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As AI reshapes legal practice, the advocates who thrive will be those willing to dig deep, says Michaela Hardwick. By mining the rich seam of their experience and honing the human skills at the profession’s core, barristers can unearth what’s needed to build a sustainable practice
There is a long-standing recognition that of all legal professionals, barristers are recognised as exemplars for their technical expertise and knowledge. Even though the Bar is a collection of mostly self-employed individuals, it works as a well-oiled machine to maintain this reputation.
Whatever one’s views or experience of artificial intelligence (AI), there is no doubt that it is exponentially increasing our ability to access technical information. Yes, we hear stories of its misuse, but as with any new tool, these teething problems soon iron themselves out. This means that every barrister can have equal access to this goldmine of technical knowledge and will not have to rely upon building their own technical knowledge and experience over many years of practice. In effect, technical skill will be ‘supercharged’ for all.
I am now going to leave the topic of AI to others whose expertise and eloquence on the subject far exceed my own. Instead, I will focus on the ‘human skills’ that are often overlooked within the legal profession but will become increasingly important as AI levels the playing field in technical capability.
Over the past decade, a number of developments have heightened client expectations – particularly the immediacy of access to information, combined with financial pressures that sharpen the focus on value for money. These factors have had a significant impact on the Bar, as they have across many other sectors.
Taken together, these factors suggest that the Bar has reached a tipping point. Those who wish to succeed must be ready to embrace a fundamental shift in the way they practise.
In my view, there are two broad strategies that will enable those prepared to meet this challenge to build a sustainable practice in an AI-driven future. These are:
Before exploring these strategies in more detail, it is helpful to outline the relevance of the Professional Statement for Barristers. Introduced by the Bar Standards Board (BSB) in 2019, this sets out the knowledge, skills and attributes required of all barristers.
Until recently, the focus has largely been on ensuring that those in training meet these competences by ‘day one’ of practice. However, the regulatory intention has always been that barristers must maintain this threshold level of competence throughout their careers.
This principle was reinforced in 2022 by the oversight regulator, the Legal Services Board, which published a Statement of Policy on ongoing competence. This requires legal regulators to ensure that: standards of competence are maintained throughout a barrister’s career; competence levels are regularly assessed and areas for improvement identified; appropriate intervention is taken where standards are at risk; and effective remedial action is implemented where standards are not met. The BSB is required to undertake ongoing analysis and action to ensure these objectives are fully met.
I thought it would be interesting to ask AI – specifically Microsoft Copilot – which of the competences in the Professional Statement for Barristers it would find most difficult to demonstrate. Copilot’s high-level conclusion was:
The competences most difficult for AI are those that require:
1. Genuine moral agency and ethical responsibility
2. True independence and resistance to pressure
3. Self-awareness, reflection, and personal growth
4. Embodied human empathy, judgement, and trust-building
5. Role-based accountability within a constitutional justice system
AI may simulate aspects of these competences procedurally or linguistically, but it cannot authentically possess or exercise them in the sense required by the Professional Statement.
© Getty images
By this, I mean strengthening a barrister’s ability to mine their professional experience for deeper insights – uncovering the ‘gems’ of learning and wisdom it contains. In essence, this is reflective practice. Counsel magazine has recently featured insightful articles exploring the links between reflective practice and wellbeing, including by Barbara Mills KC, Chair of the Bar 2025, and highlighting promising pilot programmes.
In this article, however, my focus is on the practical steps individual barristers can take to use reflective practice to enhance their competence and reinforce their practice in an AI-driven world.
Every piece of work a barrister undertakes offers an opportunity to uncover insights that can strengthen their practice. In practical terms, this involves analysing each matter in the round – looking at the instructions received, the evidence reviewed, and interactions with clients, opponents and judges, as well as the eventual outcome. While this process may initially require a modest investment of time, the rewards are considerable.
