SQE1 · England and Wales

SQE1 preparation with 4,200 exam-style questions and sourced explanations

Practise for FLK1 and FLK2 with single best answer questions in the format used from January 2027. Every answer explains the rule, shows why each option is right or wrong and cites the statute, case or SRA rule behind it. One payment of £79 for 12 months.

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Questions: 4,200
Topics: 176
Law as at: 21 October 2026
Access: £79 one-off · 12 months

The exam

What is SQE1?

SQE1 is the first of the two assessments of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE). It tests whether you can apply functioning legal knowledge to realistic client problems at the level of a newly qualified solicitor in England and Wales. (SRA, SQE1 Assessment Specification)

To qualify as a solicitor through the SQE route you need a degree or an equivalent qualification, passes in both SQE1 and SQE2, two years’ full-time (or equivalent) qualifying work experience, and to meet the SRA’s character and suitability requirements. (SRA, SQE route)

SQE1 is closed book. Each question is a single best answer question with five options and only one correct answer. (SRA, SQE1 Assessment Specification)

Format from January 2027

How is SQE1 structured?

From the January 2027 sitting, SQE1 consists of two assessments, FLK1 and FLK2, with 170 questions each – 340 in total. Each assessment is split into two sessions of 85 questions with 2 hours 33 minutes per session. (SRA announcement, 10 September 2026)

SQE1 sessions and subjects (from January 2027)
Assessment	Session	Questions	Time	Subjects
FLK1 170 questions	Session 1	85	2 h 33 min	Business Law and Practice, Dispute Resolution, Legal Services
FLK1 170 questions	Session 2	85	2 h 33 min	Tort, Contract Law, Legal System
FLK2 170 questions	Session 1	85	2 h 33 min	Wills and the Administration of Estates, Solicitors Accounts, Trusts Law, Land Law
FLK2 170 questions	Session 2	85	2 h 33 min	Property Law and Practice, Solicitors Accounts, Criminal Liability, Criminal Law and Practice

Ethics and Professional Conduct is tested pervasively and can appear in every session; together with money laundering (FLK1 only) it can make up to 20% of the questions. (SRA, SQE1 Annex 4) Solicitors Accounts is tested in the context of Wills in FLK2 session 1 and of Property in session 2. (SRA announcement, 10 September 2026)

That leaves about 1.8 minutes per question (153 minutes for 85 questions). (SRA, SQE1 sample questions) A full explanation of the format is in our guide How SQE1 is structured from January 2027.

Coverage

What does the question bank cover?

4,200 questions in 176 topics, organised by the subject areas of the SRA’s SQE1 Assessment Specification. The counts are taken from the question bank each time this page is published.

FLK1
Subject	SRA weighting	Topics	Questions
Business Law and Practice Show topics Business organisations and legal personality Incorporation and formation Company decision-making, meetings and compliance Directors: appointment, powers, duties and removal Shareholders' rights and minority protection Equity finance, share capital and distributions Debt finance and security Partnership decision-making and authority of partners Insolvency options and procedures (corporate and personal) Claw-back of assets and order of priority Income Tax Capital Gains Tax Corporation Tax Value Added Tax Inheritance Tax: business property relief	14–20%	15	459
Dispute Resolution Show topics Options for dispute resolution Preliminary considerations and pre-action conduct Limitation Where to start proceedings Issuing and serving proceedings Responding to a claim Statements of case Interim applications Case management Evidence Disclosure and inspection Trial Costs Appeals Enforcement of money judgments	14–20%	15	427
Contract Law Show topics Formation Parties: privity and third party rights Contract terms Exemption clauses and unfair contract terms Misrepresentation Mistake, duress, undue influence and illegality Termination Remedies	14–20%	8	289
Tort Show topics Negligence: duty of care and breach Negligence: causation and remoteness Remedies for personal injury and death Pure economic loss Psychiatric harm Employers' primary liability Defences Principles of vicarious liability Occupiers' liability Product liability Nuisance and the rule in Rylands v Fletcher	14–20%	11	196
Legal System Show topics The courts Development of case law: the doctrine of precedent Primary legislation Statutory interpretation Application of legislation made by Senedd Cymru and Westminster to England and to Wales Constitutional conventions, separation of powers and the rule of law Parliament, parliamentary sovereignty and parliamentary privilege Central government and accountability The monarch, the Crown and prerogative power Status of the devolved institutions and their relationship with Westminster Enactment, implementation and repeal of primary and secondary legislation Public order law Judicial review Human Rights Act 1998 and the European Convention on Human Rights The place of EU law in the UK constitution	14–20%	15	341
Legal Services Show topics The regulatory role of the SRA Reserved legal activities, other regulated providers and professional indemnity insurance The Equality Act 2010 Money laundering: purpose and scope of anti-money laundering legislation Direct and non-direct involvement offences and defences under POCA 2002 Reporting suspicions of money laundering Due diligence requirements (Money Laundering Regulations 2017) The financial services regulatory framework Specified investments, specified activities and exclusions Application of FSMA 2000 to the work of a solicitor Funding options for legal services: retainers and fee agreements Funding options for legal services: civil legal aid, third party funding and legal expenses insurance	12–16%	12	231
Total FLK1			1,943

