*/
Advocacy standards have slipped but independent barristers are better than solicitor advocates and in-house counsel, judges told legal regulators.
Published by the Bar Standards Board (BSB) and the Solicitors Regulation Authority, the Judicial Perceptions Report was produced by the Institute for Criminal Policy Research of Birkbeck, University of London and involved in-depth interviews with 50 High Court and Circuit judges.
Most thought advocacy was ‘generally competent’, but a large proportion felt standards were poorer than when they had practised.
Some said the quality differed depending on the seriousness of the case and advocate’s professional background, with solicitor-advocates and in-house barristers less well reviewed than independent barristers.
The most common concern was that advocates took on cases beyond their level of experience, particularly where solicitors’ firms, for financial reasons, kept cases in house rather than instruct appropriately experienced independent counsel.
More than half felt declining pay and associated low morale negatively affected quality, partly because some of the most able advocates left criminal practice for more lucrative civil work.
BSB Director General,Vanessa Davies accepted there was some ‘poor performance’, but highlighted the finding that financial pressures threaten quality. She said the BSB was determined to ensure standards of advocacy are maintained and improved.
Advocacy standards have slipped but independent barristers are better than solicitor advocates and in-house counsel, judges told legal regulators.
Published by the Bar Standards Board (BSB) and the Solicitors Regulation Authority, the Judicial Perceptions Report was produced by the Institute for Criminal Policy Research of Birkbeck, University of London and involved in-depth interviews with 50 High Court and Circuit judges.
Most thought advocacy was ‘generally competent’, but a large proportion felt standards were poorer than when they had practised.
Some said the quality differed depending on the seriousness of the case and advocate’s professional background, with solicitor-advocates and in-house barristers less well reviewed than independent barristers.
The most common concern was that advocates took on cases beyond their level of experience, particularly where solicitors’ firms, for financial reasons, kept cases in house rather than instruct appropriately experienced independent counsel.
More than half felt declining pay and associated low morale negatively affected quality, partly because some of the most able advocates left criminal practice for more lucrative civil work.
BSB Director General,Vanessa Davies accepted there was some ‘poor performance’, but highlighted the finding that financial pressures threaten quality. She said the BSB was determined to ensure standards of advocacy are maintained and improved.
The Chair of the Bar reports back
By Kem Kemal, CEO, Henry Dannell
By BSK Financial Planning
Mário Barroso, Head of R&D and Method Development at AlphaBiolabs
Susie Griffin on the admin that keeps barristers from billable work
Clement Cowley, Partner at The Penny Group, explains how global events can influence the performance of pensions and ISAs, and why taking a long-term approach to investing is often the most effective strategy
Kick off your career at the Bar Council’s Pupillage Fair this October – it’s one of the most valuable opportunities for aspiring barristers, says Amelia Clegg
Join us on Saturday 21 November 2026 at Leeds Beckett University and see for yourself why the North continues to be an exceptional place to build a career at the Bar
The golden age of advocacy? David Langwallner pays homage to the filmic if contentious barrister Sir Edward Carson and some of his contemporaries
Henry Fingerhut outlines what the Bar Standards Board AI guidance means for early career barristers
Not yet, says Jacob Turner. Regulation, unlike the technology itself, is a domain the legal profession can still control
