*/
A new way of calculating the Practising Certificate Fee according to ability to pay is to be introduced. Stephen Crowne, Chief Executive of the Bar Council, explains.
Addressing a crowd in Worcester, Massachusetts, in autumn 1936, US President Franklin Roosevelt declared: “Taxes shall be levied according to ability to pay”. At a time when the legal services market is tough and unforgiving, these words will assuredly resonate beyond those members of the Bar familiar with American history.
We know from our countless conversations with barristers that swathes of the profession are increasingly feeling the pressure of covering a plethora of costs – overheads, chambers’ fees, expenses, etc. This task is even harder for those directly affected by reductions in public funding. Earlier this year the Bar Council and the Bar Standards Board (BSB) released a study that showed around two-thirds of self-employed criminal barristers reported that their earnings had fallen between 2011 and 2013.
The Practising Certificate Fee (PCF) – a compulsory annual levy imposed to support regulatory and some representative activities – is one such cost barristers must cover. The Bar Council and the BSB will soon introduce a new way of calculating the PCF according to ability to pay. From 2015, a barrister’s PCF will be calculated based on their earnings, rather than – as it is with the current system – the number of years since they were called to the Bar.
This shift should be a welcome change for the Bar. Recent research revealed that almost two-thirds of barristers surveyed opposed the present Practising Certificate Fee system and nearly as many said they favoured the introduction of a fairer model based on income. It will help to ease the burden shouldered by barristers on lower incomes and make the whole system fairer. It means a young barrister at the commercial Bar who earns, say, a salary of £65,000 will no longer pay less for their PCF than a self-employed criminal barrister of many more years’ standing, returning to work after a career break.
The fee to be paid by barristers will depend upon the income band in which they fall. All barristers in the same band will pay the same fee. There will be six fee rates, related to income bands, ranging from £100 for those whose gross earnings are less than £30,000, to £1,500 for those with gross earnings of £240,001 or more. Earnings during the 2013/14 financial year will be used as the basis for determining the PCF for the 2015/16 year, and so on in successive years. The new scheme – developed following research and consultation during 2012 and 2013 and approved by the Legal Services Board in October 2013 – will also be fairer because the same bands will apply to both the employed and the self-employed Bar. No-one will be disadvantaged because of the way in which they practise.
The new scheme will operate within the existing “Barrister Connect” Authorisation to Practise arrangements and is designed to be as straightforward to use as possible.
All practitioners will need to provide the BSB with the right to undertake an individual audit of declared income through the “Declaration of Truth” that is already part of the Authorisation to Practise process. The Bar Council and the BSB have been working hard to cut costs and ensure that funds raised through the PCF go towards essential regulatory and representative activity. For 2014-15 we kept PCF rates flat in cash terms. For 2015-16 our intention is to raise the same amount of cash, further reducing the amount needed in real terms.
There was a time when year of Call was a reasonable proxy for income. That time has now passed; such a proxy is no longer reliable. There is ample evidence of relatively junior members of the Bar paying a significantly smaller PCF than more senior and QC colleagues, despite earning more in fees.
We know from our countless conversations with barristers that swathes of the profession are increasingly feeling the pressure of covering a plethora of costs – overheads, chambers’ fees, expenses, etc. This task is even harder for those directly affected by reductions in public funding. Earlier this year the Bar Council and the Bar Standards Board (BSB) released a study that showed around two-thirds of self-employed criminal barristers reported that their earnings had fallen between 2011 and 2013.
The Practising Certificate Fee (PCF) – a compulsory annual levy imposed to support regulatory and some representative activities – is one such cost barristers must cover. The Bar Council and the BSB will soon introduce a new way of calculating the PCF according to ability to pay. From 2015, a barrister’s PCF will be calculated based on their earnings, rather than – as it is with the current system – the number of years since they were called to the Bar.
