After 30 years of operating a minimum salary for trainees, the SRA has decided that there is no longer any clear evidence that setting a minimum salary fulfills any of the regulatory objectives within the Legal Services Act or encourages freedom of access to the profession.

With this in mind it has decided to consult on whether there should in future be a minimum pay rates for trainees.

Currently the minimum salary level for a trainee solicitor is £18,590 in central London and £16,650 elsewhere.

The SRA’s executive director Samantha Barrass said:

‘We do not regulate prices, including rate of pay, in any other area of our work.

‘We have compared the practice with other professional regulators and found very few examples where this occurs. It would appear that setting a minimum salary does not address any identified risk to the public interest or the rule of law, nor is it clear that it improves access to the profession.’

The consultation, which closes on 10 April, can be found at http://www.sra.org.uk/sra/consultations/review-minimum-salary-trainee-solicitors.page