once I go on the roll ill be eligible for a practising cert. I basically want to continue in my office as long as possible in the current capacity. any info on this would be appreciated

I hope that's clear. Basically they have said I can work in the firm until June/July. But since I wont officially be a trainee after 12th april when my indentures expire and wont be qualified until I am on the Roll, can i still work in the firm? Almost like an unofficial trainee?

I'm a year behind you but will be in almost the exact same position. Like there’s a fair few weeks that one has to wait before being put on the roll. Three months pqe is great (or is it three months post trainee ship!?)

blueythebear

kronsington wrote: »

Hi. My indentures are due to expire in april. My firm has offered me a maximum 3 months after that time. Is there some sort of procedure to go through? Can I continue basically working as a trainee after this time? I know once I go on the roll ill be eligible for a practising cert. I basically want to continue in my office as long as possible in the current capacity. any info on this would be appreciated

I hope that's clear. Basically they have said I can work in the firm until June/July. But since I wont officially be a trainee after 12th april when my indentures expire and wont be qualified until I am on the Roll, can i still work in the firm? Almost like an unofficial trainee?

You'll essentially be continuing in your existing role, just as a qualified without a practising cert.

Bit of a grey area. The law society will tell you that if you are giving legal advice, you must have a practising cert. Your employer won't be paying for a practising cert if you're only there for 3 months.

Perhaps you could offer to pay for your practising and go on your firms' PII for 3 months. No cost to them although it's about €2,000 that you have to pay out. To many that's not feasible.

Anyway, relax about it. Often trainees are kept on short term and act pretty much as solicitors despite not having a practising cert. It's unavoidable really.

However, that said, you'd still be acting as a solicitor without technically being permitted to do so.

To be honest, with the severe lack of jobs out there for newly qualifieds, I would suggest that whether you have a practising cert or not is the least of your worries.

kronsington

blueythebear wrote: »

You'll essentially be continuing in your existing role, just as a qualified without a practising cert.

Bit of a grey area. The law society will tell you that if you are giving legal advice, you must have a practising cert. Your employer won't be paying for a practising cert if you're only there for 3 months.

Perhaps you could offer to pay for your practising and go on your firms' PII for 3 months. No cost to them although it's about €2,000 that you have to pay out. To many that's not feasible.

Anyway, relax about it. Often trainees are kept on short term and act pretty much as solicitors despite not having a practising cert. It's unavoidable really.

However, that said, you'd still be acting as a solicitor without technically being permitted to do so.

To be honest, with the severe lack of jobs out there for newly qualifieds, I would suggest that whether you have a practising cert or not is the least of your worries.

Paying for my own Practising Cert right now isn't an option. As I said, my firm has said I can work till end of June/July. I just hope this grey area isnt an issue. It's only for a relatively short amount of time anyway. what happens to a person whose indentures expire and then they have to wait a number of weeks to be admitted to the Roll? are they essentially in limbo? im trying to think how to phrase it best to my firm- i had hoped to get 6 months after april, they said three, and now there's ill be out on my arse in a month. doing law was the biggest mistake of my life

shaneybaby

kronsington wrote: »

Paying for my own Practising Cert right now isn't an option. As I said, my firm has said I can work till end of June/July. I just hope this grey area isnt an issue. It's only for a relatively short amount of time anyway. what happens to a person whose indentures expire and then they have to wait a number of weeks to be admitted to the Roll? are they essentially in limbo? im trying to think how to phrase it best to my firm- i had hoped to get 6 months after april, they said three, and now there's ill be out on my arse in a month. doing law was the biggest mistake of my life

Permission to use the above post this time next year...

blueythebear

kronsington wrote: »

Paying for my own Practising Cert right now isn't an option. As I said, my firm has said I can work till end of June/July. I just hope this grey area isnt an issue. It's only for a relatively short amount of time anyway. what happens to a person whose indentures expire and then they have to wait a number of weeks to be admitted to the Roll? are they essentially in limbo? im trying to think how to phrase it best to my firm- i had hoped to get 6 months after april, they said three, and now there's ill be out on my arse in a month. doing law was the biggest mistake of my life

Seriously, don't worry about it. I know many people kept on after their indentures expire and don't have a practising cert for their first year.

As for when you leave your training firm, I can't emphasise how tough it is to get work as a newly qualified at the moment. It's really tough to the point that you will probably not get work as a solicitor per se. Law Society have brought in a new programme to get qualified quickly in England and Wales and that might be worth a look. Or else suggest going further afield. It's incredibly depressing for newly qualifieds right now.