FLK2
Subject	SRA weighting	Topics	Questions
Property Law and Practice Show topics Investigation of freehold title Pre-contract searches and enquiries Finance and acting for a lender Preparation for and exchange of contracts Pre-completion, completion and post-completion Remedies for delayed completion Structure and content of a lease Grant of a lease or underlease Liability on leasehold covenants Assignment of a lease and licences Remedies for breach of a leasehold covenant Termination of a lease Security of tenure under a business lease Core principles of planning law Taxation – property	14–20%	15	399
Wills and the Administration of Estates Show topics Validity of wills and codicils Personal representatives Alterations and amendments to wills Revocation of wills Interpretation of wills: types and failure of gifts The intestacy rules Property passing outside the estate Grants of representation Administration of estates Claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 Inheritance Tax: lifetime transfers Inheritance Tax: transfers on death Inheritance Tax: exemptions and reliefs Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax during the administration period	14–20%	14	322
Solicitors Accounts Show topics Client money Client account Keeping client money separate Accounting records and reconciliation Accounting entries: receipts, payments and transfers Bills, disbursements and VAT Interest Breach of the SRA Accounts Rules Joint accounts, client's own accounts and third-party managed accounts Accountants' reports and retention of records	Within Property and Wills	10	133
Land Law Show topics Nature of land, estates and interests Registration of title Unregistered title Co-ownership and trusts of land Easements Freehold covenants Mortgages Leases	14–20%	8	289
Trusts Law Show topics Creation of express trusts: the three certainties and formalities Constitution of trusts and exceptions for volunteers Beneficial entitlement Charitable trusts and non-charitable purpose trusts Resulting trusts Trusts of the family home Liability of strangers to the trust The fiduciary relationship and its obligations Trustees: appointment, retirement, removal and duty of care Trustees' powers: investment, maintenance and advancement Trustees' liability Equitable remedies and tracing	14–20%	12	253
Criminal Liability Show topics Actus reus Mens rea General defences Partial defences Parties to a crime Attempt Non-fatal offences against the person Theft (s. 1 Theft Act 1968) Robbery, burglary and aggravated burglary Criminal damage Homicide Fraud (Fraud Act 2006)	14–20%	12	255
Criminal Law and Practice Show topics Rights of a suspect in police detention Identification procedures and identification evidence Interviewing a suspect under PACE 1984 Right to silence and adverse inferences Bail First hearings, plea before venue and allocation Case management, pre-trial hearings and disclosure Hearsay evidence Confession evidence and exclusion of evidence Bad character evidence Trial procedure in the magistrates' court and Crown Court Sentencing Appeals procedure Youth court procedure and hearings Use of the Welsh language in criminal proceedings	14–20%	15	392
Total FLK2			2,043

Ethics and Professional Conduct (FLK1 and FLK2)
Subject	SRA weighting	Topics	Questions
Ethics and Professional Conduct Show topics SRA Principles Maintaining trust and acting fairly Dispute resolution and proceedings before courts, tribunals and inquiries Service and competence Client money and assets Business requirements: referrals, introductions and separate businesses Conflict of interests Confidentiality and disclosure Cooperation and accountability Client identification Complaints handling Client information and publicity SRA Code of Conduct for Firms: managers and compliance officers SRA warning notices	Pervasive, up to 20%*	14	214

* Ethics and Professional Conduct and money laundering together; money laundering is assessed in FLK1 only. Weightings: (SRA, SQE1 Annex 4)

Method

How does the SQE1 course work?

