The Criminal Bar

In a nutshell

Barristers are instructed by solicitors to provide advocacy or advice for individuals being prosecuted in cases brought before the UK’s criminal courts. Lesser offences like driving charges, possession of drugs or benefit fraud are listed in the Magistrates’ Courts, where solicitor advocates are increasingly active. More serious charges such as fraud, supplying drugs or murder go to the Crown Courts, which are essentially still the domain of barristers. Complex cases may reach the Court of Appeal or Supreme Court. A criminal set’s caseload incorporates everything from theft, fraud, drugs and driving offences to assaults of varying degree of severity and murder.

The realities of the job

• Criminal barristers need a sense of theatre and dramatic timing, but good oratory skills are only half the story. Tactical sense, a level head and great time management skills are important.
• The barrister must be able to inspire confidence in clients from any kind of background.
• Some clients can be tricky, unpleasant or scary. Some will have pretty unfortunate lives, others will be addicted to alcohol or drugs, or have poor housing and little education.
• Barristers often handle several cases a day, frequently at different courts. Some of them will be poorly prepared by instructing solicitors. It is common to take on additional cases at short notice and to have to cope with missing defendants and witnesses. Stamina and adaptability are consequently a must.
• Sustained success rests on effective case preparation and an awareness of evolving law and sentencing policies.
• Pupils cut their teeth on motoring offences, committals and directions hearings in the Magistrates’ Courts. By the end of pupillage they should expect to be instructed in their own right and make it into the Crown Court.
• Juniors quickly see the full gamut of cases. Trials start small – offences such as common assault – and move onto ABH, robbery and possession of drugs with intent to supply.

Current issues

• To save costs, the Crown Prosecution Service has increasingly brought a significant proportion of advocacy in-house. The CPS wants many of its lawyers to develop to become Senior Crown Advocates and handle contested trials in the Crown Court. Whether a happy equilibrium between the Bar and CPS prosecutors will be reached remains to be seen, but the move has reduced the work available at the Bar’s junior end.
• Legal aid cutbacks and reforms are also hitting the number of available criminal instructions and remuneration. This is the major issue for all those practising at the Criminal Bar. Cuts will remove £350m from legal aid’s £2.2bn budget. A fair chunk of that is due to come from the fees paid to barristers. If you’re willing to accept the likelihood of more limited financial rewards, the Legal Aid Criminal Bar should still prove irresistible. Read more on our website.
• Partially as a consequence of legal aid cutbacks, many top-end criminal sets are branching out into regulatory, VAT tribunal and professional discipline work.
• Private paying criminal practice is as healthy as ever.
• The Bribery Act 2010, which came into effect in July 2011, has seen UK laws brought in line with the OECD Bribery Convention. It widens the definition of bribery and applies to the activities of UK-based companies anywhere in the world.

Some tips

• Mini-pupillage experience and plenty of mooting and debating is required before you can look like a serious applicant.
• Some top sets will want to see your Pupillage Portal practice area choices restricted to crime and crime/mixed civil.
• The Criminal Bar tends to provide more pupillages than other areas, but these don’t necessarily translate into tenancies because the market is so competitive. Third and fourth sixes are not uncommon.
• There are many ways of getting that all-important exposure to the criminal justice system. See our website for tips on useful voluntary opportunities.