The December 2021 edition of the SOLAS Newsletter (Issue 71) marks a welcome return to some normality, with President Lynne Alexander celebrating the first in-person National AGM and Annual Dinner in Dundee since the pandemic began. However, the AGM also brought two significant developments: the Law Society of Scotland would not be progressing accreditation for SOLAS at that time, prompting the Society to explore other ways of recognising members, while the Inverness Branch was to close and its members transfer to Aberdeen.
Across the branches, there was a strong sense of members reconnecting. Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow held graduation and diploma events celebrating students who had completed their SOLAS qualifications, while the newsletter’s photographs capture the return of dinners, ceremonies and face-to-face networking. Online learning remained important, however, with Dundee members overwhelmingly favouring continued virtual CPD and Glasgow adopting a hybrid approach, allowing members to attend CPD either in person or online.
Looking ahead to 2022, SOLAS planned to continue combining the benefits of virtual delivery with the return of physical events. The March Law Society Update Seminar would remain online, while branches developed new CPD programmes and encouraged members to become more actively involved in committees. The edition also welcomed a substantial group of newly admitted Associate Members from Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow, reflecting the continued strength of SOLAS education and professional development despite the disruption of the previous two years.
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