Alternatives to university
The most commonly followed route to qualifying as a Scottish solicitor is to complete an accredited Scots Law Degree (the LLB), then the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice and finally a two-year standard training contract. There are two alternatives to the university stages of this most common route:
- A pre-PEAT traineeship; and
- A non-PEAT 1 traineeship
Further information on these routes is below and on the associate sub-pages. Once you have considered these pages, if you have any further questions, please contact louisebradley@lawscot.org.uk regarding the pre-PEAT route and sophiemcghee@lawscot.org.uk regarding the non-PEAT 1 route for more information.
The pre-PEAT traineeship
This route is a replacement for the LLB stage of the route to qualification.
Rather than studying the LLB, individuals undertake a three-year "pre-PEAT training contract", whilst studying for and passing a number of Law Society of Scotland exams, including a Work Based Learning Module. Individuals taking this route are required to balance working life and independent studying, which can be extremely challenging.
Please note that we cannot source pre-PEAT training contracts for prospective applicants. For this reason, this alternative is typically utilised only by individuals who are already working under the supervision of a Scottish solicitor and want to begin the process of qualifying as a solicitor, supported by their employer.
The Non-PEAT 1 traineeship
The Law Society of Scotland expects all people who wish to qualify as a Scottish solicitor to have completed Professional Education and Training Stages 1 and 2 (or PEAT 1 and PEAT 2). These are commonly referred to as the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice (PEAT 1) and the traineeship (PEAT 2).
A three-year “non-PEAT 1 traineeship” is an exception to this expectation.
The non-PEAT 1 traineeship is only available to someone who has been granted an exemption from the requirement to complete PEAT 1 (i.e. the Diploma) by the Law Society’s Admissions Sub-committee. There is no right to undertake a non-PEAT 1 traineeship.
Full details of how to apply for such an exemption are on the non-PEAT 1 traineeship webpage.
Additional
Blog series: How I got into Law via an alternative route
In our blog series find out more about how members of the profession entered the sector via an alternative route and the value this can bring to your career.