Direct Access

Barristers are highly skilled lawyers who specialise in providing legal advice and advocacy in the Courts. They work day in, day out, in the courts and do not have the office distractions of a Solicitors’ firm to manage. They do their own work and your case will therefore be ‘owned’ by the Barrister rather than perhaps a Secretary or Paralegal. Even the very best Solicitors instruct Barristers to argue their cases before Judges, advise them on tactics and the law and draft the complex paperwork necessary to put before the Court. Using Direct Public Access means you will, almost certainly, only need to instruct the Barrister – the lawyer who will present your case in court – rather than a Solicitor as well.

Not every case is suitable for Direct Public Access. For instance, Barristers cannot work for clients directly when they form the professional opinion that the client needs a Solicitor to help them prepare their case, handle their paperwork or manage their funds. Public Access Clients must be willing and able to carry out the routine administrative tasks that otherwise they would have to pay a Solicitor to do for them, unless they instruct a direct access Barrister who is authorised to ‘conduct litigation.’

Barristers are not Solicitors and work in a different way. Barristers will expect to receive from you any paperwork in good order and in good time to enable them to prepare your case. They are not available to provide day-to-day advice and information on the state of the case. They will not necessarily ‘conduct’ your case. That will be your job. You will be paying your Barrister to provide you with expert legal advice and representation at court.

Because they are expert lawyers your Barrister will be able to give you the answers you want faster than might otherwise be the case. They will be able to tell whether your case has merit. They will be able to draft expertly the key documents in the case and negotiate with the other side’s lawyers. Their job will be to handle your case professionally and resolve your difficulty as quickly as possible with the minimum of fuss and expense.

The first step is to ring the Clerks at New Court or email them by clicking on ‘Contact Us’ above. Give them a brief summary of your case and the key information they will need to know to identify whether one of our Barristers can help you – the date of any court hearings, any deadlines you need to work towards, the key issues in the case in much the same way a solicitor would if they wanted to brief a Barrister on behalf of a client. If the clerks think your case may be suitable for Direct Public Access work they will pass the papers to a Barrister who may ring you for a free ‘no obligation’ discussion. It will then be up to you whether you wish to make a formal ‘booking’ for a conference, a written advice or representation at any hearings. If you make a formal booking you and your Barrister will agree terms in a formal ‘Client Care Letter’. If you would like to see a Draft Client Care Letter in advance please ask the Clerks.

New Court Chambers is a highly respected London chambers that specialises entirely in Family Law dealing with the full range of work including public and private child law, matrimonial finance, cohabitation claims and Court of Protection work. As a result New Court Chambers only has Barristers who are experts in their respective areas of work. The way New Court works gives you the assurance that you will only get first rate advice at a reasonable, and realistic cost. New Court Barristers work primarily in London and the ‘South-East’ and have enormous experience of the region’s Judges. New Court Chambers’ Barristers are fully insured and hugely experienced in working for leading family solicitors and public authorities.

The Bar Council publishes up to date guidance on the Direct Access rules on their website. You will always be advised to read these before you instruct a Barrister so you can make the right decision. The Bar Standards Board also produces guidelines which you might also wish to read.