THE LEGAL PROFESSION

Lawyer is the generic name given to our legal profession. There are two main
branches of the profession, Solicitors and Barristers. An emerging branch is that of
the Legal Executives, who do very similar work to solicitors.

The main difference between the main two branches is that solicitors usually work
from behind a desk giving advice etc to the general public. Barristers work in the
courtroom as an advocate representing people during their trial.

SOLICITORS

In summary solicitors prepare the case and barristers present the case in court.

However, as you will discover this is a very general description and there are many
exceptions and some would say there has been a merging of the two professions over
the years and solicitors and barristers now carry out very similar work.

The three routes to becoming a solicitor explained further

The quickest and usual route to becoming a solicitor is by gaining a law degree. If
however your degree is in another subject it is possible to do a one year conversion
course, the Common Professional Examination (CPE).

The next stage is to complete the Legal Practice Course (LPC), this course includes
training in such things as client interviewing, negotiation, advocacy and drafting legal
documents. Click here to see the Law Society's guidance on the Legal Practice
Course.

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Once these two academic stages are completed it is necessary to complete a two-year
training contract with a firm of solicitors. This is to gain practical experience. Whilst
on this training contract the trainee will be required to complete a 20 day Professional
Skills Course which builds on the skills learnt on the Legal Practice Course. Once the
two year training contract is completed they will become a fully qualified solicitor
and their name will be added to the roll of solicitors maintained by the Law Society.

To read the Law Times article, 'How to get a training contract - an insiders guide.'
Click HERE

There is also a non-graduate route to becoming a solicitor. This is also know as the
ILEX route where potential future solicitors first train the become Legal Executives.
This route is only open to mature students and takes longer than the other two routes
but it does enable people to earn money at the same time as they train to become a
solicitor.

The work of solicitors

The vast majority of solicitors work in private practice for a solicitors' firm, however,
there are other organisations/careers open to a qualified solicitor;
Crown Prosecution Service (CPS)
Local Authority Legal Department
Government Legal Department
Legal Advisors in Commercial Organisations

For those working in private practice the type of work they would carry out would be
among the following depending on the type of solicitors' firm they work for;
writing letters on behalf of clients
advising clients on consumer or housing rights
advising clients on family law - divorce, access to children etc
drafting contracts and other legal documents
drawing up wills
advising clients in matters of business
conveyancing - this is the legal side of buying and selling houses
representing clients in court - usually the Magistrates' and County Courts

Many solicitors specialise in one particular area of law and would therefore only deal
with that type of case, for example, a criminal solicitor or a solicitor who only deals
with divorce and family law cases.

Solicitors Rights of Advocacy

All qualified solicitors have always been able to represent clients in the Magistrates
and County Courts, however, their rights of audience in the higher courts have, in the
past, been very limited. Under the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 a solicitor in
private practice can now apply for a Certificate of Advocacy, which enables them to
appear in the higher courts. To obtain this certificate the solicitor would have to take
additional examinations. Under the Access to Justice Act 1999, s36, all solicitors will

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automatically be given full rights of audience in the future. However the new training
requirements have yet to be introduced to make this change possible.

Compalints against solicitors

A client has a contract with their solicitor and can therefore sue them if their work is
negligent. In Griffiths v Dawson (1993) the solicitor for the claimant had failed to
make the correct application during divorce proceedings and as a result the claimant
lost out financially, the court ordered the firm of solicitors to pay the claimant 21,000
in compensation.

Other people affected by the negligent work of a solicitor may also be able to sue.
This was seen in White v Jones (1995) where a father wanted to make a will leaving
9,000 to each of his two daughters. The father sent these instructions in a letter to
his solicitors in the July, unfortunately the solicitors did nothing by the time the father
died in the September. As a result the daughters did not inherit any money and they
successfully sued the solicitor for the 9,000 they had each lost as a result of the
solicitors' negligence in not drawing up the new will as instructed.

Following the case of Hall v Simons (2000) solicitors can also be sued for negligent
work in court when acting as an advocate.

Other complaints against solicitors are dealt with by the Legal Complaints Service,
which is governed by the Legal Services Complaints Commissioner.

There is also a Legal Services Ombudsman who takes up complaints against

solicitors if the Legal Complaints Services doesn't provide a satisfactory answer to a
complaint.

