New Law Course From ILEX for Support Staff

05 August 2008 pr026.08

Those seeking a recognised qualification for support staff within a legal environment need look no further than the new Legal Studies course from the Institute of Legal Executives (ILEX), one of the leading providers of legal training in the United Kingdom.

The Legal Studies course which looks set to become a new benchmark qualification for support staff, replaces the ILEX Vocational Paralegal Studies qualification and is aimed at those whose knowledge of law and legal rights and duties feature in their work.

The new course has been developed in partnership with City & Guilds, the UK’s largest awarding body ,and is currently being rolled out to accredited centres across England and Wales. It will be available to students from September 2008.

It is a flexible ‘pick and mix’ qualification designed around a modular concept and in line with the newly introduced Qualifications and Credit Framework. Two core modules and eight optional modules make up the qualification. Each module has a credit rating which can be added together to meet the total required to gain one of three levels of attainment; Award, Certificate or Diploma.

For example, to attain the Award students must complete the Legal Environment core module and one optional module to attain the required credit total. Certificate level students will have to attain the required credits in both core modules and one option module. For the Diploma, again both core modules, but this time four optional modules are required to reach the required credit total.

The course may be studied full-time or part-time at college, work based or by distance learning. The qualification can be used in its own right or as an entry qualification to the recently introduced ILEX Level 3 Professional Diploma in Law and Practice, the first ILEX stepping stone leading to qualifying as a lawyer.

“We have developed the new course as a standalone course for support staff that meets future standards as well as providing a stepping stone for those students who want to go on and become a fully-qualified Legal Executive lawyer, using the ILEX route to qualification.,” said John Westwood, Director of Paralegal Studies at ILEX.

“The aim of the new course is to enrich the training provision and offer the flexibility that today’s students demand. The course has also been designed as an integral part of the ILEX family of legal courses, all designed around a similar course structure, allowing students to continue their studies with ILEX as their career progresses.

“We are confident that we have produced a course that will not only become the benchmark by which all other courses at this level are measured, but also the ‘MUST DO’ course for support staff.”

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