QCs face compulsory reaccreditation under new advocacy scheme
Solicitors Journal: “The most experienced criminal advocates in the country will be subject to compulsory reaccreditation every five years under plans for a joint quality assurance scheme launched this week by the Bar Standards Board, the SRA and ILEX.
“Queen’s Counsel will not be exempt from the reaccreditation process,” the Joint Advocacy Group (JAG) said in its consultation paper. “JAG believes that it is important for the credibility of the scheme for QCs to be involved.
“The award of a mark of excellence by an independent body is separate from a regulatory quality assurance scheme which is assessing threshold standards.”
The move towards joint monitoring follows stinging criticism of the quality of solicitor advocates last year by the former chairman of the Criminal Bar Association, Peter Lodder QC, and by Judge Gledhill QC at Southwark Crown Court (see solicitorsjournal.com, 21 April 2009).
There is an element of irony here. I cannot imagine that when senior members of the Bar complained about the quality of solicitor-advocates they imagined that they, too, would be subject to an MOT. Maybe they did. It will be a bit embarrassing if senior barristers fail? Will we be told? Will PAC (Performance of Advocacy Council – yet another new ‘body) tell us? I shall be watching their website with interest. I am sure that I shall not be alone in doing so.
There are now so many regulatory bodies for Law – LSB, BSB, SRA, ILEX et al… one wonders where it will end.
As I said in the comments…. “Some say it is a PC way of ensuring solicitor-advocates are properly regulated? I could not, of course, comment on such an idea.”
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Charon QC 