Learning the lessonsLegal education is a core issue for solicitors.

While busy qualified practitioners may push it to the back of their minds, the subject goes straight to the heart of the future of the profession.That level of relevance makes the assessments of legal practice course providers - released by the Law Society this week - all the more interesting and important.

What those rankings illustrate is a considerable disparity in quality, pass rates and cost.

The Nottingham Law School - still a relative newcomer to the field - has much to crow about; it is one of only four providers with an 'excellent' rating, and its pass rate is top of the table.Nottingham's performance throws down a sharp challenge to the venerable College of Law, which has been recovering ever since the top City firm consortium excluded it from its newly-approved City LPC.The college - which trains more lawyers than anywhere else in Europe - has grading and pass rates which leave no room for complacency, especially as its LPC fees are the highest in the country (see page 5).The college is in the premier league of legal education, and its chief executive - recruited, ironically, from Nottingham a few years ago - has an innovative and vibrant approach.

However, the message must be: beware complacency.