Accredited and Trainee Paralegals - Get more out of your CPD

It’s hard to believe we are already halfway through the Accredited Paralegal practice year. If you haven’t already done so, now would be a good time to start planning your training and development for the remainder of the year.

All Accredited Paralegals are required to complete ten hours of CPD during the practice year and Trainees are required to complete ten hours of CPD during their traineeship.

We know it’s not always easy to find the time to complete CPD, but the good news is there are some quick, free and easy ways to expand your knowledge and skills while gaining those CPD hours!

Firstly, it’s useful to understand what areas of study count towards CPD. CPD is any training or learning activity which is designed to improve your professional knowledge, understanding and skills. We require you to submit at least five hours of verifiable CPD and the remaining hours can be made up of private study. You can find more details of what kind of study counts for verifiable and non-verifiable, here. We appreciate it’s not always easy to differentiate between the two.

The Law Society offers a wide range of in-person, live and on-demand courses including conferences, certified courses, and essential skills training. As well as our main CPD programme we also offer a variety of free courses so there is lots to choose from. Please visit the CPD section of our website to find out more.

We would recommend signing up to our fortnightly CPD newsletter which provides details of CPD across all areas of law, newly launched events, and early bird rates. This is a great way of keeping up to date on what CPD we have to offer.

We would also recommend updating your ‘Areas of Interests’ through the profile section of our member site. This will ensure you receive tailored notifications and updates on your specific area of law.

It couldn’t be easier to update your CPD hours. Just sign into our member site, select the paralegal hub, and update your details through the CPD tab.

All CPD should be submitted by close of business on 31 January.

As part of the renewal process, we complete a CPD sample check. Members that have not submitted their CPD will be contacted and failure to provide evidence may result in removal from the status.

We understand that things don’t always go to plan. If you experience any issues completing your CPD hours, please get in touch and we will be happy to help.