Migration: successful candidates who answered wrong question forced to retake exam

Solicitors have complained about confusion surrounding the controversial immigration accreditation exams that has led to some lawyers passing the test but failing to receive accreditation to carry out legal aid work.


One of the three papers includes a section where candidates can choose to answer a question on either immigration, asylum or managed migration. However, choosing the managed migration question does not count towards accreditation for publicly funded work.


As a result, those who passed the paper having answered that question and want to carry out legal aid work may be required to retake it. Accreditation is compulsory for them from August.


Katherine Henderson, a senior solicitor at Newcastle-based Browell Smith & Co, said one member of her firm's team recently failed to receive accreditation on this basis, even though her colleague 'has been tested on and shown her competence in all the core areas' demanded by the scheme.


Wesley Gryk, the Law Society Council member for immigration, said it would be 'outrageous' to make such candidates resit when they had demonstrated their knowledge in the rest of the test.


Ms Henderson described the managed migration question as a 'half-hearted attempt to show they want standards across the board' in immigration practice.


A Legal Services Commission (LSC) spokesman said its guidance states that those people who wish to do publicly-funded work can choose to answer questions in the exam on either asylum or immigration.


He added that the questions reflected that the scheme was open to all immigration lawyers as a benchmark for good-quality advice.


The LSC has no figures on how many immigration lawyers who do not handle legal aid work have taken the exam; it is, however, thought to be a very small number.


The spokesman said the LSC is aware that 'a small number of people' answered the question by mistake and is contacting them to discuss it. The Gazette understands that they may be given extra time to resit, while in future the paper may include a clear warning.