2010

23 December 2010 - The Bar Council, which represents barristers in England and Wales, has submitted a joint response with the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) to the Legal Services Board (LSB)’s discussion document on the regulatory treatment of referral fees, referral arrangements and fee sharing, calling for referral fees to be scrapped.

14 December 2010 - Ahead of Justice Secretary, Kenneth Clarke QC MP’s appearance before the Justice Select Committee tomorrow, the Family Law Bar Association (FLBA), which represents family barristers in England and Wales, has warned of the potentially dangerous consequences of the planned cuts to civil legal aid.

10 December 2010 - On 4 January 2011 the standard rate of VAT will increase to 20%. This guide sets out key points of law which barristers and their clerks will need to be aware. It also responds to typical questions which the Bar Council has been asked, in order to show how the change will affect the administration of a barrister’s practice.

8 December 2010 - The Bar Council, which represents barristers in England and Wales, has welcomed the publication of the Government’s “sensible and rational” Green Paper entitled Breaking the Cycle: Effective Punishment, Rehabilitation and Sentencing of Offenders, but has warned that the Government must look at the system in the round, and protect against unintended consequences.

2 December 2010 - Peter Lodder QC, incoming Chairman of the Bar Council, which represents barristers in England and Wales, will call for publicly funded barristers to diversify their practices, when he delivers his inaugural address to the Bar Council this evening. Lodder takes over as Chairman of the Bar from Nicholas Green QC on 1 January 2011.

26 November 2010 - The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has recently issued guidance on dealing with complaints made to chambers and sole practitioners. This guidance states that barristers must notify clients in writing at the time of engagement of their right to make a complaint, including their right to contact the Legal Ombudsman at the conclusion of the complaints process, and the fact that the lay client may complain directly to chambers without going through solicitors.

23 November 2010 - Peter Lodder QC, Chairman-elect of the Bar Council, which represents barristers in England and Wales, will launch Member Services’ new Public Access training programme on Thursday 25 November at St Johns Buildings in Manchester.

23 November 2010 - The Rt Hon Lord Justice Moses has called for a radical re-thinking of the role of the judge in jury trials at this year’s Law Reform Committee lecture entitled “Summing Down the Summing Up: Re-Forming the Criminal Trial,” held on Tuesday 23 November at the Inner Temple.