Articled clerk

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An articled clerk is an apprentice in a professional firm in the United Kingdom and former British dependencies. Generally the term arises in the accountancy profession and in the legal profession. The articled clerk signs a contract, known as articles of clerkship, committing to a fixed period of employment. The other party to the contract is known as the principal, who undertakes to provide training during this period and relevant experience in the practice. Note that the contract is with a specific partner in the firm and not the firm as a whole. Nowadays some professions in some countries prefer to call their apprentices: students or trainees (e.g. a trainee solicitor) and the articles of clerkship are called 'training contracts'.