In a nutshell
What are the qualifications about?
An Award, Certificate or Diploma in Legal Studies can help you take on a job in legal administration, or any job where you'll need a basic understanding of the law.
These qualifications cover key aspects of the law and are offered in association with ILEX (The Institute of Legal Executives), the profession's leading membership body.
You'll cover different types of law and how the legal environment works - and you can choose the topics that are most relevant to the jobs you want.
Who are they for?
An Award, Certificate or Diploma in Legal Studies is for anybody interested in a law-related job, eg as a court clerk, barristers' clerk, administrative paralegal or legal secretary.
You don't need any legal experience to take the qualification.
Why choose City & Guilds?
A City & Guilds qualification is proof that you have the right skills to do your job well - which is why so many employers look for people who have one. You can be confident your qualification is well respected within your industry.
City & Guilds qualifications are engaging and rewarding, and can lead to a whole range of fulfilling careers - including many of the UK's happiest professions.
Fast facts
| Qual. number: | 7462 |
|---|---|
| Type: | QCF |
| Level: | 2 |
| Size: | Award, Certificate and Diploma |
| Purpose: | Continuing professional development |
| Credits: | 12, 22, 43 |
| 80-260 | |
| Duration: | 1-2 years |
| Fundable? | Yes. See the Learning Aims Database |
| Last registration: | 31/08/2012 |
Your questions
... if you're taking these qualifications
- What sorts of things do they cover?
You'll have lots of options and you'll cover things like:
- the legal environment
- principles of liability
- structure and jurisdiction of the courts
- personal injury procedures
- family law matters
- debt recovery systems.
- How will I learn and be assessed?
A QCF qualification gives you greater flexibility when studying and allows you to transfer credits across qualifications. You will be awarded credits for each course of study you complete.
For the Award or Certificate in Legal Studies you will do assignments, practical demonstrations and a multiple choice test.
For the Diploma in Legal Studies you will do assignments, practical demonstrations and a written test.
- Which level is right for me?
Level 2
You're working, or wish to work, in legal administration, in a role such as court clerk, barristers' clerk, administrative paralegal, legal secretary or in a legal advice centre. You want to increase your skills and take on more responsibility in the legal sector. - How long do they take?
Guided learning hours
Guided learning hours are the hours you spend learning with your training provider or on your own. The guided learning hours for this qualification are:- Level 2 Award: 80 hours
- Level 2 Certificate: 140 hours
- Level 2 Diploma: 260 hours.
- What jobs could they lead to?
The Award, Certificate or Diploma in Legal Studies can help you get a job in lots of areas of the legal system including:
- barrister's clerk (England and Wales)
- court administrative officer
- Crown Prosecution Service administrator/caseworker
- legal adviser/court clerk
- legal executive
- legal secretary.
If you are interested in continuing legal studies you might want to move on to:
- ILEX Level 3 Diploma in Vocational Paralegal Studies.
If you want to become a solicitor the following qualifications might be of interest:
- Institute of Legal Executive's Professional Awards at levels 3 and 6
- ILM team leader and management qualifications.
... if you're delivering these qualifications
- How would we deliver and assess them?
You'll need to provide your learners with a suitable learning environment and the resources they need to complete the practical and theoretical aspects of the qualification. You will need qualified internal assessors.
The keynote here is flexibility - allowing your learners to develop their own professional portfolio and build on their success in their future legal careers. They can start with an Award by getting just two units. One unit more and they have the Certificate. Three more units and they gain a Diploma.
To find all the requirements for assessment and delivery, download the course handbooks from the Key Documents section.
- What resources do we need?
In order to offer the Award/Certificate/Diploma in Legal Studies, you will need:
- suitably qualified staff to carry out training and assessment
- suitable facilities to carry out the required training to enable learners to achieve industry standards.
Full details are contained within the qualification handbook.
- How can we get approval to offer them?
New to City & Guilds?
First become a centre - then you can apply for qualification approval.Already a centre?
You can get fast-track approval if you offer:- Level 2 Certificate in Vocational Paralegal Studies (7461-02/04).
Download the fast-track approval from the Key Documents section.
Don't offer any of these?
Download and complete the qualification approval form (PDF) and send it to your local City & Guilds office. - Are there any learner eligibility requirements?
Anyone can take this qualification, but you must make sure all your learners can access the resources they need to complete it. Learners must have basic literacy and numeracy skills and be able to organise written information clearly.
- Do these qualifications replace any others?
No, this qualification doesn't directly replace any others.
e-learning support
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Online tutor and learning support coming soon (SmartScreen) What is this?
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Related qualifications
Related careers
- Barrister's clerk (England and Wales)
- Court administrative officer
- Crown Prosecution Service administrator/caseworker
- Legal secretary