CILEX opens up final stage of CPQ to LPC graduates

4th July 2022

CILEX (the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives) has opened up the final stage of the CILEX Professional Qualification (CPQ), allowing Legal Practice Course (LPC) and Bar Professional Course (BPC) graduates to study and qualify as CILEX Lawyers in as little as 18 months.

The CPQ, launched last year, is a three-stage progressive qualification designed to meet the demands of the modern legal market, recognising that a successful career in the law requires more than just legal knowledge. 

Aspiring lawyers who have already completed either the LPC or BPC can enrol in the third and final stage of CPQ – CPQ Professional stage – as trainee CILEX Lawyers, without having to complete the first two. On completion, they will be qualified to practise alongside solicitors, barristers and other legal professionals, with practice rights in their chosen area of specialism. CILEX Lawyers can go on to become partners in law firms, coroners, judges or advocates in open court.

The CPQ Professional stage combines academic study in the trainee CILEX Lawyer’s chosen practice area with work-based assessment that covers wider business and organisational skills such as commercial awareness, legal technology, innovation and management.

Qualification takes between 18 months and two years – although students can progress at whatever speed suits them. Students will need to be working in a legal services role in order to complete the work-based element of the CPQ Professional stage.

CILEX CEO Linda Ford says: “Opening up the final stage of the CPQ to those who have already studied for the LPC or BPC gives aspiring lawyers who want to progress to the next stage of their careers, the option of qualifying as a specialist lawyer, able to practise alongside solicitors, barristers and other legal professionals.

“Whilst students can study at their own pace, CPQ Professional stage offers a fast-track path to becoming a formally recognised specialist, with tangible experience, practical, commercial and interpersonal skills as well as legal expertise.”