Barrister - solicitor
Members of the legal profession in the United Kingdom are either solicitors or barristers. In Scotland, which has its own legal system distinct from that of the rest of the United Kingdom, barristers are known as advocates, and traditionally solicitors were known as writers. This name survives in the prestigious professional body known as 'the Society of Writers to Her [in other reigns than the present His] Majesty's [or the] Signet', abbreviated as W.S.. Most of the detail that follows applies particularly in England.
The distinction between these two branches of the profession rests on the different types of legal work undertaken by solicitors and by barristers. Solicitors may draw up legal documents such as wills and contracts, handle various legal matters such as divorce and the transfer of property (conveyancing), and advise clients about a wide range of legal issues. They may also represent clients in the lower courts (i.e., Tribunals, Magistrates' Courts, Coroners' Courts, and County Courts) Barristers have until recently - see further below - had the exclusive right to represent clients in the higher courts (i.e. Crown Court, High Court, Court of Appeal, and Supreme Court). A barrister typically specialises in a particular legal field (e.g., criminal law, public law, tax law, company law, or immigration law), and a solicitor may sometimes submit a case to a barrister for his or her advice about the points of law involved. (This advice is usually referred to as an 'opinion' or 'counsel's opinion'.}
Solicitors and barristers must follow different courses of professional training. In England and Wales a graduate who already has a Law Degree and wishes to become a solicitor must successfully complete the Legal Practice Course (LPC) and then work for two years on a training contract with a legal firm entitled to take trainee solicitors. A graduate who already has a Law Degree and wishes to become a barrister must enrol as a student at one of the four Inns of Court in London and successfully complete either the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC) or the Bar Vocational Course (BVC). (See further Call to the bar.) Graduates in any subject other than Law must take a one-year 'conversion course', the Common Professional Examination (CPE), before enrolling on the Legal Practice Course, the Bar Professional Training Course, or the Bar Vocational Course. In Scotland and Northern Ireland there are different arrangements for the professional training of solicitors and barristers (or in Scotland advocates).
The two branches of the profession are also regulated by different bodies. Solicitors are regulated by the Solicitors' Regulation Authority, an independent regulatory body of the Law Society, while barristers are regulated by the Bar Standards Council.
In the last two decades the traditional distinction between the work undertaken by solicitors and the work undertaken by barristers has been eroded. The barristers' exclusive right to represent clients in the higher courts has been removed, and solicitors may now, after suitable training, acquire this right. Also, whereas formerly it was always necessary for a barrister to be approached through a solicitor, it is now possible in certain types of case for a client to approach a barrister directly.
The distinction between solicitors and barristers is found in some other countries whose the legal system is based on that of the United Kingdom, e.g., the Republic of Ireland, Hong Kong, and certain of the Australian states.
