Biopolitics and the Solicitors Qualifying Examination

Madhloom, Omar (2023) Biopolitics and the Solicitors Qualifying Examination. In, Siliquini-Cinelli, Luca and Giddens, Thomas (eds.) Biopolitics and Structure in Legal Education. 1 ed. Routledge, pp. 40-56. (doi:10.4324/9781003175193-5).

Abstract

The Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) was introduced on 1 September 2021 with the intention for it to become the new centralised route to qualifying in England and Wales. Consequently, aspiring solicitors must complete SQE 1, which consists of two functional legal knowledge assessments, SQE 2 which focuses on practical legal skills and knowledge, and two years of Qualifying Work Experience (QWE).

This chapter seeks to address two key questions: whether the SQE engenders aspiring solicitors with the necessary conceptual tools to engage in critical reflection, namely examining issues of power and control of juridic institutions; and whether the SQE’s pedagogy promotes justice. These questions will be examined by firstly exploring the pedagogy of the SQE through the lens of biopolitics and Paulo Freire’s theory of education. Moreover, biopolitics, Freire’s ‘banking’ model, and legal positivism will be used to outline the potential implications of the SQE’s pedagogy on legal ethics. It will be argued that focusing on the application of rules can lead to moral detachment. This approach risks training aspiring solicitors to believe that ‘thinking like a lawyer’ entails subduing their compassion, idealism, and pursuit of justice. The chapter will conclude by proposing a supplemental egalitarian model, underpinned by critical reflection, which has the potential to address some of the limitations of SQE 1.

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Contributors

Author: Omar Madhloom

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