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The former Lord Chancellor called for restrictions on the rights of audience of solicitor-advocates in order to ‘restore the criminal Bar to health’.
Delivering the Longford Lecture in November 2016, Michael Gove MP said serious criminal defence work should be restricted to barristers, and solicitor-advocates who re-qualify.
While there were ‘some very fine solicitor-advocates’, he suggested that barristers provide a ‘better service’.
He bemoaned the decline of the criminal Bar, ‘squeezed to the margins’ due to economic forces that have driven solicitors’ firms to retain work in-house.
He said: ‘I think we should investigate how we can better regulate those solicitor firms who refer clients to in-house advocates or those with whom they have any sort of other commercial relationship.’
Solicitors reacted to his comments with fury. Will Richmond-Coggan, Chairman of the Solicitors’ Association of Higher Court Advocates, accused the Bar of using ‘protectionist tactics’ to ‘crowd out the newcomers with unsubstantiated whispering campaigns and appeals to their powerful friends in government’.
Barristers, he said, ‘want to impose artificial barriers to entry for any who seek to threaten their historic monopoly’.
But Francis Fitzgibbon QC, Chairman of the Criminal Bar Association, said: ‘I welcome any advocate whose ability matches the cases they are briefed in. The label matters less than the content of the bottle.’
The former Lord Chancellor called for restrictions on the rights of audience of solicitor-advocates in order to ‘restore the criminal Bar to health’.
Delivering the Longford Lecture in November 2016, Michael Gove MP said serious criminal defence work should be restricted to barristers, and solicitor-advocates who re-qualify.
While there were ‘some very fine solicitor-advocates’, he suggested that barristers provide a ‘better service’.
He bemoaned the decline of the criminal Bar, ‘squeezed to the margins’ due to economic forces that have driven solicitors’ firms to retain work in-house.
He said: ‘I think we should investigate how we can better regulate those solicitor firms who refer clients to in-house advocates or those with whom they have any sort of other commercial relationship.’
Solicitors reacted to his comments with fury. Will Richmond-Coggan, Chairman of the Solicitors’ Association of Higher Court Advocates, accused the Bar of using ‘protectionist tactics’ to ‘crowd out the newcomers with unsubstantiated whispering campaigns and appeals to their powerful friends in government’.
Barristers, he said, ‘want to impose artificial barriers to entry for any who seek to threaten their historic monopoly’.
But Francis Fitzgibbon QC, Chairman of the Criminal Bar Association, said: ‘I welcome any advocate whose ability matches the cases they are briefed in. The label matters less than the content of the bottle.’
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
