SRA Standards and Regulations

Assessment Board

The Assessment Board will comprise: The Chief Executive Officer, SRA, or their nominee, the SRA External Psychometrician, and three other nominees from the SRA The Director of Qualifications, Kaplan, or their nominee, and three other nominees from Kaplan. The Chief Executive Officer, SRA (or their nominee) will be the Chair. In the absence of agreement, final decisions will be made by the SRA....

Mitigating circumstances

Mitigating circumstances are defined as: a mistake or irregularity in the administration or conduct of the assessment; or evidence of bias in the conduct of the assessment; or subject to the Fit to Sit Policy and these Assessment Regulations a candidate's illness or other personal circumstances beyond their reasonable control which have, or are likely to, materially and adversely affect a...

Withdrawal from the examinations

Candidates may withdraw before the start of an assessment subject to the SQE Terms and Conditions. Withdrawal during an assessment is subject to the SQE Terms and Conditions, the SQE Fit to Sit Policy (Regulation 10) and the SQE Mitigating Circumstances Policy (Regulation 12).

Appeals against Assessment Board decisions

A candidate may make a first stage appeal on one or more of the following grounds only: there are mitigating circumstances which could not have been put before the Assessment Board before it made its decision; or the decision of the Assessment Board, or the manner in which that decision was reached involved material irregularity and/or was manifestly unreasonable and/or irrational; or the...

Maintaining trust and acting fairly

You do not unfairly discriminate by allowing your personal views to affect your professional relationships and the way in which you provide your services. You do not abuse your position by taking unfair advantage of clients or others. You perform all undertakings given by you, and do so within an agreed timescale or if no timescale has been agreed then within a reasonable amount of time. You...

Dispute resolution and proceedings before courts, tribunals and inquiries

You do not misuse or tamper with evidence or attempt to do so. You do not seek to influence the substance of evidence, including generating false evidence or persuading witnesses to change their evidence. You do not provide or offer to provide any benefit to witnesses dependent upon the nature of their evidence or the outcome of the case. You only make assertions or put forward statements,...

Service and competence

You only act for clients on instructions from the client, or from someone properly authorised to provide instructions on their behalf. If you have reason to suspect that the instructions do not represent your client's wishes, you do not act unless you have satisfied yourself that they do. However, in circumstances where you have legal authority to act notwithstanding that it is not possible to...

Other business requirements

You must not be a manager, employee, member or interest holder of a business that: has a name which includes the word "solicitors"; or describes its work in a way that suggests it is a solicitors' firm; unless it is an authorised body. If you are a solicitor who holds a practising certificate, an REL or RFL, you must complete and deliver to the SRA an annual return in the prescribed form. If...

Confidentiality and disclosure

You keep the affairs of current and former clients confidential unless disclosure is required or permitted by law or the client consents. Where you are acting for a client on a matter, you make the client aware of all information material to the matter of which you have knowledge, except when: the disclosure of the information is prohibited by legal restrictions imposed in the interests of...

Application section

These rules apply to authorised bodies, their managers and employees and references to "you" in these rules should be read accordingly. The authorised body's managers are jointly and severally responsible for compliance by the authorised body, its managers and employees with these rules. In relation to a licensed body, the rules apply only in respect of activities regulated by the SRA in...