Sole practitioners are eligible to apply for a position as a Judicial Appointments Commissioner, the recruitment agency acting for the Ministry of Justice has confirmed, despite confusion over the wording of the job specification.

The specification for the role states that candidates seeking to become a Judicial Appointments Commissioner must have ‘at least five years’ experience of practising as a solicitor either in a partnership or as an employed lawyer’.

Sole practitioners raised concerns with the Law Society that this requirement would exclude them from applying for the position.

Society chief executive Desmond Hudson raised the issue with Odgers Berndtson, the recruitment consultants acting for the MoJ. The recruiters confirmed that the wording of the person specification was not intended to exclude solicitors practising as sole practitioners.

More information about the role can be found on the Odgers Berndtson site.