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BARRISTERS

For further explanation of training to become a barrister and simple explanations of

all the terminology click here

The routes to becoming a barrister further explained

The link above provides excellent information on the route to becoming a barrister if
you have a degree, however, there is also a non-degree route for mature students.

To read the Law Times article, 'Finding a pupliage - a guide to the Bar clearing
system.' Click HERE

The work of barristers

Barristers are usually self-employed working in chambers. They share administrative

costs and employ a clerk who books in cases and negotiates fees on their behalf. A
tenancy in chambers is no longer essential however it is still seen as the way to allow
a barrister to build a successful practice.

The majority of barristers concentrate on advocacy, having full rights of audience in

all courts in England and Wales. A small percentage of barristers rarely appear in
court as an advocate and specialise in areas such as tax or company law. All barristers
will spend some of their time writing opinions on cases, giving advice and drafting
documents for use in court.

Originally anyone who wished to instruct a barrister would have to go to a solicitor

first. Since September 2004 it is possible to instruct a barrister direct without the need

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to go through a solicitor first in all civil cases. However, in criminal cases direct
access is still not allowed and a client must first instruct a solicitor who will engage a
barrister on their behalf.

Barristers normally work on what is known as the cab rank rule, under this rule they
cannot turn down a case if it is on an area of law they normally deal with and they are
free to take the case on. However, where clients approach the barrister direct the cab
rank rule doesn't apply.

Some barristers are employed by other organisations, such as, the Crown Prosecution
Service (CPS), others are resident in a firm of solicitors and some big commercial
organisations employ full time barristers.

Queen's Counsel

About ten percent of barristers are Queen's Counsel (QC). Becoming a QC is known
as 'taking silk'. QCs usually take on the more complicated cases and they earn far
higher fees than junior barristers. It is only after working as a junior barrister for at
least ten years than you can apply to become a QC.

QCs usually take on high profile cases and occasionally become very high profile
personalities themselves. An example is Michael Mansfield QC who made a name for
himself in, among others, the following famous cases;
the Orgreave miners who were unjustly accused of riot during the miner's
strike in 1984
the Birmingham Six, who were released in 1991, nearly sixteen years after
being wrongly convicted of the Birmingham pub bombings
James Hanratty, hanged in 1962 for murder
representing Mohamed Al Fayed at the Inquests into the deaths of Diana,
Princess of Wales and Dodi Al Fayed, which began at the Royal Courts of
Justice on 2nd October 2007.

A new system for the appointment of QCs was set up in 2004. Appointment is now
made by an independent selection panel. Junior barristers and solicitors with an
advocacy qualification must pay a fee of 2,500 to apply to become a QC. After
interview by the selection panel they recommend names to the Lord Chancellor who
then appoints them as QCs.

Complaints against barristers

Barristers can be sued for negligent work. In Saif Ali v Sydney Mitchell and Co
(1980) it was held that barristers can be sued for negligence in respect of written
advice and opinions. As discussed earlier following the case of Hall v Simons (2000)
barristers can also be sued for negligent advocacy work in court.

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Bar Standards Board

Complaints against barristers are dealt with by the Bar Standards Board. The board
can order a barrister to pay compensation of up to 5,000 to a client. The complaints
process is overseen by an independent Lay Complaints Commissioner.

Senate of the Inns of Court

Barristers can also be disciplined by the Senate of the Inns of Court if they fail to
maintain the standards set out in their code of conduct.

Legal Services Ombudsman

The Legal Services Ombudsman, discussed earlier, can also investigate complaints
against barristers where the official channels have been unable to get a satisfactory
answer.

The professional body for barristers is called the Bar Council

Fusion of the professions

Should the professions of solicitor and barrister be fused into one?

The advantages of fusion

Reduced costs as only one lawyer would have to be instructed
Less duplication of work
More continuity as the same person would be dealing with the case throughout

The disadvantages of fusion

A decrease in the specialist skills of advocacy
Loss of availability of advice from independent specialists at the bar
Less objectivity in consideration of a case (currently the barrister provides a
second opinion)
Loss of the cab rank system

However these arguments for and against fusion are now less relevant since the
changes made by the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 and the Access to Justice
Act 1999 which mean solicitors and barristers can now take on a case from start to
finish.