Short daily sessions that start with questions, explain every answer and plan your reviews for you.

Spaced repetition with FSRS

Every concept you learn is scheduled with the open-source FSRS algorithm, which brings it back shortly before you would forget it. New topics are introduced step by step, weighted by their share of the exam.

Explanations with sources

The rule in one sentence, why it exists, the reasoning step by step, and why each of the five options is right or wrong – with the statute, case or SRA rule it comes from.

Error log

Every question you get wrong is saved and comes back until you answer it correctly.

Timed mock exams

Mock exams are put together according to the SRA blueprint and timed at the real pace of about 108 seconds per question.

Progress per subject

See how well you know each subject and topic, and where your weakest areas are.

Case exercises and glossary

Multi-step case exercises (7 so far) train issue spotting, and a glossary explains the legal terms used in the questions.

Quality you can check

How can you check the answers?

You should not have to take an explanation on trust. Four things on every question let you verify it and help keep the bank accurate.

A source for every answer

Each explanation names the provision it relies on – the section of the statute, the judgment or the SRA rule – so you can look the rule up yourself.

The law, with a date

The course reflects the law as at 21 October 2026. The SRA examines the law as it stands four calendar months before the first assessment in a window. (SRA, SQE1 Assessment Specification)

Report a problem from any question

Spotted a problem? Report it from any question. Every question has a report option – for a wrong answer, outdated law, an unclear question or a typo – and reports are used to correct the bank.

Regular updates

The question bank is updated regularly, including when the law or the SRA’s assessment specification changes. Updates during your 12 months of access are included.

Free

Try SQE1 sample questions

Five questions from the course, with the answer and a short version of the explanation. In the app, each explanation also shows the reasoning step by step and links to the wording of the source.

FLK1 · Contract Law

Sample question 1

A customer in a self-service shop takes a bottle of perfume from a shelf. The shelf label states the price as £8, although the shop's normal price for the perfume is £80. At the till, the cashier notices the error and refuses to sell the perfume for less than £80. The customer insists that the shop must sell it to her for £8.

Is the shop obliged to sell the perfume to the customer for £8?

Option A: Yes, because the price label on the shelf was an offer, which the customer accepted by taking the bottle from the shelf.
Option B: Yes, because a shop which displays a price is bound by statute to sell at that price to any customer.
Option C: No, because the display was an invitation to treat, and the customer's offer at the till was never accepted.
Option D: No, because a contract with a shop is formed only when the customer has paid and received a receipt.
Option E: No, because the price label contained an obvious mistake, so the shop's offer to sell was void.

Show answer and explanation

Answer: C – No, because the display was an invitation to treat, and the customer's offer at the till was never accepted.

The rule. Goods displayed with a price label in a self-service shop are not an offer but an invitation to treat. The customer makes the offer at the till, and the shop may accept or reject it.

Why the rule exists. The shop keeps control over whether, and on what terms, it sells – for example if stock runs out or a price has been labelled wrongly. If the display were an offer, the contract would be made the moment a customer took the item from the shelf.

A. Wrong. The Court of Appeal rejected this view in Boots: taking goods from the shelf is not acceptance, and the customer can still put them back before reaching the till.
B. Wrong. There is no general statutory duty to sell at the displayed price; a contract still needs an offer and an acceptance.
C. Right. The display is an invitation to treat; the customer’s offer at the till was refused, so no contract was made.
D. Wrong. The contract is made when the offer is accepted at the till, not when the customer pays and receives a receipt; payment is performance, not formation.
E. Wrong. Mistake does not matter here because the shop never made an offer; the point is that the customer’s offer was not accepted.

