“This grant is a huge initiative for students who may find themselves in difficulty meeting the costs of the training course. The same is true for small firms, who will have the opportunity to train a new solicitor and share their knowledge.” Wexford grant recipient

Apply by 30 May

Five grants are offered to help support smaller practices take on a new trainee and increase access to justice in more local communities around Ireland.

You can apply if you are an eligible firm meeting the following conditions:

• Your practice is located outside of Dublin (city and county) and the urban districts of Cork, Limerick and Galway. 

• Your firm has five or fewer solicitors, can comply with the related / connected persons rule as set out in the scheme and agrees to pay the trainee at least the living wage (currently €14.80 per hour).

• Your proposed trainee has passed all eight FE1 exams.

The deadline for receipt of applications is 30 May 2025. 

• Access rules and application form

Selection process and bonus points 

Practices will be selected based on a marking scheme where the quality, level and range of the proposed work of the training contract is considered. 

Additional points are available for practices located in a county where: 

• there have been no training contracts in the last three years (Roscommon);

• there has been an annual average of one or less training contracts in the last three years (Cavan, Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Longford); or

• there has been an annual average of more than one and less than two training contracts in the last three years (Carlow, Clare, Monaghan, Offaly and Wexford). 

We encourage eligible firms to consider applying for the grant to assist in the hiring of a trainee solicitor. Training and recruiting locally contributes to improved access to legal services in rural and regional communities. 

For application details, scheme rules and testimonials from trainees who have benefitted from this scheme, visit the Small Practice Grant page.