Can a Chartered Legal Executive Advocate join the Duty Rota Scheme?

Yes. Chartered Legal Executive Advocate can join the Criminal Litigation Accreditation Scheme (CLAS). Once a Chartered Legal Executive Advocate is a member of the CLAS, they can apply to the Legal Aid Agency to add their name to the Duty Rota Scheme.

In order to join the CLAS, Chartered Legal Executive Advocates are required to have passed the Police Station Qualification (PSQ), and the Magistrates Court Qualification (MCQ). This does mean that members will need to complete and pass the MCQ following the CILEX Advocacy qualification. There are four training providers where you can register for the MCQ:

I’ve passed the MCQ, how do I join the CLAS?

Complete the application form on the Law Society’s webpage found here.

Once the Law Society has confirmed you are a member of the CLAS, you are able to include your name on the duty rota form which will be sent by your firm to the Legal Aid Agency

Future developments to look out for

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and the Legal Aid Agency (LAA) have agreed with CILEX that suitably qualified CILEX Lawyers will in future be permitted to act as duty lawyers in their own right under the Criminal Legal Aid Contract.

Currently, CILEX Lawyers can act in this capacity but only as members of the CLAS. They are not permitted to be supervisors, for example or operate out of CILEX firms, as opposed to SRA regulated firms, in this capacity, which limits future business models/options.

CILEX has demonstrated to the MoJ and LAA that members who hold criminal litigation and advocacy rights AND have completed the SRAs Police Station Representative Accreditation Scheme (PSRAS) qualification, will be permitted to act as duty lawyers in their own right. In the medium term, CILEX will be working on amending its qualifications, and develop a short top-up for existing members to simply have Criminal Litigation and Advocacy practice rights as the qualifying threshold (removing the requirement for the PSRAS).

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