Barristers

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 582.

There are about 9,000 barristers who defend or prosecute in the higher courts. Although solicitors and barristers work together on cases, barristers specialise in presenting clients in court and the training and career structures for the two types of lawyers are quite separate. In court, barristers wear wigs and gowns in keeping with extreme formality of the proceedings. The barristers of the highest level have the title QC (Queen's Counsel). A barrister's main work is to provide representation in the courts, where they are referred to as counsel, to draft documents associated with court procedure, and give opinions, that is specialist advice. They are normally instructed by solicitors or other recognised professionals on behalf of lay clients. A barrister must be capable of prosecuting in a criminal case one day, and defending an accused person the next, or of preparing the pleadings and taking the case for a plaintiff in a civil action one day, and doing the same for a defendant the next. As the law has become more complex, barristers increasingly specialise in particular areas, such as personal injury, crime, family or commercial law. Barristers are experts in the interpretation of the law. They are called in to advise on really difficult points.

Unlike solicitors, barristers can't form partnerships but must act as sole traders with unlimited liability. Some barristers are in employed practice and may only represent their employer, for example as in-house counsel or in government departments like the Crown Prosecution Service. Many work independently in self-employed practice in groups called chambers or sets and practise at the Bar as a barrister. Chambers are traditionally located in the four Inns of Court in London and are also located in the UK regions, known as circuits. The Inns are principally non-academic societies which provide collegiate and educational resources for barristers and trainees. Members of the chambers, known as tenants, share common expenses and support services, which are administrated by the administrative manager as the Clerk.

A would-be barrister must first register as a student member of one of the four Inns of Court. A student must pass a group of examinations to obtain a law degree and then proceed to a vocational course (Bar Vocational Course, or BVC), the passing of which will result in his being called to the Bar. All practising barristers are junior counsels unless they have been designated Queen's Counsels (QC). QС is expected to appear only in the most important cases.