SRA proposes minor SQE1 syllabus tweaks despite concerns it covers too much law

Launches consultation

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is consulting on a series of relatively minor changes to the SQE1 syllabus, despite concerns that the exam already covers too many areas of law.

The regulator is seeking views on proposed changes to the Functioning Legal Knowledge (FLK), which sets out the legal principles and rules candidates are expected to know and apply in the multiple-choice assessment.

The proposals include removing certain anti-avoidance provisions relating to income tax, capital gains tax, corporation tax and inheritance tax, alongside additions to property law, wills and probate, and criminal law.

However, the SRA has stopped short of proposing any major overhaul of the subjects covered by SQE1, despite acknowledging concerns about the volume of material candidates are required to learn.

The regulator said it had received feedback that the “breadth and depth of the FLK is too wide” and that the core areas covered are “too numerous”.

It also acknowledged calls to introduce additional subjects, including family law and social welfare law, but said expanding the syllabus could increase costs and result in longer assessments.

Removing or reducing existing practice areas, meanwhile, would risk undermining its responsibility to ensure newly qualified (NQ) solicitors can practise competently across the range of reserved legal activities, the SRA argued.

The consultation comes after the SRA recently announced plans to cut the number of SQE1 questions from 360 to 340 complaints that the assessment felt rushed and pressurised. Meanwhile, the latest SQE1 pass rate fell to 42% in July, down from 53% in January.

The wider consultation also includes proposals aimed at strengthening expectations around artificial intelligence, professional ethics and supervision.

The SRA is now inviting feedback on whether the FLK is too broad, too narrow or about right, and whether the proposed additions and removals reflect the knowledge required of a newly qualified solicitor.