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Standards and Guidance
The Bar Standards Board is responsible for maintaining the Code of Conduct of the Bar of England and Wales, which provides the rules which all barrister’s must obey.
The general purpose of the Code is to provide the requirements for practice as a barrister and the rules and standards of conduct applicable to barristers which are appropriate in the interests of justice.
The Board also issues guidance on the rules governing qualification and practice and conduct by barristers. Guidance usually relates to the application of particular provisions of the Code of Conduct of the Bar of England and Wales.
Within this section there is regulatory guidance produced before the separation of the Bar Council’s regulatory and representative arms functions. This guidance will usually have been drafted by the Professional Standards Committee. Representative guidance issued by the Professional Standards Committee can be found on the Bar Council’s website.
The Bar Standards Board will shortly review all guidance which appears on this site which was issued before its creation in January 2006 to establish whether it remains current or needs revision. It is planned that, by the end of 2007, all guidance on this site will have been approved by the Board.
The Board has tasked its Standards Committee to maintain the Code and to issue guidance on professional conduct issues.
Consolidated Regulations of the Inns of Court and the General Council of the Bar
Information about the Standards Committee
The Bar Council also issues guidance to the profession. This guidance is usually focussed on legislation or court direction or procedure. Bar Council guidance can be found at www.barcouncil.org.uk
The Code of Conduct also obliges all barristers to have regard to the Equality and Diversity Code for the Bar. This sets out the law and professional rules which prohibit discrimination and recommends good practice to Chambers in relation to access to pupillages and tenancies, the conduct of work in Chambers, complaints and grievances with new advice on the avoidance of disability and age discrimination.
In June 2004, the Bar Council adopted a new maternity, paternity and flexible working policy to help barristers balance familiy life with practice at the Bar. Under the new guidelines, Chambers should have written policies permitting members of Chambers to take maternity and paternity leave, career breaks, work flexible hours, part-time or partly from home to enable them to manage their familiy responsibilities and remainin practice. this policy has been incorporated into the Equality and Diversity Code for the Bar.