This shift should be a welcome change for the Bar. Recent research revealed that almost two-thirds of barristers surveyed opposed the present Practising Certificate Fee system and nearly as many said they favoured the introduction of a fairer model based on income. It will help to ease the burden shouldered by barristers on lower incomes and make the whole system fairer. It means a young barrister at the commercial Bar who earns, say, a salary of £65,000 will no longer pay less for their PCF than a self-employed criminal barrister of many more years’ standing, returning to work after a career break.
The fee to be paid by barristers will depend upon the income band in which they fall. All barristers in the same band will pay the same fee. There will be six fee rates, related to income bands, ranging from £100 for those whose gross earnings are less than £30,000, to £1,500 for those with gross earnings of £240,001 or more. Earnings during the 2013/14 financial year will be used as the basis for determining the PCF for the 2015/16 year, and so on in successive years. The new scheme – developed following research and consultation during 2012 and 2013 and approved by the Legal Services Board in October 2013 – will also be fairer because the same bands will apply to both the employed and the self-employed Bar. No-one will be disadvantaged because of the way in which they practise.
The new scheme will operate within the existing “Barrister Connect” Authorisation to Practise arrangements and is designed to be as straightforward to use as possible.
All practitioners will need to provide the BSB with the right to undertake an individual audit of declared income through the “Declaration of Truth” that is already part of the Authorisation to Practise process. The Bar Council and the BSB have been working hard to cut costs and ensure that funds raised through the PCF go towards essential regulatory and representative activity. For 2014-15 we kept PCF rates flat in cash terms. For 2015-16 our intention is to raise the same amount of cash, further reducing the amount needed in real terms.
There was a time when year of Call was a reasonable proxy for income. That time has now passed; such a proxy is no longer reliable. There is ample evidence of relatively junior members of the Bar paying a significantly smaller PCF than more senior and QC colleagues, despite earning more in fees.
A new way of calculating the Practising Certificate Fee according to ability to pay is to be introduced. Stephen Crowne, Chief Executive of the Bar Council, explains.
Addressing a crowd in Worcester, Massachusetts, in autumn 1936, US President Franklin Roosevelt declared: “Taxes shall be levied according to ability to pay”. At a time when the legal services market is tough and unforgiving, these words will assuredly resonate beyond those members of the Bar familiar with American history.
As we look ahead to Justice Week 2022, the sustainability of the Criminal Bar remains a critical issue for the government to address
Opportunity for female sopranos/contraltos in secondary education, or who have recently finished secondary education but have not yet begun tertiary education. Eligibility includes children of members of the Bar
Fear of the collection and test process is a common factor among clients, especially among vulnerable adults in complex family law cases. Cansford Laboratories shares some tips to help the testing process run as smoothly as possible
Casey Randall explains how complex relationship DNA tests can best be used – and interpreted – by counsel
Casey Randall, Head of DNA at AlphaBiolabs, explores what barristers need to know about DNA testing for immigration, including when a client might wish to submit DNA evidence, and which relationship tests are best for immigration applications
Julian Morgan reminds barristers of the top five areas to consider before 5 April
The case ofR v Brecanihas complicated matters for defence lawyers. Emma Fielding talks to gang culture expert, Dr Simon Harding about County Lines, exploitation and modern slavery
Barristers are particularly at risk of burnout because of the nature of our work and our approach to it but it doesnt have to be this way. Jade Bucklow explores how culture, work and lifestyle changes can rejuvinate our mental health...
Professionally embarrassed? The circumstances in which criminal barristers may return instructions to appear at trial have become clearer following the Court of Appeal judgment inR v Daniels By Abigail Bright
The Schools Consent Project (SCP) is educating tens of thousands of teenagers about the law around consent to challenge and change what is now endemic behaviour. Here, its founder, barrister Kate Parker talks to Chris Henley QC about SCPs work and its association with Jodie Comers West End playPrima Facie, in which she plays a criminal barrister who is sexually assaulted
Following the launch of the Life at the Young Bar report and a nationwide listening exercise, Michael Polak and Michael Harwood outline the Young Barristers Committees raft of initiatives designed to address your issues of concern