The Solicitors Regulation Authority has opened an eight-week consultation that would put technology and AI explicitly into the standards for competent legal practice. The proposals could make responsible use of AI a professional competence issue for solicitors and qualification candidates, not merely a matter of firm preference.
Watch Desk analysis
What happened
The consultation covers revisions to the SRA’s Statement of Solicitor Competence, which sets standards for solicitors throughout their careers, and the functioning legal knowledge tested in the Solicitors Qualifying Examination. Responses close on 3 December. The regulator plans to publish final versions in April 2027, with the changes due to take effect that September.
The proposals also address ethics and professional conduct, supervision and wellbeing. The SRA says technology, new ways of delivering legal services and emerging risks are reshaping the profession. Its education and training lead, Beth Black, said the public should be confident solicitors have the knowledge, skills and professional judgement to provide a competent service. Resultsense reports that the consultation follows input from nearly 150 practitioners, firms, academics, educators and representative groups.
Why it matters
For law firms, the important shift is from AI as an optional training topic to a possible part of the regulator’s definition of competence. If adopted, the revised standards could affect how firms train and supervise staff using AI, and how SQE candidates are expected to understand technology in legal work.
The consultation is a proposal, not a new rule already in force. But with responses due on 3 December and implementation planned for September 2027, firms have a clear window to argue what competent AI use should mean in practice.
Our read
This is a sensible place to have the argument: professional competence is about judgement as well as knowing which button to press. The useful question is not simply whether solicitors should use AI, but what they must understand, check and take responsibility for when they do.
What to watch
- How the SRA defines the technology and AI knowledge solicitors should demonstrate.
- Whether the final standards spell out expectations for supervision of AI-assisted work.
- What changes the SRA makes before the planned September 2027 start date.
Discussion spark: Should solicitors be required to demonstrate specific AI competence, or should firms decide what training and supervision their lawyers need?
Sources and evidence
- SRA consults on adding AI to solicitor competence rules – Resultsense (12 October 2026, 08:51 UTC)
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