Diversity "not a tick box but a necessity": Yousaf at Faculty event

Diversity in the legal profession is not a tick box exercise but a necessity, Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf told an audience at the Faculty of Advocates last night.

Mr Yousaf was principal guest at an event that jointly marked the first anniversary of the Scottish Ethnic Minorities Lawyers Association (SEMLA), and the launch of the Lord Hope of Craighead Scholarship, a new scheme offering financial support to intending advocates through their nine months of unpaid training, or "devilling".

At the event, the Faculty's treasurer, Roddy Dunlop QC, revealed that the new scheme had resulted in 11 scholarshiop awards being made to those beginning their devilling in October 2019, compared with two or three in previous years.

"The vast majority will be going to candidates who are female, or state educated or from ethnic minority backgrounds", he told the audience.

"Faculty is there to serve the people of Scotland. All of the people of Scotland. And in so doing we need to be able to draw from the most talented legal minds in Scotland – whatever may be their race, religion, gender, sexuality or social background."

The scholarship, named after the former Lord President of the Court of Session and Deputy President of the UK Supreme Court, is funded by a voluntary levy on the earnings of practising members of Faculty. Mr Dunlop also disclosed that 95% of practising advocates are taking part in the scheme. 

In addition to assisting devils, it also helps people into the wider legal profession, supporting the "mini-devils" scheme to introduce law students to life at Faculty, and also by funding an additional law student place through the Law Society of Scotland's charity, Lawscot Foundation.

SEMLA was the brainchild of advocate Usman Tariq, and its members probably formed the majority of last night's audience – though Mr Yousaf did ask whether we are yet "diverse in diversity", with most of them being ethnic South Asian. But he was "very proud" of SEMLA and its work.

Mr Tariq told the meeting: "The origin of the idea for SEMLA was a meeting between Kirsty Hood QC of the Faculty, Rob Marrs of the Law Society of Scotland and myself at Parliament House in late 2016. It is fitting that SEMLA’s first anniversary event has come full circle back to Parliament House and to share the occasion with the launch of the Faculty’s new scholarship scheme. Both of these initiatives are driven by a strong desire to make real change to the legal profession and to make careers in law more accessible to all."

He added: "The legal profession should reflect the diversity of society as a whole. Lawyers drawn from a wide range of backgrounds and life experiences will bring varying perspectives to bear on critical legal issues. A legal profession and judiciary which is visibly more reflective of society will enhance public confidence in the profession and the rule of law.”

Welcoming both ventures, Mr Yousaf said: "These two innovative initiatives aim to help the profession become more reflective of the clients and communities it serves by increasing the representation of ethnic minority lawyers across Scotland's legal sector, and improving accessibility to the bar for those who might otherwise be dissuaded due to the costs of pursuing that path.

"A career in law should be open to all groups and all backgrounds to ensure the legal profession – and Scotland – benefits from their ideas, their talents and their potential to provide access to justice for all. Diversity is not a tick box, not something that is ‘nice to do’; it is a necessity."

Opening the meeting, Gordon Jackson QC, Dean of Faculty, said that whatever the position in the past, actual or perceived, the message now from Faculty was: "We say to people who have the ability, desire and drive – it does not matter your gender, your colour or your social background, you are welcome."

Further talks were given by Naeema Sajid, a family law partner with Aberdein Considine and founding member of SEMLA, and Christine McLintock, chair of the Lawscot Foundation.

Ms Sajid described how there had been no role models when she qualified, but that was now changing, and commented that awareness of SEMLA in its first year had grown at "an alarming pace".

Ms McLintock said that reading applications received by the Lawscot Foundation, and seeing the challenges faced and overcome by people and their determination to become lawyers, was "very humbling". The work of the Foundation was "not about the law but about the aspirations of young people" – the students the Foundation was supporting said they wanted to come into the law in order to help others.