As with any activity, taking the time to develop a clear process and set of criteria will make the analysis both more effective and more efficient, and help it become habitual. Just as you would not advise on prospects of success without ensuring that your research includes verifying the most up-to-date statutory provisions and case law, post-instruction reflection should become an equally essential part of practice.
When deciding how to approach it, consider the timing of your analysis and what best suits your working style. Some practitioners benefit from reflecting immediately, while others may prefer to wait a few days to allow their thoughts to filter through.
As for the criteria, I would suggest using open questions to encourage fuller reflection and the generation of ideas. The criteria should ideally be grounded in the relevant competencies set out in the Professional Statement.
For example, competence 1.9c requires barristers to ‘adapt language and non-verbal communication taking into account the message and the audience.’ In reflective terms, this could form the following questions:
Such questions will allow you to refine and improve your performance in the non-technical competences which will become increasingly important in an AI-driven legal world.
Building on the mining metaphor, the Professional Statement for Barristers can be seen as the ‘scaffolding’ that supports the walls of the mine – enabling barristers, as explorers, to increase their chances of success while promoting long-term sustainability and safety, including regulatory compliance and wellbeing.
This level of reflective practice is an art form that becomes second nature with regular use, eventually informing in-the-moment decisions. Those who apply it most effectively also draw insight from others – opposing counsel, professional clients, judges and lay clients. This advanced skill requires the self-awareness and humility to recognise and learn from these gems of insight.
Much of the Professional Statement relies on human skills, including the following competences:
An effective reflective practice exercise is to review the Professional Statement, identifying the non-technical competencies and undertaking an honest, objective assessment of your current level of proficiency in each.
Anyone who has known me during my 30 years in legal practice will have heard me lament the lack of education around what were once termed ‘soft skills’ – now more appropriately recognised as human skills.
Encouragingly, the recent introduction of competence statements by the legal regulators has reinforced their importance, as many of these competences sit firmly within the human domain. Crucially, the BSB makes clear that every barrister must possess these competences from day one of practice and sustain them throughout their career. For example, barristers are required to:
It is not possible to demonstrate these competences without developing human skills such as self-awareness, interpersonal abilities and the capacity to build rapport. While they come naturally to some, they do not to others; however, the good news is that they can be learned and developed just like any technical skill.
As a specific example, competence 1.6a requires barristers, when giving advice, to take account of a client’s circumstances and objectives. It is impossible to fulfil this competence without effective questioning and active listening. In training workshops, I often pose a rhetorical question: would barristers use the same questioning techniques with clients as they do when examining witnesses? These situations demand entirely different approaches.
As for active listening, how often do we truly listen, rather than begin preparing our response? Genuine listening is the only way to build rapport and properly understand a client’s position. Indeed, competence 1.9d explicitly requires barristers to ‘use appropriate listening and questioning techniques when obtaining information’.
I am firmly convinced that, as the use of AI continues its exponential growth, human skills will become ever more essential.
Returning to the mining metaphor, these skills are akin to rhodium – the most precious metal which can be mined!
The success barristers will have in developing these skills will depend upon their preparedness to do some ‘navel gazing’.
Using the scaffolding of the Professional Statement for Barristers to establish a process and criteria for self-reflection and development will enhance success, particularly as regulators expect to see evidence of the ongoing maintenance of these competences.
References
Reflective practice pilots at the Bar, Barbara Mills KC, Counsel, May 2025
Wellbeing – a pillar of practice, Barbara Mills KC, Counsel, December 2025
‘Piloting reflective practice at the Bar’, Emma Cross, Counsel June 2026
Bar Standards Board Professional Statement for Barristers (Incorporating the Threshold Standard and Competences)
Legal Services Board Statement of Policy on ongoing competence, 2022
‘Bar Standards Board sets out its plans to assure competence of barristers’, 14 February 2023
© Getty images
Michaela Hardwick is a 25-year qualified solicitor who sits on the Bar Standards Board’s Advisory Pool of Experts. As Director and Founder of Beyond Compliance, her expertise supports chambers and barristers to build sustainable practices with exemplary compliance and competence cultures.
