About the CILEX Professional Qualification (CPQ)
The CILEX Professional Qualification (CPQ) provides the route to become authorised as a Chartered Legal Executive (CLE) and a CILEX Lawyer. The CPQ journey consists not only of formally assessed learning, but also incorporates Professional Experience at each stage to ensure that learners not only acquire knowledge and skills, but also successfully demonstrate them in the workplace.
What is the CPQ route?
The competency-based qualification framework has core legal knowledge and commercial awareness at its heart allowing for focus on specialist areas of law from an early stage.
The progressive nature of the CPQ over a number of stages and years is designed to build confidence allowing learners to obtain a qualification at each stage, with the choice to progress to the next stage or pausing at the level of qualification they require.
- Foundation stage complete, including a compulsory Ethics and Professional Responsibility module and Professional Experience = CILEX Paralegal
- Foundation and advanced stage complete, including both compulsory Ethics and Professional Responsibility modules and Professional Experience = CILEX Advanced Paralegal
- Foundation, advanced and professional qualification stages of the CPQ complete, including both compulsory Ethics and Professional Responsibility modules, and Professional Experience = CILEX Lawyer
Each stage of the CPQ combines a focus on technical expertise and practical skills with the development of the core behaviours required to create forward-thinking, commercially minded, adaptable lawyers who really understand the clients they serve.
The CPQ route requires that to be authorised as a CLE and become a CILEX Lawyer you must:
- demonstrate technical knowledge (CILEX exams);
- engage in a period of qualifying experience (QE);
- compile a portfolio of evidence that shows how you meet the expected competencies required for your chosen specialism; and,
- satisfy character and suitability requirements.
Additionally, in the areas of Dispute Resolution (Civil Litigation), Family Litigation and Criminal Litigation, there is an additional requirement to complete an advocacy skills course.