THIS week’s report by the Sutton Trust on the educational backgrounds of 1,200 people working in professions, including the law, suggested that “your chances of reaching the top in so many areas of British life are very much greater if you went to an independent school” (“Top actors outrank music stars in private school stakes”, The Herald, February 24).
We are the leaders of the Faculty of Advocates (the Scottish bar) and the Law Society of Scotland (the solicitors’ profession in Scotland). None of us attended a private school.
Our two organisations are committed to promoting fair access to the legal profession. We engage in various initiatives, such as the popular MiniTrials and Street Law projects, which are directed to promoting an understanding within schools, in particular state schools, about the legal system and the legal profession.
We believe that nobody should be deterred from pursuing a career in the law in Scotland by reason of educational background.
James Wolffe, QC, Dean of the Faculty of Advocates; Gordon Jackson, QC, Vice-Dean of Faculty; Alan Summers, QC, Treasurer of Faculty; Kirsty Hood, QC, Clerk of Faculty; Mungo Bovey, QC, Keeper of the Advocates Library;
Christine McLintock, President, Law Society of Scotland; Eilidh Wiseman, Vice-President, Law Society of Scotland;
Lorna Jack, Chief Executive, Law Society of Scotland,
c/o Atria One, 144 Morrison Street, Edinburgh.
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