The Faculty of Advocates hosted SEMLA for its first anniversary event in the Laigh Hall, Parliament House, Edinburgh on 14 November 2018. The event was a celebration of SEMLA’s achievements in its first year and included the launch of the Faculty of Advocates’ scholarship scheme. The scholarship scheme is designed to improve access to the Bar for those individuals from under-represented groups at the Bar, including ethnic minorities. The keynote speaker was Humza Yousaf MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Justice. Humza Yousaf commented: “These two innovative initiatives aim to help the profession become more reflective of the clients and communities it serves by increasing the representation of ethnic minority lawyers across Scotland's legal sector, and improving accessibility to the bar for those who might otherwise be dissuaded due to the costs of pursuing that path. A career in law should be open to all groups and all backgrounds to ensure the legal profession – and Scotland – benefits from their ideas, their talents and their potential to provide access to justice for all. Diversity is not a tick box, not something that is ‘nice to do’; it is a necessity.”
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