Legal personnel
Cards (6)
- Barristers
- Barristers, numbering around 12,700 in England and Wales
- Operate both as self-employed professionals and within various organisations like the CPS, Local Government, and the Civil Service, collectively known as "The Bar."
- Role of Barrister
- Self-employed
- Work from set of chambers
- 'Advocacy' = main role because they can present cases in any Court
- Some specialise in non-advocacy = tax and employment law
- Paperwork exercises = writing opinions, giving advice
- Instructed by solicitors
- Solicitor
- 130,000 in England and Wales, 90,000 of which are employed within private law firms, the rest within private companies, Local Authority/Civil Service and CPS
- Controlled by Law Society
- Law degree or other degree and Graduate Diploma in Law
- Legal Practice Course (LPC)
- Training contract with Solicitor firm, CPS or Local Authority for two years
- Role of Solicitor
- Employed in private practice law firm
- Practice in a specialism
- Drafting + dictating
- Dealing with processes and deadlines
- Represent clients at court
- 'rights of audience' at magistrates and county courts and can also apply for higher courts now
- Take SQE
- Legal Executives
- Work in Solicitors firms as assistants
- Qualified lawyers
- Each will specialise in a particular area of law
- Over 20,000 practicing in England and Wales
- To train you need Professional Diploma in law and Professional Higher Diploma in law.
- Must have also worked in a Solicitors firm for 5+ years
- Tend to deal with less complex cases than solicitors
- Role of Legal Executives
- Legal aspects of a property transfer
- Assist with formation of a new company
- Draft wills
- Advise with matrimonial legal problems
- Advise clients accused of serious or petty crime
- Have some rights of audience too