The Law Society will obviously be biased towards the solicitors so may people also use Legal Service Ombudsman to investigate their complaints. A legal Services Ombudsman is an independent person to whom you can refer your complaint to. Solicitors can also be sued in the courts either in tort or breach of contract. Some examples of cases where solicitors have been sued include: Ross v Caunters [1980], White v Jones [1993] and Arthur J.S. Hall and Co v Simons [2000].
There are three different routes to becoming a solicitor; the first is to become a law graduate. This is the most common route and involves obtaining a law degree [LLB] for 3 years full time following a legal practise course for a year and finally to undertake 2 years training with a firm of solicitors. In total this is a period of six years and is the shortest and quickest way of becoming a solicitor. The law degree must contain the 6 “core” subjects which include contracts, criminal, tort, land, equity and trust and E.U. law.
The second route is a non-law graduate [BA / BSC], this includes completing a degree in another subject and then to pass the Common Professional Examination which lasts for a year. Then finally going on to the Law Practise Course and 2 years training. This route takes 7 years to complete.
Thirdly is if you are a non graduate, this is for trainee legal executives who already work for solicitors. They can take an examination to become a fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives [ILEX]. The requirements are that the person must be over 25 and have worked in a solicitor’s office for 5 years or more, they can then take a Law Practise course and do two years training.
There are about 14,000 practising barristers in ratio 2:1 in favour of men. Along with 850 QC’s working mostly in London. QC’s are from the Queen’s Counsel and are high paid high rank barristers.
Barrister’s main job is advocacy i.e. representing the client in court. Barristers have unlimited rights in audience so they can represent in any court in England and Wales. However, their monopoly has been broken following the C.L.S.A. 1990 and the Access to Justice Act 1999.
Barristers are not allowed to form partnerships or companies and have to thrive on their own personal skills. Barristers specialise in a particular field of the law.
The general public generally cannot approach a barrister directly but had to go through a solicitor, and they would refer a barrister to the client. The Access to Justice Act 1999 allowed barristers who were employed by solicitor firms to provide their services direct to the public. However, most barristers work to the cab rank rule. This when their wait their turn for their next case whilst sitting in their chambers. Most people do not get a choice on what barrister they have but some high earning people get to choose the barrister they want.
Barristers share and rent chambers with other barristers, each set of chambers has one clerk and other juniors to help with administration. Clerks have a tendency to be paid 5-10% of a barrister’s fee. A barrister depends on the clerk who acts as the business manager and negotiates fees.
Barristers stick to the traditional rules of etiquette which are: they never shake hands with each other, they address each other in courts as “my learned friend”, they address the judge in terms like “may it please your Lordship” or “I humbly submit” and they have a strict dress sense i.e. dark coloured 3 piece suits for both men and women, plus a wig and a gown.
The governing body for Barristers is the Bar Council; complaints can also be made through the Bar Council as made in the Law Society for solicitors. The General Council appointed a Complaints Commissioner in 1997 who has the power to suspend a barrister and award up to £5,000 in compensation. Barristers are now liable in the tort of negligence for advocacy in court or in preparation of their work “intimately connected” with a case. An example of a case which included this is Arthur J.S. Hall and Co. v Simons [2000]
Barristers standing for 10 years can apply to become a Queen’s Counsel, this is also known as “taking the silk” because of the nature of the gown. QC’s wear silk gowns called silks with a pocket in the back. Top barristers are QC’s and tend to represent wealthy clients in high profile public cases.
The shortest time in becoming a barrister is five years and three stages are involved. The first is the academic stage. There are three options, to obtain a law degree [LLB], a degree plus C.P.E. or mature students can take a 2 year legal preparatory course.
The second stage is the vocational stage; there are two options here which include, joining one of the 4 Inns of Court based in London. Here the barristers had to keep term by dining 18 times before being invited to the Bar. This is no longer a requirement. However, the Bar no longer has a monopoly on the training of barristers. From 1997 certain law centres outside of London run the 1 year Bar vocational Course. The students must then pass the examination set by the Council of Legal Education.
The third stage is the practical stage; this takes place after passing the vocational examination and being “called to the bar”. It is necessary to spend 1 year in pupillage [training under the guidance of an experienced barrister.
There have been arguments that there is no need for two separate branches of legal services and the two should be fused together in to one. One reason for the fusion is the cost. The cost is too much because if a case goes to the High Court then a client has to pay both the solicitor and barrister. It is also inefficient, dealing with two separate people is more time consuming and may lead to mistakes being made as there is more paperwork involved. Solicitors are professional people who in some cases are as skilled in advocacy as barristers. Another argument was whether two separate systems of education need to be set up when both potential barristers and solicitors can study at the same universities or law schools.
Arguments that have been put against the fusion are that there is a decrease in specialist skills of advocacy. There is a loss of a second opinion in a case and there is a loss of the cab rank principle. This is significant as the cab rank principle is argued to be fairer to everybody.
The Office of Fair Trade criticised the legal profession in March 2001 in that it prevents competition. They recommended that the public should have direct access to barristers, mixed professional partnerships should be set up and that advertising of comparative fees should be allowed. They said that comparative fees should be published to encourage more competition.
The Clementi Report 2004” recommended that barristers, solicitors and legal executive should work more closely together in the form of Legal Disciplinary Practises [LPD’s]. In addition there should be a new independent complaints body to hear complaints from the public. The Clementi is a leading lawyer.
