JOIN THE CITY OF LONDON SOLICITORS COMPANY

A WONDERFUL PAST AN ACTIVE PRESENT AND A GLITTERING FUTURE

The City of London Solicitors’ Company (CLSC) had its first Banquet in 1909, and just as we did in 2025, and almost every year since, it was held at Mansion House, the official residence of the Lord Mayor of the City of London. Thank you, for having us for over a century!

Our Company is immensely proud of its traditions, but it is working hard to create a future that will attract the vibrant community of today's City Solicitors. In short, we want you!

How do you join us? Freedom of the Company, Freedom of the City, Livery

To join us, you must be or have been a solicitor and must practise or have practised in the City of London or Canary Wharf. Private practice, in-house lawyers, solicitors working for government and the armed forces can all join:

Freedom of the Company: You must first apply for the Freedom of the Company, which involves a short optional ceremony in front of our Court (the governing body of the Company):

Freedom of the City: Optionally, you can then apply for the Freedom of the City of London, which is a historic honour and a mark of your connection to the City:

Livery: Finally, and also optionally, you can then take the Livery and enjoy all the rights and privileges of the Company. You can also get involved in helping to run the Company by joining one of our committees or standing for election to the Court:

All forms are also available here: https://www.citysolicitors.org/ under "Join Us"

If you are a trainee or apprentice solicitor, watch this space for a new membership category. You are our future and we want you!

Our 2025 Banquet had 300 attendees (a record number for recent decades). Beyond those impressive numbers, in the following pages, we look at the Company's passion for developing our next generation, supporting wellbeing within our profession and our charitable objectives.

We mentioned apprentices. Our Company loves apprentices. The concept pre-dates articled clerks and trainees, and our Company history books detail a rich involvement of apprentices with the Company in earlier times.

In this edition, we speak to an apprentice who attended the 2025 Banquet to hear the perspective of our future members who were born this century. We also imagine what the future may hold for those at the start of their City journey when they join the Company..

One of our Company's core values is charity. We look at "Rights of Women", a wonderful organisation on whose behalf the Company organised our online fundraising campaign in recognition of International Women’s Day 2025. The theme this year is #AccelerateAction and includes a call to ‘support the supporters’ as follows:

“With so many impactful groups across the world delivering critical work that assists women and girls, we can all lend our support in solidarity. That's why for 2025, IWD sees a big call-to-action for all IWD events to incorporate an element of women-focused fundraising.”

The Company chose this particular organisation because as well as focussing on women, it is based locally and has a legal purpose which fits well with its strategy for its charitable activities.

For the first time, the Company pledged to donate whatever was raised up to £2,000. We are delighted to announce that £6,642.40 was presented to Rights for Women. This was made up of £4,642.40 in donations attributed to the fundraiser plus £2,000 in matched funding from the Company’s Charitable Fund.

The past, the present and the future – join and enjoy our Company. There is tradition, charity, societies, sports and togetherness waiting for you. 

If you are a trainee or apprentice solicitor, watch this space for a new membership category. You are our future and we want you!