The Authorised Court Staff (Legal Advice Functions) Qualifications Regulations 2020

Citation and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Authorised Court Staff (Legal Advice Functions) Qualifications Regulations 2020 and come into force on 6th April 2020.

Qualifications required

2.—(1) A person may be authorised by the Lord Chief Justice under section 28(1) of the Courts Act 2003 or section 31O(1) of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984 only if the person—

(a) is a barrister in England and Wales, a solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales, or a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives;

(b) is qualified to become a barrister in England and Wales, a solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales, or a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives by virtue of—

(i) having passed the necessary examinations;

(ii) having been granted an exemption in relation to the necessary examinations by the appropriate examining body; or

(iii) any combination of the two;

(c) holds a valid training certificate granted by a magistrates’ courts committee before 1st January 1999; or

(d) acted as a clerk in court before 1st January 1999 and was qualified to act as such under the Justices’ Clerks (Qualification of Assistants) Rules 1979(1) as they stood immediately before 1st January 1999.

(2) In this regulation “training certificate” means a certificate granted in accordance with rule 5(2) of, and Schedule 3 to, the Justices’ Clerks (Qualifications of Assistants) Rules 1979 as they stood immediately before 1st January 1999, and the validity and duration of a training certificate granted before that date shall be determined as if those provisions were still in force.

Chris Philp

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State

Ministry of Justice

27th January 2020

I agree

Burnett of Maldon

Lord Chief Justice

28th January 2020