The Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEX) has appointed Jennifer Coupland as its new CEO, while appointing NHS lawyer Sara Fowler as its new president, as it awaits a decision on its regulatory future from the Legal Services Board (LSB).
Coupland succeeds interim CEO Craig Hamer, who will step down in September after holding the position since January 2024, following the departure of previous CEO Linda Ford. Ford was originally appointed in 2017, while Hamer joined CILEX as COO in 2022.
Coupland joins from London South Bank University, where she was pro vice-chancellor for skills. She was also previously CEO of the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE), which she led for five years, responsible for setting quality standards in apprenticeships and technical qualifications.
During her tenure at IfATE, she collaborated with employers and professional bodies to create more than 700 apprenticeships, launched and expanded the T-level qualification programme, and enhanced higher technical qualifications.
She also held similar roles at the Department for Education, was acting chief executive of the Standards and Testing Agency, and was deputy director of a joint UK government apprenticeships unit.
Coupland said: “Throughout my career in education, I have been committed to championing talent over tradition and carving out alternative routes to skilled jobs and professional careers,” adding that CILEX would continue to improve diversity in the profession, while expanding its reach and impact.
Women form the majority of CILEX’s membership, with more than 77% of members being female. The institute has regularly appointed female CEOs and presidents, with women accounting for three of the last four presidents. Coupland joins Ford, Diane Burleigh OBE and Mandie Levin in having managed CILEX.
Coupland added she would work closely with Fowler in managing future challenges: “As artificial intelligence democratises access to the law and fundamentally alters traditional approaches to legal training, this is an exciting moment for CILEX and as CEO, I hope that my experience will help us be at the forefront of this change and the opportunities it brings.”
CILEX chair Eileen Milner, who succeeded Professor Chris Bones last year, said Coupland was “experienced and highly respected”.
She added: “[Coupland] has a deep knowledge of education, training, assessment, awarding and regulation. She has worked to create high-quality apprenticeships and technical qualifications, opening up opportunities in the professions, increasing social mobility, challenging restrictive practices and helping transform a range of sectors to become more reflective of the public they serve.”
Fowler is a clinical negligence and healthcare lawyer at Barking, Havering and Redbridge NHS Trust and joint head of the Covid-19 Inquiry team for her trust and Barts Health NHS Trust.
She previously worked at NHS Resolution and began her career at Hill Dickinson, where she qualified as a chartered legal executive through a graduate apprenticeship scheme, specialising in clinical negligence.
She succeeds Foot Anstey partner Yanthé Richardson as president. Fowler promised to increase recognition of CILEX members, saying, while it had made huge strides, “the perception of many in the profession has not always kept pace with the reality”.
A former care leaver who left school with no qualifications, Fowler said she was committed to opening up the law to those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
She said: “At 18, I was a single mum living in a hostel with very little support, but I knew I wanted more. I started from scratch at college, eventually gaining a law degree before beginning my career as a paralegal in a City firm. Studying with CILEX alongside full-time work enabled me to qualify as a lawyer and achieve my current position.
“That is what CILEX represents: a profession that rewards resilience, opens doors and sees talent for what it is, not where it comes from.”
Milner added: “Sara will be a strong advocate for our membership, bringing lived experience that echoes the journey made by many of those who have qualified with CILEX, as well as a career that has seen her progress to a senior level within the NHS.”
The appointments come as CILEX’s bid for regulation by the Solicitors Regulation Authority remains under consideration by the Legal Services Board, as part of its ‘Case for Change’ – a move opposed by its own regulator, CILEX Regulation.
A spokesperson said it would comment publicly on those changes, which the Law Society strongly opposes, once the LSB confirms the next steps in the redelegation process.
The SRA has endured a difficult 2025, with outgoing CEO Paul Philip announcing his retirement earlier this year and being replaced by Sarah Rapson, an experienced regulator.
The SRA was also made subject to directions by the LSB following the hugely controversial Axiom Ince scandal.
Meanwhile, the LSB saw the resignation of its chair in March, followed by the departure of its chief executive Craig Westwood in June, both for personal reasons. It is currently being led by interim appointees.
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