The Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEX) is the

professional body A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) is a group that usually seeks to advocacy, further a particular profession, the interests of individuals and organisations engaged in ...

for

paralegal A paralegal, also known as a legal assistant or paralegal specialist, is a legal professional who performs tasks that require knowledge of legal concepts but not the full expertise of a lawyer with an admission to practice law. The market for p ...

s, CILEX lawyers and other specialist legal professionals in

England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the Law of the United Kingdom#Legal jurisdictions, three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. Th ...

History

The original name of Institute of Legal Executives (ILEX) was established in 1963 with the help of the

Law Society of England and Wales The Law Society of England and Wales (officially The Law Society) is the professional association that represents solicitors for the jurisdiction of England and Wales. It provides services and support to practising and training solicitors, as ...

to provide a more formal process for training so-called "solicitors' clerks". Prior to that the Institute had various incarnations dating back to 1892. Charles Dickens was a solicitor's clerk (he drew on his experience for characters in his novels, and a solicitor's managing clerk is featured in John Galsworthy's 1910 play ''

Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...

''). Traditionally, solicitors' clerks were not formally trained in law, but through experience had built up a working knowledge of specific aspects and could carry out legal paperwork as a fee earner. The creation of the Institute of Legal Executives meant that solicitors' clerks became qualified "legal executives" (holding a practising certificate and having a similar role to solicitors in practicing law). Legal Executive Lawyers gained rights that allow them to become partners in

law firms A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise consumer, clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and Obligation, respon ...

, advocates with rights of audience in Court and judges.

Royal charter status

On 13 October 2011 the Institute of Legal Executives (as a company limited by guarantee) sought royal charter status from

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

via the Privy Council. A royal charter was granted on 30 January 2012, and the Institute of Legal Executives became the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives, otherwise known as CILEX.

Legal qualifications

The official

legal education Legal education is the education of individuals in the principles, practices, and theory of law. It may be undertaken for several reasons, including to provide the knowledge and skills necessary for admission to legal practice in a particular j ...

that CILEX provides as a route into the legal profession is the CILEX Professional Qualification (CPQ). It is designed to produce CILEX Lawyers, CILEX Advanced Paralegal and CILEX Paralegal.

Membership

CILEX has more than 17,000 members, all eligible to use the appropriate designatory letters depending on their membership grade and demonstrating their commitment to professional and ethical standards in the

legal profession Legal profession is a profession in which legal professionals study, develop and apply law. Usually, there is a requirement for someone choosing a career in law to first pass a bar examination after obtaining a law degree or some other form of l ...

Continuing Professional Development

The CILEX

Continuing Professional Development Professional development, also known as professional education, is learning that leads to or emphasizes education in a specific professional career field or builds practical job applicable skills emphasizing praxis in addition to the transferab ...

(CPD) is created to ensure that all CILEX-qualified professionals maintain and extend their knowledge and skills while improving their professional role and career. This is to continue following their professional and legal duties, plus their compliance required by CILEX Regulation.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chartered Institute Of Legal Executives Legal organisations based in England and Wales Organisations based in Bedford Regulators of England