Flexible PPC course addresses ‘unmet demand’
The legal-services watchdog says that the popularity of the Law Society’s part-time programme for trainee solicitors indicates that it has addressed “a previously unmet demand” within the profession.
Figures for 2024 from the Legal Services Regulatory Authority (LSRA) show a slight downturn in numbers enrolling in professional training for solicitors and barristers and the numbers of new entrants to both professions.
The figures are contained in the LSRA’s , its sixth annual report on admission policies to the legal profession.
Flexible routes
For the first time, the report provides information about flexible routes to professional training for solicitors and barristers and the access initiatives of the Law Society, the King’s Inns, and The Bar of Ireland.
This additional reporting arises from recommendations in the LSRA’s Breaking Down Barriers initiative to widen access and increase diversity in the legal professions.
“The part-time PPC Hybrid and modular BL degree course continue to grow in popularity and are facilitating more flexible pathways to the solicitors' and barristers' professions for people from more diverse backgrounds,” the LSRA states.
Fall in new entrants
The report shows that the total number of practising solicitors in 2024 was 12,175 – the highest figure in ten years. Over two-thirds of these (8,177) were working in Dublin.
In 2024, first-time practising certificates were issued to 378 newly qualified Law Society solicitors – down 9% from 416 in 2023.
The LSRA says that the Law Society has attributed the decrease in new entrants to a restructuring of the PPC, and expects that the number of trainees admitted to the Roll of Solicitors will return to normal levels in 2025.
A total of 542 new trainee solicitors enrolled on the Law Society’s Professional Practice Course (PPC) in 2024 – down 3% from 2023 and the first drop in four years.
There were 442 new trainees on the full-time course and 100 trainees on the part-time course, the PPC Hybrid.
PPC Hybrid’s steady growth
The report points out that the number of PPC Hybrid solicitor trainees has steadily grown in the six years since its introduction in 2019.
Part-time solicitor trainees accounted for almost one in five (18%) of the total solicitor trainee intake last year.
Just over 90% of new solicitor trainees were aged 30 or under, and two-thirds were women.
Eight in ten (83%) had a law degree, while 16% had a degree in another discipline, and 1% had no degree.
As in previous years, just over eight in ten new trainee solicitors secured training contracts with law firms in Dublin, reflecting the dominance of the country’s capital in the legal-services market.
Almost two-thirds of trainees (63%) in 2024 had training contracts in one of the 20 large law firms in Ireland.
In contrast, only 5% of trainees secured a contract in-house with a private company or with a State body.
BL degree figure drops
The LSRA report shows that the total number of barristers on the Roll of Practising Barristers maintained by the LSRA stood at 3,071 at the end of 2024.
Of these, 2,134, (69%) were members of the Law Library and 937 (31%) were not members of the Law Library.
A total of 120 students started the Barrister-at-Law (BL) degree course at the King’s Inns in 2024 – down 8% from 131 in 2023.
There were 50 full-time students and 70 part-time students. The LSRA says that part-time students have generally outnumbered full-time students in recent years, “highlighting the importance of flexible training routes into the barrister profession”.
The Chief Justice called 136 barristers to the Bar last year, allowing them full rights of audience before all courts. This is down 17% from 163 in 2023.
A total of 82 barristers began their mandatory 12-month period of unpaid supervised practice, called pupillage, as members of the Law Library – up from 72 in 2023.
Recruitment challenges
Noting the concentration of legal practitioners in Dublin, the LSRA says that reports of recruitment and retention challenges in the solicitors’ profession in both the public and private sectors continue.
“Top-20 firms have responded to competitive challenges with staff pay rises and allied increases in their client fees,” it adds.
Amid a “buoyant” employment market in Dublin, the LSRA also notes reports of regional disparities and shortages around the rest of Ireland.
DPP concerns
It cited reports from the Legal Aid Board that it is struggling to recruit solicitors in a highly competitive job market amid increased demand for its services, in particular in the area of international protection.
The LSRA also notes concerns raised in a submission from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions about the decreasing numbers of solicitors practising outside of Dublin and the other main cities, particularly on the western seaboard.
“While continued growth in the economy is an opportunity, it can also create recruitment and retention challenges in the legal-services sector and lead to increases in legal costs,” the watchdog warns.