There is a long-standing recognition that of all legal professionals, barristers are recognised as exemplars for their technical expertise and knowledge. Even though the Bar is a collection of mostly self-employed individuals, it works as a well-oiled machine to maintain this reputation.
Whatever one’s views or experience of artificial intelligence (AI), there is no doubt that it is exponentially increasing our ability to access technical information. Yes, we hear stories of its misuse, but as with any new tool, these teething problems soon iron themselves out. This means that every barrister can have equal access to this goldmine of technical knowledge and will not have to rely upon building their own technical knowledge and experience over many years of practice. In effect, technical skill will be ‘supercharged’ for all.
I am now going to leave the topic of AI to others whose expertise and eloquence on the subject far exceed my own. Instead, I will focus on the ‘human skills’ that are often overlooked within the legal profession but will become increasingly important as AI levels the playing field in technical capability.
Over the past decade, a number of developments have heightened client expectations – particularly the immediacy of access to information, combined with financial pressures that sharpen the focus on value for money. These factors have had a significant impact on the Bar, as they have across many other sectors.
Taken together, these factors suggest that the Bar has reached a tipping point. Those who wish to succeed must be ready to embrace a fundamental shift in the way they practise.
In my view, there are two broad strategies that will enable those prepared to meet this challenge to build a sustainable practice in an AI-driven future. These are:
Before exploring these strategies in more detail, it is helpful to outline the relevance of the Professional Statement for Barristers. Introduced by the Bar Standards Board (BSB) in 2019, this sets out the knowledge, skills and attributes required of all barristers.
Until recently, the focus has largely been on ensuring that those in training meet these competences by ‘day one’ of practice. However, the regulatory intention has always been that barristers must maintain this threshold level of competence throughout their careers.
This principle was reinforced in 2022 by the oversight regulator, the Legal Services Board, which published a Statement of Policy on ongoing competence. This requires legal regulators to ensure that: standards of competence are maintained throughout a barrister’s career; competence levels are regularly assessed and areas for improvement identified; appropriate intervention is taken where standards are at risk; and effective remedial action is implemented where standards are not met. The BSB is required to undertake ongoing analysis and action to ensure these objectives are fully met.
I thought it would be interesting to ask AI – specifically Microsoft Copilot – which of the competences in the Professional Statement for Barristers it would find most difficult to demonstrate. Copilot’s high-level conclusion was:
The competences most difficult for AI are those that require:
1. Genuine moral agency and ethical responsibility
2. True independence and resistance to pressure
3. Self-awareness, reflection, and personal growth
4. Embodied human empathy, judgement, and trust-building
5. Role-based accountability within a constitutional justice system
AI may simulate aspects of these competences procedurally or linguistically, but it cannot authentically possess or exercise them in the sense required by the Professional Statement.
© Getty images
By this, I mean strengthening a barrister’s ability to mine their professional experience for deeper insights – uncovering the ‘gems’ of learning and wisdom it contains. In essence, this is reflective practice. Counsel magazine has recently featured insightful articles exploring the links between reflective practice and wellbeing, including by Barbara Mills KC, Chair of the Bar 2025, and highlighting promising pilot programmes.
In this article, however, my focus is on the practical steps individual barristers can take to use reflective practice to enhance their competence and reinforce their practice in an AI-driven world.
Every piece of work a barrister undertakes offers an opportunity to uncover insights that can strengthen their practice. In practical terms, this involves analysing each matter in the round – looking at the instructions received, the evidence reviewed, and interactions with clients, opponents and judges, as well as the eventual outcome. While this process may initially require a modest investment of time, the rewards are considerable.
As with any activity, taking the time to develop a clear process and set of criteria will make the analysis both more effective and more efficient, and help it become habitual. Just as you would not advise on prospects of success without ensuring that your research includes verifying the most up-to-date statutory provisions and case law, post-instruction reflection should become an equally essential part of practice.
