Allen & Overy has launched a new route to qualification in its Belfast office, in addition to existing qualification routes in London and Belfast. 

Flexible path

The new route offers students flexible ways to pursue a legal career that best meet their learning preferences, while retaining exposure to a high quality of work and training. Currently, graduates working in A&O’s Belfast office have the option to apply to qualify as a lawyer through the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives. The additional route will give them the opportunity to apply for a training contract, based in Belfast, enabling them to combine studying for the LPC with paid employment as legal professionals. Jane Townsend, partner and head of the Legal Services Centre (LSC) in Belfast, comments ‘as the challenges faced by our clients evolve, we need to ensure that our lawyer base is as diverse and has as broad a skillset as possible to best serve them. That’s why we are evolving our processes too, to attract and train talented and ambitious lawyers of the future from all kinds of backgrounds and with a range of skills and interests.’ The training contract route is open to graduates currently working at A&O Belfast, to begin after their LPC studies in March and September 2021.

Compelling prospects

Ms Townsend explained that combining studying and working during the LPC ‘will continue to expose their lawyers in Belfast to the latest advances in legal tech and reflect the knowledge and skills lawyers of the future will increasingly need. With this new route to qualification our aim is to make a career in the law a compelling prospect for a broader range of graduates.’ Claire Wright, graduate recruitment partner at A&O adds ‘working in the LSC, our graduates get to work directly with some of A&O’s most innovative legal solutions, broadening their skillset in addition to the traditional legal skills they gain. This new training contract will give graduates greater flexibility to pursue a career in law while maintaining other skills and interests useful to their role as solicitors in the future.’