The Government Legal Service (GLS) is a politically neutral department within the United Kingdom’s Civil Service that advises the government in legal matters and represents it in court proceedings. Their goal is to help the government govern well and within the confinements of the law.
GLS employees must follow Civil Service Code which outlines the following core values:
Integrity
Honesty
Objectivity
Impartiality
Working at GLS
GLS requires its employees to have strong analytical and intellectual skills before joining the department. Employees will also acquire legal skills and knowledge while working with the firm. GLS supports its employees by giving them the necessary tools and resources to succeed in their careers as well as providing the following benefits:
Flexible working policies
Pension scheme
Family-friendly policies
Career progression and development opportunities
Annual leave of 25 to 30 days (depending on tenure with the department)
Employee benefits portal
Vibrant Staff Networks
GLS Eligibility
Before applying for a position at GLS, job seekers must first meet the following eligibility requirements:
2:1 honours degree in their first degree or equivalent high-level academic or professional achievement
Qualified to practice as a Solicitor, Barrister, or Chartered Legal Executive in England and Wales
Must have completed a training contract
Chartered Legal Executives must have a Qualifying Law Degree, a Graduate Diploma in Law, or have passed the CILEx at Level 6 in the seven foundation law subjects
Job seekers looking to apply for a position at the GLS should also keep in mind the following profiles that they will be measured against during the application process:
Teamwork
Legal professional skills
Communicating and influencing
Effective decision making
Delivering at pace
Motivation
Developing self and others
What Is the Recruitment Process at GLS?
Online Application
Those who are qualified and interested in joining GLS must fill out an online application. While you must input your qualifications to show you meet the eligibility requirements, this information will be kept from the recruiters. They will only see your previous employment, so detail your accomplishments and skills in this section.
Applicants who meet the requirements will proceed to the assessment portion of the hiring process.
Situational Judgement Test
Before moving on to the aptitude exams, GLS wants to ensure you have the values and personality to do well with the firm. The situational judgement test (SJT) is a psychometric exam that gives employers a good sense of your values and how you behave professionally.
The test will present several work-related scenarios and possible reactions or outcomes for each situation. Next, you must select which option would be the most or least effective response to the simulated scenario. It is important to note that you may not be responding with the reaction you may personally have to the situation. They are only interested in which choice is the most or least effective.
While taking this exam, you will want to keep in mind the values of the firm and the civil service code that all GLS employees are required to follow. GLS is looking for lawyers who uphold their values and act according to the law, so be sure that all answers you select as the “most effective” reflect those ideologies.
This test will be given online, so you can take it from your home. This exam has no time limit, but you should expect to take around 30 minutes to complete the 16 questions.
Verbal Reasoning Test
Candidates who do well on the SJT will be sent a link to complete their first aptitude exam, the verbal reasoning test. Verbal reasoning is a critical skill for all professions, but lawyers, in particular, must be able to read through the information, evidence, arguments, and other written materials to understand the situation and form their position.
This online exam will assess your ability to read, comprehend, and interpret complex texts. You’ll read several passages and, based on the given information, will decide if statements are true, false, or if there isn’t enough context to determine. The test will have eight sets of four questions each for a total of 32 questions, and you will have 24 minutes to complete the exam.
Critical Reasoning Test
If you successfully complete the verbal reasoning exam, you will proceed to the final aptitude exam, the critical reasoning test. Critical reasoning, also known as critical thinking test, is a crucial skill for all lawyers to possess. This allows them to analyze information, present sound arguments, and make objective decisions.
The critical reasoning exam will also be given online, and you will have 30 minutes to complete the entire exam, including reading all instructions. You will receive various text passages and answer questions involving inferences, deductions, assumptions, interpretations, and evaluations. For example, you will be asked to determine if a given conclusion follows the passage or if a given argument is sound.
If you do well on this aptitude test, you will graduate to the GLS interview process.
Make sure to read about the Watson Glaser Test which is the most common critical reasoning test.
Video Interview
The first interview you partake in will be a video interview. This is conducted online and will be a one-sided, pre-recorded interview. You will receive your questions in the form of text passages and will be given time to prepare and record your response, which the hiring team will review later. This interview will take about 20 minutes to complete and will focus on your qualifications for the position and your motivation for applying to GLS.
Before completing your video interview, practice speaking into a camera, as this may not come naturally. You want to be confident, competent and prepared in your responses. Take the interview in a quiet environment to avoid distractions, and have your CV close by so you can refer to it.
Assessment Centre
The final stage of the GLS recruitment process is the assessment centre. This is a half-day event that brings together several candidates for the hiring team to better assess personalities and who would be the best fit for the team. You will be required to complete a written exercise and several interviews during this stage.
Ahead of this event, you will have the opportunity to speak with a GLS employee who will give you more information about what to expect during the event and allow you to ask any questions you may have.
Written Exercise
The first part of the event will be a one-hour written exercise. You will essentially read and analyze a practical problem and will have to address several questions to provide advice to a senior colleague on the presented issue. While the problem will be legal in nature, no prior legal knowledge is required, and any laws that need to be referenced will be provided.
During this exercise, thinking through the issue critically and clearly communicating your suggestions is essential. They are looking for someone who can effectively sift through information and provide valuable input to the team. Take your time during this activity to form a well-crafted and defendable argument.
Written Exercise Discussion
The first in-person interview you will complete will be a discussion on the written activity you just finished. You will meet with a senior lawyer to discuss the problem, present your advice, and defend your position.
GLS is looking for people with excellent verbal communication skills who can defend their arguments clearly and effectively. Be sure to use evidence to support your claim and explain why your proposed solution is best for the problem. You should also be prepared to answer questions about your argument.
Behavior-Based Interview
The second in-person interview that you complete will be behaviour-based. The interviewer will ask questions about your past job performance, your behaviour in certain situations, and how well you work under pressure. In addition, they want to know more about your personality and strengths and how that would translate into a successful career at GLS.
Not only does GLS want competent lawyers, but they also want lawyers who will fit in with their current culture and act according to their codes and policies to represent the government. Therefore, before going into this interview, consider when you have shown honesty, integrity, impartiality, or objectivity in the workplace and draw on those examples during your discussion.
Remember that it is best to form your responses to these types of questions in the STAR format:
Describe the situation that you were in.
Detail the Tasks that you needed to take to solve the issue or respond to the problem.
Discuss the Actions that you personally took to remedy the situation.
Tell the Results that came from your efforts.
Recounting your examples this way will give the interviewer a better idea of your past contributions and behaviours and how that would correlate to your career at GLS.
Motivation-Based Interview
The last in-person interview will be motivation-based. The interviewer will ask questions about what motivated you to seek a career in law and why you are looking at GLS specifically. They may also test your knowledge about the firm, so do your research beforehand.
How to Prepare for the GLS Assessment?
GLS is very selective of the lawyers they hire to join their firm. The employees at GLS will represent the government in various situations, so they need to be the best. To show the GLS hiring team that you are the most qualified candidate for the position, you must do well on all parts of the recruitment process, including the various online assessments.
The online assessments determine if you can perform the job duties and objectively compare you to other candidates. Therefore, you must do as well as possible on these tests to stand out from the other candidates.
Online practice tests are the best resource that you can use during your preparation. There are free tests online that will allow you to rehearse your timing, answer questions similar to what will be on the actual exam, and give you solutions that you can use to better answer questions in the future.
Candidates who take the time to properly prepare for the GLS exams using online practice tests score significantly higher on the exams than their unprepared counterparts. So be sure to give yourself enough time to study to have the best chance of succeeding in the GLS hiring process.