When deciding how to approach it, consider the timing of your analysis and what best suits your working style. Some practitioners benefit from reflecting immediately, while others may prefer to wait a few days to allow their thoughts to filter through.
As for the criteria, I would suggest using open questions to encourage fuller reflection and the generation of ideas. The criteria should ideally be grounded in the relevant competencies set out in the Professional Statement.
For example, competence 1.9c requires barristers to ‘adapt language and non-verbal communication taking into account the message and the audience.’ In reflective terms, this could form the following questions:
Such questions will allow you to refine and improve your performance in the non-technical competences which will become increasingly important in an AI-driven legal world.
Building on the mining metaphor, the Professional Statement for Barristers can be seen as the ‘scaffolding’ that supports the walls of the mine – enabling barristers, as explorers, to increase their chances of success while promoting long-term sustainability and safety, including regulatory compliance and wellbeing.
This level of reflective practice is an art form that becomes second nature with regular use, eventually informing in-the-moment decisions. Those who apply it most effectively also draw insight from others – opposing counsel, professional clients, judges and lay clients. This advanced skill requires the self-awareness and humility to recognise and learn from these gems of insight.
Much of the Professional Statement relies on human skills, including the following competences:
An effective reflective practice exercise is to review the Professional Statement, identifying the non-technical competencies and undertaking an honest, objective assessment of your current level of proficiency in each.
Anyone who has known me during my 30 years in legal practice will have heard me lament the lack of education around what were once termed ‘soft skills’ – now more appropriately recognised as human skills.
Encouragingly, the recent introduction of competence statements by the legal regulators has reinforced their importance, as many of these competences sit firmly within the human domain. Crucially, the BSB makes clear that every barrister must possess these competences from day one of practice and sustain them throughout their career. For example, barristers are required to:
It is not possible to demonstrate these competences without developing human skills such as self-awareness, interpersonal abilities and the capacity to build rapport. While they come naturally to some, they do not to others; however, the good news is that they can be learned and developed just like any technical skill.
As a specific example, competence 1.6a requires barristers, when giving advice, to take account of a client’s circumstances and objectives. It is impossible to fulfil this competence without effective questioning and active listening. In training workshops, I often pose a rhetorical question: would barristers use the same questioning techniques with clients as they do when examining witnesses? These situations demand entirely different approaches.
As for active listening, how often do we truly listen, rather than begin preparing our response? Genuine listening is the only way to build rapport and properly understand a client’s position. Indeed, competence 1.9d explicitly requires barristers to ‘use appropriate listening and questioning techniques when obtaining information’.
I am firmly convinced that, as the use of AI continues its exponential growth, human skills will become ever more essential.
Returning to the mining metaphor, these skills are akin to rhodium – the most precious metal which can be mined!
The success barristers will have in developing these skills will depend upon their preparedness to do some ‘navel gazing’.
Using the scaffolding of the Professional Statement for Barristers to establish a process and criteria for self-reflection and development will enhance success, particularly as regulators expect to see evidence of the ongoing maintenance of these competences.
References
Reflective practice pilots at the Bar, Barbara Mills KC, Counsel, May 2025
Wellbeing – a pillar of practice, Barbara Mills KC, Counsel, December 2025
‘Piloting reflective practice at the Bar’, Emma Cross, Counsel June 2026
Bar Standards Board Professional Statement for Barristers (Incorporating the Threshold Standard and Competences)
Legal Services Board Statement of Policy on ongoing competence, 2022
‘Bar Standards Board sets out its plans to assure competence of barristers’, 14 February 2023
© Getty images
As AI reshapes legal practice, the advocates who thrive will be those willing to dig deep, says Michaela Hardwick. By mining the rich seam of their experience and honing the human skills at the profession’s core, barristers can unearth what’s needed to build a sustainable practice
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