News

SIR Duncan Nichol CBE’s review of the Queen’s Counsel Appointment System was jointly commissioned by the Bar Council and the Law Society in September 2008. The terms of reference of the review included considering whether it would be appropriate to red-affirm the purpose of the award; the forms of excellence that it is intended to recognise; and the range of criteria against which applicants for the award are assessed. 

Following the move away from the previously used “soundings” process three years ago, Sir Duncan considered the operation of the new selection process; the business model supporting the selection process and the personnel who will comprise the selection panel in the future. The new process – which is an open and independent competition, undertaken by a selection panel – is sponsored by the Law Society and the Bar Council with the approval of the Lord Chancellor. On 18 December 2008 the Law Society and the Bar Council
received Sir Duncan’s review. The review will now be considered in detail by the General Management Committee of the Bar Council and the [Legal Affairs and Policy Board] of the Law Society. 

The Legal Services Board has appointed solicitors but no barristers to the Office for Legal Complaints, the new consumer complaints body. The six successful candidates—three solicitors and three non-lawyers—will serve for three years. 

Breaking the mould in the name of equality and diversity was the theme for the South Eastern Circuit’s (SEC) event: Against the Odds—a celebration of Equality and Diversity. Four hundred guests and Circuiteers packed Middle Temple Hall on 20 January to celebrate this “most diverse of all Circuits”.  

An appeal on behalf of an independent charity which provides free services for people who go to court has been backed by the Attorney General, the Lord Chief Justice and the Bar Council. The Personal Support Unit, based at the Royal Courts of Justice, gives emotional and practical support from experienced and trained volunteers to litigants who are unfamiliar with the court environment and procedures. 

Set up in 2001, the Personal Support Unit was the subject of the weekly Radio 4 Appeal on Sunday 18th January 2009 at 7.55am, when Lord Woolf spoke in support. 

Baroness Scotland QC, Attorney General, said: 

"I have seen the Personal Support Unit at work and am very impressed by its professionalism and the way in which it meets a significant need. 

The number of barristers advertising for work on the Public Access database now exceeds one thousand for the first time since the launch of the scheme in 2004. The one thousand milestone was passed in January 2009, with the present number now standing at 1,013. 

The Public Access database has now been improved and includes an optional field for specifying a city or town.
http://www.barcouncil.org.uk/about/find-a-barrister/public-access-directory/ 

“Far-reaching” reforms in the Coroners and Justice Bill need more in-depth consultation, the Bar Council and Criminal Bar Association have warned. 

On Friday afternoon, 17 April 2009, the International Committee is holding its second annual bilateral seminar with the representative body of the German Bar, the DAV. The DAV has over 50,000 members and vibrant Working Group on International Issues, with whom we are organising this seminar. The topics for this seminar will be a comparative look at interim measures, personal injury litigation and the costs of litigation. Apar t from the free of charge CPD element, this seminar will provide an excellent oppor tunity to network with members of the
German profession with an international practice. The programme is confined to the afternoon, allowing members to travel to Berlin in the morning and, if interested, to enjoy the pleasures of Berlin over the subsequent weekend. The German hosts have kindly of fered to waive the Conference fees for our members and we hope that this will therefore prove an attractive way to obtain CPD points! Interested members should download a registration form from the Bar Council website or contact Rukaiya Bhegani at Rbhegani@barcouncil.org.uk 

The Bar Standards Board welcomes the Legal Services Board’s (LSB) new Business Plan, the first of its kind since the LSB was established in 2008. The LSB is the overarching regulator of nine approved legal profession regulators – including the BSB.
The LSB Business Plan is on their website at: www.legalservicesboard.org.uk/ 

The Legal Services Board (LSB) has unveiled its vision for the next five years. 

Did you know that you should notify the Bar Standards Board if you are subject to a bankruptcy order or enter into an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA)? 

All barristers, whether practising or not, are required under paragraph 905(c) of the Code of Conduct to report promptly to the Bar Standards Board if: