Legal Advice Direct
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is a Barrister?
- What is a solicitor?
- What is a claim?
- What is a claim form?
- What is the Public Access scheme?
- What is a Public Access Barrister?
- What is the Bar Council?
- What is the Bar Standards Board?
- What is a Client care letter?
- What is an injunction?
- How much will it cost me to consult a Barrister?
Linking you directly to a Barrister
Q. What is a Barrister?
A Barrister is a type of lawyer who specialises in going to court and arguing a case on behalf of his client. Barristers specialise in particular areas of law, and undergo specialist training to become court room advocates. A Barrister can be distinguished from a solicitor.
^ TOP
Q. What is a solicitor?
A solicitor is a lawyer that usually practises from an office and is usually the first point of contact for someone needing legal assistance. Solicitors can advise on the law, and generally prepare cases for trial. However, a solicitor will often consult a barrister for more specialist advice.
^ TOP
Q. What is a claim?
A claim is the term referred to when someone brings action against someone else in a court of law.
^ TOP
Q. What is a claim form?
This is a document that is used by someone to bring action against someone else and sets out what he or her complaint is against that person.
^ TOP
Q. What is the Public Access scheme?
The Public Access Scheme was introduced to enable members of the public to contact barristers directly. Prior to 2004, members of the public had to first consult a solicitor before accessing a Barrister. This often led to expensive litigation, because of the duplicity of having to pay both a Solicitor and barrister. Now, it is possible to save a lot of money by consulting a Barrister directly.
The Barrister must have undertaken specialist training to become a Public Access Barrister and must be registered by the Bar Council as a Public Access Barrister.
^ TOP
Q. What is a Public Access Barrister?
A Public Access Barrister is a barrister that works under the Public Access Scheme: (see above).
^ TOP
Q. What is the Bar Council?
The Bar Council is the professional body that represents the interests of Barristers and can be contacted at www.barcouncil.org.uk
^ TOP
Q. What is the Bar Standards Board?
This is the body that regulates the activities of Barristers. The Bar Standards Board can be contacted at www.barstandardsboard.org.uk.
^ TOP
Q. What is a Client care letter?
This is a letter that is sent from the Barrister to the client and sets out the terms and conditions upon which the Barrister will work for the Client.
^ TOP
Q. What is an injunction?
An emergency remedy that can be obtained through the courts to prevent someone from doing something (i.e. stop a neighbour causing you a nuisance) or to force someone to do something (to give a tenant back possession of his or her home which has been wrongly entered into by a landlord).
^ TOP
Q. How much will it cost me to consult a Barrister?
A Barrister will either charge on an hourly or fixed fee basis and this will depend on a number of factors including the number of years that the Barrister has been practising, the complexity of the case, and the amount of work that will be involved. For most types of work you will be provided a fixed fee, which has the advantage of you knowing exactly what it will cost. If given an hourly fee, you will be told in advance of the cost per hour and given an estimate of the number of hours that may be involved. You may be given an upper limit beyond which the Barrister will not charge you.
^ TOP