Sources cited in the explanation:

Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain v Boots Cash Chemists (Southern) Ltd [1953] 1 QB 401 (CA)
Blue v Ashley [2017] EWHC 1928 (Comm) at [52]

FLK1 · Tort

Sample question 2

A man attends a hospital emergency department complaining of severe chest pain. The doctor on duty negligently sends him home without examining him, and the man dies of a heart attack four hours later. Medical evidence, which the court accepts, shows that even if he had been examined and treated immediately, he would still have died at the same time.

Can the man's estate establish that the doctor's negligence caused his death?

Option A: Yes, because the doctor breached the duty of care owed to a patient who attends hospital.
Option B: Yes, because the failure to examine the man deprived him of any chance of treatment.
Option C: No, because the man would have died even if the doctor had examined and treated him.
Option D: No, because a doctor owes no duty of care to a patient who has not yet been admitted.
Option E: Yes, because the burden of proof is on the doctor to show that the man would have died anyway.

Show answer and explanation

Answer: C – No, because the man would have died even if the doctor had examined and treated him.

The rule. To prove factual causation, the claimant must show on the balance of probabilities that the damage would not have happened but for the breach of duty (the ‘but for’ test).

Why the rule exists. Tort law compensates harm that a defendant actually caused; it does not punish careless conduct as such. A defendant whose negligence made no difference to the outcome is not liable for damage that would have happened anyway.

A. Wrong. Duty and breach are present, but there is no liability without causation – the requirements are cumulative.
B. Wrong. On the accepted evidence the man had no chance at all, because his death was unavoidable; in any event, English law generally does not compensate the loss of a chance of recovery in personal injury claims.
C. Right. Because the man would have died even with proper treatment, the but for test is not met.
D. Wrong. A hospital and its doctors owe a duty of care to patients who come to the emergency department; the only problem here is causation.
E. Wrong. The burden of proving causation is on the claimant, not on the doctor.

Sources cited in the explanation:

Sienkiewicz v Greif (UK) Ltd [2011] UKSC 10 at [16] (Lord Phillips)
Barnett v Chelsea & Kensington Hospital Management Committee [1969] 1 QB 428

FLK2 · Land Law

Sample question 3

Two sisters buy a registered freehold house in England together for £320,000, each paying half of the price. The purchase is completed and both sisters are registered as proprietors. The transfer says nothing about how they hold the beneficial interest. They ask a solicitor how the legal title to the house is now held.

Which of the following best describes how the sisters hold the legal estate?

Option A: As tenants in common of the legal estate, each owning a half share.
Option B: As joint tenants of the legal estate, holding it on a trust of land.
Option C: As joint tenants of the legal estate, holding it free of any trust.
Option D: As tenants in common of the legal estate, holding it on a trust of land.
Option E: As joint tenants of the legal estate until one of them gives written notice.

Show answer and explanation

Answer: B – As joint tenants of the legal estate, holding it on a trust of land.

The rule. Where two or more people acquire land together, they must hold the legal estate as joint tenants and as trustees of a trust of land; a legal estate cannot be held in undivided shares (Law of Property Act 1925, ss 1(6) and 36).

Why the rule exists. Buyers only have to deal with a small number of legal owners acting together, not with fractional shares. The co-owners’ financial shares sit in equity behind the trust, where they can be arranged flexibly.

A. Wrong. A tenancy in common can exist only in equity (s 1(6) LPA 1925); the equal contributions are relevant, if at all, to the beneficial interests.
B. Right. Co-owners at law always hold as joint tenants, and as legal owners they are trustees of a trust of land.
C. Wrong. Co-ownership of land always gives rise to a trust of land; the sisters are trustees even though they are also the only beneficiaries.
D. Wrong. The trust is right, but there is no tenancy in common at law; undivided shares exist only behind the trust in equity.
E. Wrong. A written notice under s 36(2) LPA 1925 can sever only a joint tenancy in equity; the legal joint tenancy cannot be severed at all.

Sources cited in the explanation:

FLK2 · Criminal Liability

Sample question 4

A woman is angry with her neighbour. She takes a key and scratches a long line along the side of a car parked in the street, which she knows belongs to the neighbour. The scratch will cost £600 to repair. The woman is charged with simple criminal damage under section 1(1) of the Criminal Damage Act 1971.

