The Society of Visually Impaired Lawyers

Who are we?

The Society of Visually Impaired Lawyers (SoVIL) was founded to create a group in which those with a visual impairment working in the legal profession could exchange ideas, share information, campaign on causes of mutual interest and provide an opportunity for support and networking between fellow professionals.

SoVIL has members from all parts of the profession, including solicitors and barristers in private practice, those working in local and central government, academics and law students. Details of those eligible to join are set out in the constitution.

SoVIL provides support and encouragement to new entrants to the profession as well as providing information and resources for established lawyers. We work to ensure that the RNIB maintains a library of Braille and recorded titles of law textbooks and important statutes and other relevant organisations which provide information in accessible formats. We have a mailing list which all members are encouraged to join. The purpose of which is to provide a forum for sharing ideas, professional concerns and information about resources. Non-members may join the list.

To join the email group, send a blank email to sovil+subscribe@groups.io. You don't need to have a subject line or any text in that email. You will receive an automated response asking you to send a reply to confirm your request to join. Once you have done that, you should receive confirmation that you have joined the group. Instructions to unsubscribe from the list appear at the bottom of each email posted to the list. After you have subscribed, you can send an email to the other members of the list by sending an email to sovil@groups.io or replying to someone else's email.

SoVIL is run by a committee that meets regularly in addition to our AGM. Members of the committee involve themselves in projects of interest to the members.

What we do for our members!

If you are visually impaired and embarking on a legal career or are already established as a legal practitioner, please consider joining SoVIL. There is an annual subscription for membership, currently set at £5 for students and £10 for all other members.