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The Bar’s regulator published proposals to provide more ‘innovative and flexible’ pupillages and remove barriers to the profession.
The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has suggested scrapping the compulsory 12-months of pupillage, leaving the training length up to individual chambers. It also proposed raising the £12,000 minimum award, that must be paid to pupils over the course of their year-long pupillage. The current sum, it said, is below the national living wage, which prevents individuals from lower socio-economic backgrounds entering the profession.
The Consultation on Future Bar Training would see a lesser role for the four Inns of Court, removing the need for students to sign up with one before they begin the Bar Professional Training Course, and passing the task of student registration on to the regulator (see: bit.ly/2wTjUSI).
The paper also moots removing the requirement to complete 12 ‘qualifying sessions’, which can include guest lecture events, advocacy workshops, dining sessions and debate nights.
The BSB paper said it ‘understandsthe historic and supportive role played by the Inns’ and ‘has no intention of changing what works well’, but said it wants to ‘deregulate’ these areas.
Its Director of Strategy and Policy, Ewen Macleod, said the BSB wants to ensure the rules governing pupillage and qualification remain ‘fit for purpose over the long-term’, maintaining high-standards of entry, ensuring that a career at the bar is accessible to everyone with the potential. ‘There are a number of possible ways to achieve all of this, so we are keen to hear what people think about the issues,’ he said.
The consultation closes in January 2018 with any new rules coming into effect in 2019.
The Bar’s regulator published proposals to provide more ‘innovative and flexible’ pupillages and remove barriers to the profession.
The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has suggested scrapping the compulsory 12-months of pupillage, leaving the training length up to individual chambers. It also proposed raising the £12,000 minimum award, that must be paid to pupils over the course of their year-long pupillage. The current sum, it said, is below the national living wage, which prevents individuals from lower socio-economic backgrounds entering the profession.
The Consultation on Future Bar Training would see a lesser role for the four Inns of Court, removing the need for students to sign up with one before they begin the Bar Professional Training Course, and passing the task of student registration on to the regulator (see: bit.ly/2wTjUSI).
The paper also moots removing the requirement to complete 12 ‘qualifying sessions’, which can include guest lecture events, advocacy workshops, dining sessions and debate nights.
The BSB paper said it ‘understandsthe historic and supportive role played by the Inns’ and ‘has no intention of changing what works well’, but said it wants to ‘deregulate’ these areas.
Its Director of Strategy and Policy, Ewen Macleod, said the BSB wants to ensure the rules governing pupillage and qualification remain ‘fit for purpose over the long-term’, maintaining high-standards of entry, ensuring that a career at the bar is accessible to everyone with the potential. ‘There are a number of possible ways to achieve all of this, so we are keen to hear what people think about the issues,’ he said.
The consultation closes in January 2018 with any new rules coming into effect in 2019.
Far-ranging month for the Chair of the Bar
Endometriosis Awareness North, a charity raising awareness of endometriosis and supporting those affected across the North of England, has received a £500 boost from AlphaBiolabs via the company’s Giving Back initiative
Marie Law, Director of Toxicology at AlphaBiolabs, examines the most recent data on alcohol misuse in the UK, and the implications for alcohol testing in family proceedings
Clement Cowley, Partner at The Penny Group, explains how tailored financial planning can help barristers take control of their finances and plan with confidence
Marie Law, Director of Toxicology at AlphaBiolabs
A £500 donation from AlphaBiolabs has been made to the leading UK charity tackling international parental child abduction and the movement of children across international borders
Seeing the full picture – Baljit Ubhey OBE outlines the CPS action plan to tackle violence against women and girls, offering insights directly relevant to courtroom practice
Heritage as an anchor and a compass, finding our common humanity and embracing the power of the outsider – Melina Antoniadis’s lessons learnt
Is the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office process fit for purpose? Women barristers’ experiences of bullying are not being reported or, if they are, they are not making it through the system, says Tana Adkin KC
Review by Daniel Barnett
Chair of the Bar reports back
