THE LEGAL PROFESSION: SOLICITORS AND BARRISTERS

(A) SOLICITORS The majority of lawyers practising in the UK are solicitors. Most solicitors work in private practice, either within a law firm or as sole practitioners. The rest work as in-house lawyers for private businesses, for the Crown Prosecution Service or for a local authority.

A solicitor’s work largely depends on the type of firm he or she works in. In smaller ‘high- street’ firms, the work may largely be focused on matrimonial matters, drawing up wills and conveyancing. Larger international firms will focus on financial and corporate law. Solicitors have always had rights of audience in the lower courts and since the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990, they have been entitled to apply for a Certificate of Advocacy to allow them to represent clients in the higher courts. The same Act of Parliament from 1990 also gave solicitors the right to form partnerships with other professions, something which had previously been prohibited. These multidisciplinary practices (MDPs) are leading some members of the profession towards a kind of ‘supermarket’ arrangement, where clients can obtain legal, accountancy, financial, real estate and other related services under one roof.

Solicitors who are actively offering legal sevices are required to be on the roll, which is the central register of all practising solicitors, located at The Law Society of England and Wales. The Law Society represents, supports and promotes solicitors and makes sure that the views of its members are heard by the government and other decision makers. Any complaints from a client about a solicitor’s conduct are dealt with by The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). It can now deal with complaints about negligent advocacy, which is a relatively new development. Before 2000, an advocate was immune to negligence claims brought by a client but in the case of Hall v Simmons (2000), it was held that:

“The standard of care to be applied in negligence actions against an advocate is the same as that applicable to any other skilled professional.”

In light of this, the cost of professional indemnity insurance for solicitors has increased. This provides cover if there is a claim for negligence, a breach of client confidentiality or other actionable conduct from a legal professional.

(B) BARRISTERS The Bar Council, which represents barristers in England and Wales, estimates that around 80% of barristers are self-employed. These barristers work in offices called ‘chambers’ once they obtain a ‘tenancy’ upon completion of their training. Tenants work for themselves under the umbrella of a set of chambers, but with an experienced barrister, often a QC, as Head of Chambers. A QC is a barrister with at least 10 years’ experience who will deal with more complex or high-profile cases than his or her colleagues. Becoming a QC is also known as ‘taking silk’. A set of chambers will have a shared clerk acting as a central administrator, keeping barristers’ diaries up to date and negotiating fees on their behalf. The profession of a barrister is often referred to collectively as ‘the Bar’. Barristers are members of The Bar Council and are required to be a member of one of the four Inns of Court. Qualifying as a barrister is known as being called to the bar. Until 2004, barristers were prohibited from seeking or accepting instructions directly from a client and the involvement of a solicitor to present a client to a barrister was compulsory. This prohibition has now been removed and in certain areas of law direct access barristers now accept instructions directly from a client. When a client approaches a barrister directly the tradition of the cab rank rule does not apply. This is a rule which states that a barrister is obliged to accept the first client in line in much the same way as a taxi driver has to accept the first person in the queue. A direct access barrister can turn down a case if he or she decides to do so. As with solicitors, a barrister can be sued for negligence if an opinion or written advice provided to a client is self-evidently wrong. If a client has a complaint about a barrister it will be dealt with by the Bar Standards Board, the professional body which sets out the code of conduct that barristers are required to adhere to.