How to find past solicitors and law firms

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Law Society library resources

The Law List (1775 to 1976)

The Law List was an annual directory of individual English and Welsh solicitors.

It was published under various titles from 1775 to 1976 and continued by various other annual directories up to 2017.

A solicitor’s name normally appears in the Law List the year after they were admitted to the roll of solicitors.

They remain until they retire, die or are struck off, but the Law List does not show why their name was removed.

Solicitors are listed into two separate sequences for:

• solicitors working in London
• solicitors working in the country (outside London)

This collection is held on open access in the main Library.

A collection is also held at Guildhall Library which is open to the public.

Other directories (1977 to 2017)

Other directories of solicitors and law firms we have access to include:

• Solicitors’ Diary (1977-1983)
• Waterlow’s Solicitors Directory & Diary (1984-1990, 2014-2017)
• Law Society Directory of Solicitors & Barristers (1991-2013/14)

History of Firms (1760s to 1980s)

This manuscript tracks law firm name changes and mergers for over 200 years. It consists of seven large handwritten volumes and there is an index.  

Admissions to the Incorporated Law Society (1878 to 1962)

This is a simple list of the names of those admitted to the roll of solicitors, in chronological order by month and year, in four manuscript volumes.

Proposed members [of the Incorporated Law Society] (1878 to 1887; 1894 to 1962)

Six volumes listing information about each proposed new solicitor member.

It includes:

• name
• address
• proposer
• admission on roll
• in weekly circular
• balloted for
• letter sent
• remarks
• date they became a member

Richards’ Roll: Attorneys and Solicitors (1200 to 1906)

The content is very selective and contains brief biographies of individual solicitors.

There is an index. It was compiled in the early 20th century by the solicitor W U S G Richards.

Law Society Gazette (1903 to present)

The Law Society Gazette contains obituaries and notices about individual solicitors being struck off or suspended.

The earlier volumes are worth checking as the small size of the profession meant that every obituary sent in was published. Earlier years have very detailed indexes.

Registers of articled clerks holding office while serving under articles (1907, 1929 to 1970)

Articled clerks are now called trainee solicitors. They should not be confused with solicitor’s clerks.

We hold two volumes containing the names of articled clerks who held other jobs, as they needed permission to do so.

Their other job and details were kept in these registers.

They contain:

• name of articled clerk
• the solicitor they worked for
• office address
• order and date
• details about the nature of the order

Register of Articles of Clerkship (July 1932 to 1958)

This is in five volumes containing:

• remarks (including date of admission)
• name and address of clerk
• name and address of solicitor
• name and address of other parties
• permit
• date of articles
• examination
• term of service
• date of entry into register

Index to the Register of Articles of Clerkship (1928 to 1968).

A sequence of alphabetical indexes to articled clerks covering the years 1928 to 1968.

These only contain names and a number that relates to the volume of the Register of Articles of Clerkship.

We do not hold all the main registers that relate to all these indexes.

Biographies

Our library has a small legal history section. This includes biographies and histories of individual solicitors and law firms.

To check if we hold a book on a person or firm, search our catalogue.

Other organisations

Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) records (1990s to present)

The SRA holds records on individual solicitors and law firms from 1990s (1995) onwards.

To request a search, contact the SRA.

Society of Genealogists

The Society of Genealogists can help with enquiries about past solicitors.

It has several resources including:

• Cockerill’s card index of past solicitors – this covers biographical and career information for provincial solicitors and attorneys from the 16th century to 1900, but mainly the 18th and 19th centuries
• an index by Brian Brooks covering solicitors and attorneys
• an index covering solicitors from the Bristol area

The National Archives

The National Archives holds court records, which include names of attorneys and solicitors who practised at the various courts.

See the National Archives’ guides on:

• how to look for records of lawyers
• how to start your research