Diversity in the legal profession

4 October 2016

Lord Chancellor, Liz Truss has spoken at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham today (4 October 2016). She says there is not enough diversity in the legal system.

CILEx chief operating officer, Linda Ford says “Liz Truss is right to say the ‘legal profession should be leading the field’ on diversity and social mobility. Just a few days ago I was enormously proud to see that in practise, as I joined the celebrations of CILEx’s record number of graduates who qualified through vocational and apprenticeship-style learning routes – many from disadvantaged backgrounds, BAME communities, and a significant majority of whom were women. 

“Whilst CILEx offers a genuinely accessible and affordable pathway to be a lawyer, progression and advancement is not always based on merit. CILEx lawyers still encounter barriers to fulfilling their full potential – including the ability to seek senior judicial appointments. We want to work with the Lord Chancellor and her team to remove the barriers that hold Chartered Legal Executives back, and create a culture in the legal sector where your only limit is your ambition.”