Which of the following best describes the fact that the car belonged to the neighbour?

Option A: It is a circumstance that forms part of the actus reus of the offence.
Option B: It is a consequence that the woman's conduct must be proved to have caused.
Option C: It is part of the mens rea, because it concerns what the woman knew.
Option D: It is relevant only to sentence, because it explains the woman's motive.
Option E: It is a matter which the woman must disprove by showing a lawful excuse.

Show answer and explanation

Answer: A – It is a circumstance that forms part of the actus reus of the offence.

The rule. The actus reus of an offence can be made up of conduct, circumstances and consequences. For simple criminal damage under s 1(1) Criminal Damage Act 1971, ‘property belonging to another’ is a circumstance.

Why the rule exists. Breaking an offence into its elements shows what the prosecution must prove and what the mens rea has to relate to – in criminal damage, that includes the fact that the property belongs to someone else.

A. Right. That the property belongs to another is an element of the actus reus, which the prosecution must prove alongside the conduct and the damage.
B. Wrong. The consequence is the damage to the paintwork. Who owned the car was already settled before; the woman did not cause it.
C. Wrong. The mens rea concerns what the woman knew, or foresaw as a risk, about who owned the car. The fact that it belonged to the neighbour is part of the actus reus.
D. Wrong. This is an element of the offence itself. Under s 10(2), property belongs to another not only through ownership but also through custody, control or certain proprietary rights or interests.
E. Wrong. The prosecution must prove that the property belonged to another. Lawful excuse (for example an honest belief in consent under s 5) is a separate question.

Sources cited in the explanation:

Criminal Damage Act 1971, ss 1(1), 5(2)–(3) and 10(2)

FLK1 and FLK2 · Ethics and Professional Conduct

Sample question 5

A solicitor agrees orally to share fees for employment contract advice with a recruitment agency that introduces clients. The clients are told about the agency's financial interest and the fee sharing arrangement. The solicitor and agency now want to start operating the arrangement without recording their agreement in writing.

Which of the following best describes the requirement concerning their fee sharing agreement?

Option A: The agreement can remain oral if the clients receive written details of the fee split.
Option B: The agreement must be in writing, in addition to informing clients about the fee sharing.
Option C: The agreement can remain oral if the agency receives a fixed proportion of the fees.
Option D: The agreement must be approved by the SRA before the parties can share their fees.
Option E: The agreement must be signed by each client as a party to the fee sharing contract.

Show answer and explanation

Answer: B – The agreement must be in writing, in addition to informing clients about the fee sharing.

The rule. Where a solicitor shares fees with an introducer, the fee sharing agreement must be in writing; in addition, the clients concerned must be told about the fee sharing and the introducer’s financial interest.

Why the rule exists. A written agreement makes the commercial arrangement transparent and checkable; telling clients lets them judge what the arrangement means for them.

A. Wrong. Informing clients is a separate duty; it does not replace a written agreement with the introducer.
B. Right. Paragraph 5.1(b) of the Code requires clients to be informed, and paragraph 5.1(c) additionally requires the fee sharing agreement to be in writing.
C. Wrong. A fixed proportion of the fees is still fee sharing and is subject to the same requirement.
D. Wrong. Paragraph 5.1 does not require the SRA to approve the individual agreement in advance.
E. Wrong. Clients must be informed, but that does not make them parties to the agreement with the agency.

Sources cited in the explanation:

SRA Code of Conduct for Solicitors, RELs, RFLs and RSLs, para 5.1(a)–(c)

Price

How much does SQE1 preparation cost?

£79, paid once, for 12 months of access to the complete SQE1 course. No subscription, no automatic renewal, no add-ons. If your sitting is further away, you can buy another period later.

Before you buy

The content reflects the law as at 21 October 2026. Check the law cut-off date for your sitting on the SRA website.
Access starts as soon as your payment is confirmed. At checkout you agree to immediate access and confirm that your 14-day right of withdrawal then ends. Right of withdrawal
This is study material, not legal advice, and it does not guarantee a pass.

