Down from my ivory tower...........

Barristers have over the years managed to build up an air of superiority over the rest of the legal profession. This is reflected in the question most often asked by a lay client about becoming a barrister, 'how many more years did you have to train to become a barrister after you had qualified as a solicitor?' In truth I probably had 6 months less training than a comparable solicitor.

Clear divisions within the legal profession between advocate/specialist barrister and generalist solicitor are now blurred. More and more solicitors are doing what barristers used to do and barristers are moving into areas previously reserved for solicitors. The major obstacle for solicitors has been the right to appear in higher courts whilst the obstacle for barristers has been the requirement for an instructing solicitor.

High Court Solicitor Advocates are now a fact of life and access to the Bar from the general public has been in place since 2004. Things started to change for the Bar in the late 80s.I

n 1989 the Bar Council allowed Barristers to accept work directly from approved professionals for the first time. This was known as Direct Professional Access. This went through a number guises turning into ‘Bardirect’ and finally becoming known as Licensed Access.This opened up the possibility for some professionals to be able to instruct barristers directly. This was used primarily by surveyors and accountants. The major drawback for the professional was that if their professional body was not approved then the individual or company had to register with the Bar Council.

In July 2004 it became possible for members of the public to instruct barristers directly. This was a major change for our profession and was for those of us who became involved in providing this service a steep learning curve.

I know a number of colleagues who believe that this erosion of difference will inevitably lead to a fused profession culminating in the end of the Bar as we know it. I am not so sure. The Bar has expanded massively over the last 20 years whilst these changes have been implemented. I do not think the changes will be the end of the Bar far from it in these difficult times the changes will help the Bar to survive!

Peter D