Scottish Government Legal Aid Traineeship Fund 2026

The Scottish Government have three main objectives for the Fund:

1. To increase the capacity and capability of the legal aid profession in Scotland.

2. To increase diversity and equality within the legal profession by the recruitment and retention of trainees from under-represented groups across the profession including people with a disability, from minority ethnic backgrounds, or from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

3. To provide employment and training opportunities for the purpose of supporting economic regeneration and development.

Step 1: Submit the online application

The online application form can be found and submitted through our website during the application window 1 June 2026 – 15 June 2026. Legal Aid Traineeship Fund: Firm/Organisation Application Form – Fill out form

Screenshots of the application form are provided in the Guidance Note so you can review and prepare before applying on the Law Society’s website.

Step 2: Submitting your accounts

Once you have submitted the online application form, you will auto-receive a confirmation of this via email from [email protected]. In this email there will be a secure link provided with additional instructions in how to submit your account information to evidence your Legal Aid turnover. Please submit these documents immediately after submission of your application. 

Failure to submit your firm/organisation accounts by 15 June 2026 will result in an incomplete application and therefore you will not be considered for the Fund.    

You will be asked about your firm/organisation when you fill out the application, and these will be considered when assessing your application. These areas will include.

·       What local authority your firm/organisation is based in

·       What type of Legal Aid your firm/organisation practices

·       How much of the firm’s/organisation’s work is Legal Aid

·       Whether your firm/organisation has previously taken on a trainee

·       A 200-word statement on why the Legal Aid Traineeship Fund would make a difference to your firm/organisation.

These areas will be considered when assessing your application.

The application form will ask you to set out the proportion of your turnover which is Legal Aid. This figure will be checked against your annual accounts and SLAB records.  

To calculate the proportion of Legal Aid work done, take your declared turnover for the two years before 1 April 2025 or such date as is appropriate for the relevant accounting period and divide this by the declared amount received from the Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB) for the same period. 

Applicants are required to vouch that legal aid work accounted for at least 35% of turnover over the last two years prior to application. Applicants can vouch this by declaring that legal aid work accounts for at least 35% of their turnover over the relevant period and either:

(a) producing their last two years’ certified accounts, from which the Law Society of Scotland will calculate the proportion of legal aid work done, based on declared turnover divided by declared amount received from the Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB) in the relevant years.

or

(b) producing a certificate from their accountants for the relevant period demonstrating 35% of applicants’ business turnover is derived from legal aid.

Traineeships eligible for funding under this Fund must be new traineeships. Therefore, they must commence after the fund’s launch date of 1 June 2026 and meet the recruitment terms. 

Yes although all Fund traineeships must be advertised openly to all potential applicants. LawscotJobs was identified as the best platform to do so, because traineeships vacancies are advertised for free and targeted to the Scottish legal market. Organisations may also choose to promote a traineeship vacancy via additional channels, such as social media. Advertising a role openly supports the fund's aim of improving equality and diversity in the legal profession, by increasing chances of accessibility. Staff members may still apply for a traineeship vacancy funded through the scheme via an open recruitment process.

All funded traineeships must be paid, as a minimum, the recommended rate, as set by the Law Society of Scotland. That rate is set each year and may change during the lifetime of the fund. Organisations are free to pay more but the maximum that can be reclaimed over the course of the traineeship is £25k.