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United Kingdom · Professional exam

SQE1: the functioning legal knowledge papers

It’s two multiple-choice papers, Functioning Legal Knowledge 1 (FLK1) and Functioning Legal Knowledge 2 (FLK2), taken on separate days at a test centre. SQE1 is the first part of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE), set by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), and it tests whether you can apply the law to realistic client situations, not just recall it. From January 2027 it has 340 questions, down from 360, with the subject areas grouped by session.

  • 340Questions from January 2027
  • 85Questions in each session
  • 2 hours 33 minutesLength of each session
  • 5Answer options per question
Where to study

Updated October 2026 · Written from official sources, listed at the bottom of this page

How is SQE1 set out from January 2027?

PaperSessionsQuestions
FLK12170
FLK22170
SQE1 in total4340

Each session lasts 2 hours 33 minutes, with a one-hour break between the two sessions on each day. That’s 5 hours 6 minutes of questions a day, by our sum.

Until the end of 2026, SQE1 had 360 questions. The SRA made the change after feedback from candidates, training providers and the profession, and says the subject areas are grouped by session but the questions are still fully randomised. Its table of which subjects fall in which session is on the SQE website.

What an SQE1 question looks like

Every question is a single best answer question. It has a stem, which is the scenario, a lead-in that asks the question, and five plausible options. Only one is the correct response to the situation. Qualified solicitors write them.

The SRA says the format is there to test legal reasoning and professional judgement, so expect to spot the legal issue, apply the right principle and reach a conclusion, often in a client scenario. Kaplan, the SRA’s assessment provider, published guidance on how these questions are written in September 2025.

SQE practice questions from the SRA →

What SQE1 covers

SQE1 assesses 14 subject and practice areas, including ethics, at the level of a newly qualified solicitor. The SQE1 Assessment Specification lists them and splits them between FLK1 and FLK2.

SQE specification and subjects →

After SQE1

You need to pass SQE1 before you can take SQE2. Your result comes with a breakdown by practice area, and if you fail you can resit one or both papers. SQE1 runs twice a year, in January and July.

SQE results and resits →How hard is the SQE? Pass rates →SQE2 →
Sources: SRA and 4 more. Checked October 2026.

Rules and fees can change, so check the official site before your test.

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