LAW

Roles of Solicitor and Barrister

Roles of Solicitor and Barrister

Introduction

In the common law jurisdiction in the United Kingdom, there are two main classes of lawyers. These are solicitors and barristers. Ideally, a lawyer holds either of the two titles. A solicitor is a lawyer who deals with all sorts of legal matters and also attends the court proceedings. They have direct access to clients. They may even work that is transactional in nature. Barristers, on the other hand, are those lawyers that specialize in the proceedings in court. They also provide legal opinions and do legal drafting. Barristers may also be understood as lawyers who work for the solicitors and are generally not hired by clients themselves.

It is said that the roles of solicitor and barristers are becoming blurred with the passage of time. This is reinforced in the fusion between the two lawyers because of which more and more lawyers are holding both the titles. This is not to state that any distinction between the two has ceased to exist (Law Teacher, 2010, p. 3). Over a period of time, a lawyer can change his title from barrister to solicitor and vice versa. The paper discusses whether the roles of the barrister and solicitor and the profession should be merged by giving arguments on both the sides. The barristers and solicitors are two distinct classifications of lawyers and any fusion of the two tier system is not needed as it neither serves the needs of the consumers not passes the interests of the legal system.

Discussion

In order to present the arguments on whether or not the legal system should be unified, it is first imperative to understand that the two are different professions. The difference between the two is that a solicitor is an attorney. This means that they can act on behalf of their clients for legal purposes. I addition, they can also make applications to the court on behalf of their clients. They are also legally authorized to communicate with the opposing party on their client's behalf (Law Teacher, 2010, p. 3). A barrister, on the other hand, is forbidden from the same. They speak in the court on behalf of their clients. This too is dependent on the approval and instructions of the solicitor. The same instruction is also viable if given by the patent agents.

The idea of the unison between the age old classification of barristers and solicitors in England into a united legal profession has been suggested by the Law Society. As per the society the distinction has been recently labelled "an anachronism" which should be removed within a period of five years. This as suggested by the president of the society, Robert Sayer, will serve to regulate the new profession. This seems like the obvious choice for the proponents of the intervention. However, the reaction from the side of barristers and solicitors as well as the general public is mixed.

The supporters hold that legal profession is similar to medical profession and just like all doctors ...