Solicitors
legal practitioners
lawyers in the United Kingdom jurisdictions generally practice is solicitors in private forms, as a legal adviser in corporations, government departments and advice agencies or as barristers. They can each do advocacy, draft legal documents, and give written advice, but solicitors, online barristers, can’t appear in every court.
Traditionally, solicitors undertake work such as conveyancing end drawing up contracts and wills. Barristers spend more time in court and half are write up audience in the higher courts. Unlike solicitors, barristers cannot usually be employed directly by clients but are instructed by solicitors. Solicitors normally form partnerships with other solicitors and working in offices with support staff. The qualification and practice of solicitors are regulated by the Law Society.
Training
· Bachelor’ s Degree in non-law such as engineering + two one-year law courses.
· The first leads to the Common Professional Examination or CPE and the second was the legal practice course
· Have a vacation placement that offers two-year traineeship
· have a six-seat system which is quite common
· trainees spend time attached to different law departments which suits him/her getting a basic grounding in the main departments of the form helping him/her find which area of the law he/she would like to specialize in
· he/she can work in four or more different areas of law for four months at a time and then decide on a specialism later in the training contract
· In the third seat, he/she can work in corporate finance to get excellent feedback from his/her supervisor, that is supervising partner
Question for practice
Write or talk to someone about your experience of legal education and training.
For more information
go to www.lawsociety.org.uk/home.law
Barristers
Organization
unlike solicitors, barristers can't form partnerships but most act as sole traders with unlimited liability. Some barristers are in employed practice and may only represent their employer, For example as in-house counsel or in government departments like the Crown Prosecution Service. Many work independently in self-employed practice in groups called chambers or sets and practice at the Bar as a barrister. Chambers are traditionally located in the four Inns of Court in London. They are Gray’s Inn, Lincoln's Inn, middle temple, and inner temple and are also located in the UK regions known as circuits. The Inns are principally nonacademic societies which provide collegiate and educational resources for barristers and trainees. Members of chambers, known as tenants, share common expense in support services, Which are administered by an administrative manager known as the clerk, along with ancillary staff such as secretaries.
A barristers main work is to provide representation in the courts, where they are referred to as counsel to draft documents associated with court procedure and to give opinions that is specialist legal advice. They are normally instructed by solicitors or other recognized professionals, such it patient agents or legal advice centers, on behalf of lay clients. As the law has become more complex, barristers increasingly specialize in particular areas such as personal injury, crime, familiar and commercial law. On number of specialist bar associations, also known as SBAs, support and represent members. Barristers are governed by the General Council of the bar, known as the Bar Council and the Inns of court.
Note: BrE: barrister, ScotE: advocate, AmE: trial lawyer/appellate attorney
Training and qualification of practicing barristers
· Barristers need a qualifying law degree, for the example of Bachelor of Laws (LLB)
· graduation in a non-law subject + a one-year conversion course known edge of postgraduate diploma in law or GDL
· the student barrister then applies to join one of the Inns of Court to study for the Bar Vocational Course or BVC
· keeping terms is also mandatory for students. It means dining at their Inn a fixed number of times before they can be called to the bar, that is, qualify as a barrister
· the new barrister faces intense competition to obtain a funded pupillage in chambers for 12 months in order to get practical training
· all applicants are advised first to do a mini pupillage of one or two weeks to get some insight into what being a pupil is like
· pupillage known as devilling in Scotland, is divided into two parts: a non-practicing six months when pupils shadow their pupil master, an experienced barrister, by observing professional activities and the second, practicing six months when pupils, with their supervisor’s permission, can undertake to supply legal services and exercise the right of audience, meaning speak in court.
· To gain a full qualification certificate pupils must learn the rules of conduct and etiquette at the Bar, learn to prepare and present a case competently, learn to draft pleadings and opinions, have advocacy training and pass a forensic accountancy course which covers the use of financial information in litigation.
· If successful the end of the 12 months, the qualified barrister applies for a tenancy in chambers. When are junior barrister has practiced at the bar for 10 to 15 years, it is possible to apply to become a senior barrister, or Queen’s Counsel, whose work concentrates on court appearances, advocacy, and opinions.
A question for practice
Explain the organization of your profession as if you were speaking to a fellow legal practitioner.
For more information
Go to www.barcouncil.org.uk/
