The SQE2 Client Interview and Attendance Note

You sit the SQE2 client interview and attendance note twice, once on each oral day, and it is the only station where an actor marks you on how you treat a person. This free PDF gives you a routine for the whole hour: ten minutes to prepare, twenty-five to interview, twenty-five to write the note by hand.

Updated October 2026 · checked against the SRA’s SQE2 assessment specification (applicable from 1 September 2026), its performance indicators and sample questions on 7 October 2026.

How the station works

On oral day 1 the interview is set in Property Practice; on oral day 2, in Wills and the Administration of Estates. You read an email from a partner or a secretary, sometimes with documents, for 10 minutes. You then interview the client, who is in the room, for 25 minutes. Finally you have 25 minutes in a separate room to write the attendance note and legal analysis by hand. The SRA treats the interview and its note as one of your 16 assessments.

Each criterion is graded from A, superior performance, to F, poor performance, with A worth 5 marks and F worth 0. Skills and application of law carry equal weight across SQE2, and there is one pass mark for SQE2 as a whole. Ethics and professional conduct issues are not flagged: you have to spot them yourself.

What the markers look for

The SRA publishes performance indicators for each criterion. They reward a mix of open and closed questions, plain explanations of terms such as “restrictive covenant” or “nil rate band”, and calm control of the interview. They mark down interrupting, repeating what the client has already said, jargon and a note full of facts with no bearing on the advice.

A routine for the hour

• Prepare: read the email for the partner’s specific questions, read the note to candidates for anything you need not cover, then plan issues, facts to find and an ethics radar on one sheet.
• Interview: welcome and agenda, the client’s story, explore each issue, summarise, preliminary advice, close with next steps. Move to the summary at 18 minutes whatever is left.
• Write: seven headings every time, from instructions and key facts to issues and advice, professional conduct and two lists of next steps.

The routine is our method, not an SRA rule. The guide sets it out with time budgets, a printable preparation sheet, a question bank and a decision tree for the moment someone other than the client starts giving instructions.

What is inside the PDF

• How the station runs, the two practice areas and who marks what
• The eleven criteria on one page, with the SRA’s performance indicators condensed
• A ten-minute preparation sheet
• A six-stage interview, a question bank and plain-English explanations
• Difficult moments and the ethics that hide in the room
• An attendance note template, with a weak and a strong line compared
• Two worked examples: a Wills interview and a Property interview, each with a full note
• Ten exam traps, ten self-test questions and a checklist

For interview technique in more depth, read our posts on the SQE2 client interview step by step, building rapport and the dos and don’ts. To check your readiness for every SQE2 station, use the SQE2 readiness checklist.

Frequently asked questions