the barrister
#67
ESSENTIAL READING FOR BARRISTERS
EST. 1999
11TH January – 23rd March 2016
HILARY TERM ISSUE
w w w. b a r r i s t e r m a g a z i n e . c o m
ISSN 1468-926X
The Bar Standards Board:
A risk-based regulator and the future of the Bar
In the coming years, the Bar of England
and Wales will face major challenges.
These will arise from changing consumer
demands and expectations, technological
advances and global competition. They
will arise too from statutory and other
approaches to regulation that place both
the public interest and the free market,
above preservation of traditional practices
and what some see as “vested interests”.
We’re already seeing the effects of some
of these pressures in the market for legal
services today. To highlight just a few increasing numbers of Litigants-in-Person,
reductions in public funding, and reform
of the court system. The pace of change, I
would judge, is set to continue.
Court fees, criminal
courts charges and
court closures.
There is some irony that in the year that
we saw numerous celebrations to mark the
800th anniversary of the sealing of Magna
Carta, changes to the justice system risk
taking us back towards the Middle Ages.
Increased court fees, the introduction of a
criminal courts charge and the proposed
closure of courts risk undermining our
position as the fairest jurisdiction in the
world.
The government faces an economic
challenge, but it needs to assess the impact
that changes to the justice system could
have on other areas of public spending
It is in this
environment that
we – the BSB – are
working on our
next strategic plan
to take us through
the period 201619. How can we
as the barristers’
regulator,
operating in the
Sir Andrew Burns
public interest,
KCMG, Chairman, Bar
make sure that
Standards Board
our regulations
and our regulatory
activity, remain fit
for purpose during a period of such
anticipated flux? When change is the
only certainty, how can we make sure p.8
and the damage to the UK’s reputation as
a jurisdiction of choice. We have to provide
fair and equal access to justice for our own
citizens to hold on to our badge as the
fairest place in the world to serve justice.
This is what underpins the £3.1 billion
export surplus generated by legal services
in England and Wales.
Last year, the impact of the first civil
legal aid cuts became stark with statistics
showing dramatic increases in people
representing themselves in court.
This is a false economy - without legal
representation, cases go to court that
would otherwise have been resolved earlier
on and the courts get blocked because
cases take longer when legal advice is
not on hand to steer the parties through
what can be a complex and daunting
process, during an already stressful or p.10
Features
11
Government FGM consultation
A step towards change
By Ali Hussain, criminal defence
lawyer, Stokoe Partnership
18
Chambers property structures
By David Webster, Partner in the
Corporate and Commercial Team at
Russell-Cooke
Trafficking: A young
20 Human
person’s solution?
By Emily Lanham, paralegal in a
London chambers. In her spare
time she is a Director of the youth
project Big Voice London.
22
You’ve been asked to manage a
Chambers?…. Good Luck!
By Alex von der Heyde BSc (Hons),
MBA, MIoD, Managing Director,
Esterase Limited
News
5
7
Male Oxbridge-educated
barristers from London
chambers still more likely to
become QCs despite major
reforms
Accountability gap needs
challenging, new report
Publishing Director: Derek Payne
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email: [email protected]
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