Direct Access
Contributors
Twenty years ago the idea of any person instructing the Bar other than a private practice solicitor was frowned upon. Although as qualified solicitors in-house counsel always had the right to instruct barristers, convention dictated private practice lawyers acted as gatekeepers of the Bar for companies seeking advice on litigation. But, as the rules have changed and in-house lawyers have expanded their remits, corporate legal teams have come to appreciate the benefits of direct interaction with barristers.
With major corporates such as BAE, The Crown Estate and Coca-Cola Enterprises developing either barrister panels or locking in preferred working partners that include chambers such as 4 Pump Court, Devereux Chambers, Falcon Chambers, and Serle Court Chambers, the use of direct access has become mainstream for in-house legal teams. A 2010 study by journalist Jon Robins for Hardwicke Chambers, ‘Direct access to barristers – a survey of market views and needs’, canvassed 65 senior corporate executives, including in-house counsel, and found almost a third of respondents had instructed a barrister directly in the two years previously, more than twice the number in 2008. There was also an increasing confidence in direct access, with almost nine out of ten believing they had sufficient grasp of their legal issues to instruct directly.
