Bar Council Chairman Sets Out �Radical and Progressive Vision� for the Future of the Bar

11 June 2010

Nicholas Green QC, the Chairman of the Bar Council, which represents over 15,000 practising barristers in England and Wales, has set out what he has called a radical and progressive vision for the future of the Bar.

Speaking at a Symposium called to discuss ‘the Future of the Bar’ at Inner Temple in London on Thursday 10 June, he outlined the challenges facing the Bar and what it must do to overcome them in a period where “clients want more work for less money but delivered at the same or a higher quality”. Recent reforms provide the Bar with a range of opportunities to adapt its working practices and structures, while market pressures and the fiscal squeeze will prompt new challenges for the profession. Nicholas Green told barristers that now is the time to act in anticipation of these changes.

Publishing a new blueprint for the profession – The future of the Bar – the Chairman called, amongst other things, for the Bar to:

Embrace new business structures that enable it to capitalise upon the opportunities presented by the Legal Services Act 2007
Work constructively with the Government on ways and means to save money which do not harm the administration of justice
See the Inns play a more prominent role in training for advocacy across the entire profession

Nicholas Green recognised the strengths of the Bar and its unique selling points; its “fantastic brand” and “very high quality for low costs”. But he also called for a more business-focussed Bar. In the future, he expects to see a Bar which is more flexible in terms of the size of Chambers, how barristers structure themselves, how willing sets of Chambers are to merge if necessary, and how willing barristers are to adapt their working practices. He foresees more competition with solicitors where appropriate, particularly in publicly funded work, and the need to be well regulated by a highly specialised regulator. This will help to safeguard and promote the Bar for the future, preserve the independence of the profession and most importantly, make it more accessible to its clients. Nicholas Green also called for the profession to engage with Government in a positive manner to assist it in addressing the mountainous levels of national debt.

On the value of the Bar, Nicholas Green said:

“A recent survey recorded that there was a 48% increase in the use of the self-employed Bar by in-house counsel, recognising both ease of access and very good value for money.”

On a greater business focus, he said:

“The Bar will appreciate the need for higher quality management. It seems to me that the importation into the Bar of experienced business skills will be increasingly important as time moves on. Dare one say it but the notion of a Chambers’ meeting determining the future strategy of the set may not now be the best way for decisions to be taken.”

On a more flexible profession, he said:

“In an increasingly cut-throat world size will matter. There are a number of sets with over 150 practitioners. All of these have grown through, amongst other things, merging with other sets. A larger set has greater flexibility: to employ practice managers and support staff; to invest in new business models; to improve and renovate buildings; to invest in IT; and to organise seminars and marketing.”

On more competition and direct access he said:

“The solicitors’ press likes to keep an eye on Bar developments. They most enjoy stories about barristers and solicitors competing so they have shown considerable interest in the Bar’s efforts to introduce new business models. The reaction of both the press and solicitors themselves has been interesting. A common response has been: ‘It’s about time the Bar woke up; we have been expecting that for a long time’.”

On regulation and the importance of high quality advocacy, he said:

“We must view fearless and principled specialist regulation as a bulwark against fusion and as a guarantor of our reputation. The BSB must not merge with the SRA. Its continued separate existence is powerfully in the public interest. The profession will still be focused upon advocacy and specialised advisory work. The wheels of justice run smooth when lubricated by good advocacy. Good advocacy is conducive to financial efficiency.”

On the role of the Inns of Court in providing advocacy training, he said:

“The Inns are an integral part of the DNA of the Bar. They need to gear themselves up for a more prominent role in providing training and mentoring for advocacy across the entire Bar. This will be in response to the mandatory accreditation and quality control standards which are in the process of being introduced. The Advocacy Training Council (“ATC”) should play a major role in this but this has financial implications and is something that the Bar and the Inns need jointly to address.”

Nicholas Green also addressed other challenges that lie ahead. Whilst he predicted that the distinction between employed and self-employed will disappear as an issue, he raised the possibility of a wider gulf emerging between the public and privately funded Bar and particularly the impact this may have on mixed sets of Chambers. He stressed that rule changes introduced by the BSB and new initiatives organised by the Bar Council will put Chambers which rely on public funding in a more competitive position.

The Symposium, which was attended by a diverse audience of around 300 barristers, judges, politicians and other stakeholders, was jointly hosted by the Bar Council with the Bar Standards Board (‘BSB’). As well as the Chairman of the Bar, speakers included the Baroness Deech of Cumnor DBE, Chair of the BSB, the Rt Hon the Lord Judge, the Lord Chief Justice, the Rt Hon the Lord Neuberger of Abbotsbury, the Master of the Rolls, the Rt Hon Lord Justice Etherton, the President of the Council of the Inns of Court and Keir Starmer QC, Director of Public Prosecutions.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

1. In compiling the report, Nicholas Green QC visited nearly 60 individual sets of Chambers and spoke to over 2,500 barristers.

2. For more information please contact the Bar Council Press Office on 0207 222 2525. Copies of the Chairman of the Bar’s speech and the report are available on the Bar Council website: www.barcouncil.org.uk

3. The General Council of the Bar is the Approved Regulator of the Bar of England and Wales. It discharges its regulatory functions through the independent Bar Standards Board. It represents the Bar by:

Promoting the specialist advocacy and advisory services of barristers;
Ensuring access to justice on terms that are fair both to the public and practitioners;
Promoting the high quality training and professional development of all barristers to ensure the highest standards of practice and ethical behaviour;
Working for the efficient and cost-effective administration of justice;
Encouraging access to, and diversity within, the profession so that it is open to all people of ability whatever their background; and
Strengthening and developing the work and the values of the Bar at home and abroad