SQE1 – full access

£79one-off payment · 12 months access

4,200 questions, explanations in English
FLK1, FLK2 and Ethics in one course
Spaced repetition, error log, progress per subject
Timed mock exams at exam pace

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FAQ

SQE1 questions and answers

What is SQE1?

SQE1 is the first of the two assessments of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE), which tests the application of functioning legal knowledge at the level of a newly qualified solicitor in England and Wales (SRA, SQE1 Assessment Specification).

To qualify through the SQE route you need a degree or an equivalent qualification, passes in both SQE1 and SQE2, two years’ full-time (or equivalent) qualifying work experience, and to meet the SRA’s character and suitability requirements (SRA, SQE route, accessed 23 October 2026).

How many questions are in SQE1?

From the January 2027 sitting, SQE1 has 340 questions: two assessments, FLK1 and FLK2, with 170 single best answer questions each.

Each assessment is taken in two sessions of 85 questions with 2 hours 33 minutes per session. Before January 2027, each assessment had 180 questions in two sessions of 90 (SRA announcement, 10 September 2026).

How much time is there per SQE1 question?

About 1.8 minutes per question on average – 2 hours 33 minutes for 85 questions in each session (SRA, SQE1 sample questions page, accessed 21 October 2026).

That is roughly 108 seconds. The mock exams in the app use the same pace.

What does the SQE1 question bank cover?

The bank currently has 4,200 questions across all 14 SQE1 subject areas, including Ethics and Professional Conduct, organised into 176 topics.

Every SQE1 subject area has questions; the subject table on this page shows the current numbers.

What does a question look like?

Every question follows the SQE1 single best answer format: a short client scenario, a question, and 5 options of which one is the best answer.

After you answer, you see the rule in one sentence, why the rule exists, the reasoning step by step, why each option is right or wrong, and the source – statute, case or SRA rule.

Are the explanations in English?

Yes. Questions, explanations and the glossary are in English, the language of the exam.

Which date is the law in the questions based on?

The content reflects the law as at 21 October 2026 and is updated when the law changes.

The SRA examines the law as it stands four calendar months before the first assessment in an assessment window (SRA, SQE1 Assessment Specification).

How does spaced repetition decide what I practise?

The app schedules every concept you have learned with FSRS (Free Spaced Repetition Scheduler), an open-source algorithm that estimates when you are likely to forget it. By default it brings a concept back when you would still recall it with about 90% probability.

New topics are introduced step by step, giving priority to subjects that carry more weight in the exam and that you have covered least. Questions you got wrong come back from your error log, and reviews mix subjects as the real exam does.

How can I check that an answer is right?

Every explanation names its source – the section of the statute, the judgment or the SRA rule – so you can look up the rule yourself.

The course states the date of the law it reflects (currently the law as at 21 October 2026) and is updated regularly, including when the law or the SRA’s assessment specification changes. Spotted a problem? Report it from any question. Reports are used to correct the question bank.

How much does SQE1 preparation cost?

£79 as a one-off payment for 12 months of access to the full SQE1 question bank, mock exams and progress tracking. There is no subscription and no automatic renewal.

At checkout you confirm that access starts immediately; once access has begun, the 14-day right of withdrawal ends. The right of withdrawal page explains the details.

Is this course approved by the SRA?

No. The SRA states that it does not regulate, endorse, accredit or recommend training providers.

High Performer Certs is an independent study platform. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), and it is not authorised or accredited by the SRA or the SQE assessment provider. The SQE and SOLICITORS QUALIFYING EXAMINATION trade marks are the property of and are used under licence from the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

Sources

Solicitors Regulation Authority: SQE1 Assessment Specification (applicable for assessments from 1 September 2026). Accessed 21 October 2026.
Solicitors Regulation Authority: Important changes to SQE1 for January 2027 onwards (10 September 2026). Accessed 21 October 2026.
Solicitors Regulation Authority: SQE1 Annex 4 – Functioning Legal Knowledge blueprint. Accessed 21 October 2026.
Solicitors Regulation Authority: SQE1 sample questions. Accessed 21 October 2026.
Solicitors Regulation Authority: Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) route (August 2025). Accessed 23 October 2026.