*/
Public Access Bar Association
Public access now accounts for 12% of the Bar’s income; in 2009 the figure was just 2%; Five QCs, one a recent convert to ‘the Dark Side’ of judicial office gave personal views of public access.
There was a distinct family bias to this PABA session, which was none the worse for that. In fact as a civil practitioner, whose public access work is far more symbiotic with the solicitors’ profession, with clients often looking for initial advice and referral to a suitable solicitor, it was interesting to learn that in the family field, the Bar is far more often either in direct competition with solicitors or filling the void left by legal aid.
In the field of ancillary relief, the Bar can offer a far more cost-effective solution in big money cases; a telling example was given by Susan Jacklin QC who revealed that a direct access client had told her he had been given more substantive advice in their first four-hour conference than he had previously received after spending £¾million on three ‘blue chip’ solicitors’ firms. Thorny issues, such as writing correspondence and avoiding stepping over the sometimes-thin boundary that in practice can exist between permitted public access work and conducting litigation, was also discussed (although 6,000 barristers have completed training and registered for public access work only 220 have gone on to obtain a the qualification to conduct litigation). As a family judge, Robin Tolson QC echoed Sir Henry Brooke’s comments earlier in the day about the impossibility of maintaining equality of arms when one unrepresented party appears against another who is represented and the relief he feels when a previously unrepresented party has, through public access, managed to secure representation.
Public access now accounts for 12% of the Bar’s income; in 2009 the figure was just 2%; Five QCs, one a recent convert to ‘the Dark Side’ of judicial office gave personal views of public access.
There was a distinct family bias to this PABA session, which was none the worse for that. In fact as a civil practitioner, whose public access work is far more symbiotic with the solicitors’ profession, with clients often looking for initial advice and referral to a suitable solicitor, it was interesting to learn that in the family field, the Bar is far more often either in direct competition with solicitors or filling the void left by legal aid.
In the field of ancillary relief, the Bar can offer a far more cost-effective solution in big money cases; a telling example was given by Susan Jacklin QC who revealed that a direct access client had told her he had been given more substantive advice in their first four-hour conference than he had previously received after spending £¾million on three ‘blue chip’ solicitors’ firms. Thorny issues, such as writing correspondence and avoiding stepping over the sometimes-thin boundary that in practice can exist between permitted public access work and conducting litigation, was also discussed (although 6,000 barristers have completed training and registered for public access work only 220 have gone on to obtain a the qualification to conduct litigation). As a family judge, Robin Tolson QC echoed Sir Henry Brooke’s comments earlier in the day about the impossibility of maintaining equality of arms when one unrepresented party appears against another who is represented and the relief he feels when a previously unrepresented party has, through public access, managed to secure representation.
Public Access Bar Association
Chair of the Bar sets out a busy calendar for the rest of the year
AlphaBiolabs has announced its latest Giving Back donation to RAY Ceredigion, a grassroots West Wales charity that provides play, learning and community opportunities for families across Ceredigion County
Rachel Davenport, Co-founder and Director at AlphaBiolabs, outlines why barristers, solicitors, judges, social workers and local authorities across the UK trust AlphaBiolabs for court-admissible testing
A £500 donation from AlphaBiolabs is helping to support women and children affected by domestic abuse, thanks to the company’s unique charity initiative that empowers legal professionals to give back to community causes
Casey Randall of AlphaBiolabs discusses the benefits of Non-Invasive Prenatal Paternity testing for the Family Court
Philip N Bristow explains how to unlock your aged debt to fund your tax in one easy step