Despite the best efforts of journalists and scriptwriters to preserve the stereotype of barristers as stuffy and snobbish, such perceptions are rarely matched by reality.
Privilege and connections may have once held sway over ability and ambition, but in the commercial world successful barristers can ill afford to alienate the solicitors and clients who instruct them. Where condescension or contempt exist, instructions will swiftly disappear.
Among today’s elite barristers, several stand out as leaders in the move towards a greater meritocracy.
Lord Grabiner QC, One E
Lord Grabiner QC, head of One Essex Court Chambers, is a titan of the commercial Bar. The son of Jewish immigrants — his father was a fur-cutter — Grabiner was raised in Hackney where he won a scholarship to the local grammar school. He went on to the LSE, where he got a first. Proud of his origins, Grabiner maintains a distinct east
Grabiner believes “clients want a practical, realistic analysis of their problems”. “Good barristers,” he adds, “must have a commercial approach. In court, I keep it simple, trying to reduce often-complicated problems to simple propositions. That is the key to good advocacy.”
Up close, Grabiner is completely unpretentious. He has no time for nonsense. His earnings may approach £3m a year, yet he makes no apology for reaping the benefit of his labours. Despite his obvious knack for the commercial — “Grabiner is extremely good at bringing out the underlying commercial policy merits of his case,” says fellow silk Jonathan Sumption QC — a defection to the City isn’t an option.
“What some of these characters earn in the City is breathtaking,” says Grabiner. “But it’s much better to be in a barristers’ chambers than working for an American bank or a law firm. I couldn’t think of anything worse.” He concludes: “The greatest job in the world is the one you love. Being a barrister is fantastic.”
Jonathan Sumption QC, Brick Court Chambers
At first blush, Jonathan Sumption QC is a barrister in the more traditional mould: old Etonian, former
In previous generations a man of Sumption’s ability would have been an automatic fixture in the Law Lords. But he has opted to stay at the Bar.
“I was very tempted,” explains Sumption. “A mixture of things deterred me. I wanted the freedom to write more history. On the bench, a lot of the work as a High Court judge is as dull as ditch water — you don’t get the rich diet of interesting material that you receive as a practitioner.”
Of the leading silks who have rejected a judicial career, Sumption stands out, arguably above all others. As Lord Grabiner confirms: “Jonathan is exceedingly clever; in some ways, the cleverest man at the Bar. Fantastic command of language, a wonderful vocabulary, great advocate — he is ideal in the Court of Appeal or House of Lords arguing recherche points of law.”
Modest about his own ability, Sumption enthuses about the Bar: “There is not much law in this job: it’s obvious what the law is once you have worked out the facts. But being a barrister is so much fun; there’s so much variety. You never know what’s coming next.”
Clare Montgomery QC, Matrix Chambers
Clare Montgomery QC is a real star, both at the criminal Bar, where she excels as the best in the business, and in appellate work and complex civil disputes, most recently advising BAE in the protracted corruption investigations it has been subjected to.
A founder of the egalitarian, mould-breaking Matrix Chambers, she is arguably the first woman Silk to enjoy wide-ranging success across a broad variety of practice areas.
Despite her own success, she is a pessimist when it comes to the future of the profession: “I don’t believe there will be a junior Bar of any size to speak of in 10 years’ time.”
“There is the fear of being embarrassed, of not knowing the law, of letting the client down,” she says, adding that once she starts speaking, she is “fine.”
She claims that there are only five cases in her career where her input may have made a difference to the outcome. “Normally, you get an extravagant amount of praise relative to your effect on the result.”
So how does
Ultimately, the aim is to be somebody who can take a case from investigation all the way to the House of Lords or
David Pannick QC, Blackstone Chambers
David Pannick QC of Blackstone Chambers spends much of his working life in the highest courts, arguing complex points of law. He can justifiably lay claim to being the strongest appellate advocate in the country.
A pupil of Michael Beloff QC, he took silk at 36. In the last 50 years, only one Silk — Sumption — was appointed at a younger age: 35.
Pannick, who is now 52, has been at the forefront of public law and human rights for nearly two decades. So important is his contribution, and such influence has he with judges, that he can be regarded as shaping the evolution of the law in practice — a role normally reserved for senior judges. “Being a judge is much less attractive than it used to be,” says Pannick on his decision to remain at the Bar.
A Fellow of All Souls College,
Because his reputation is so exceptional, Pannick finds that clients sometimes expect him to persuade the court that black is white. “You can’t do that,” he says. Past clients have included Tiny Rowland and Robert Maxwell. “I have to represent clients I don’t like all the time!” admits Pannick. “I do cases which are either interesting or lucrative, or both if I’m lucky.”
Michael M
Michael Mansfield QC is synonymous with the term ‘miscarriage of justice’. He has repeatedly taken on the establishment and won. His high-profile cause celebres include the family of murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence, and Angela Cannings, wrongly convicted of murdering her two sons. He also helped win successful appeals for the Guildford Four and the Birmingham Six.
As head of Tooks Chambers,
He did many things before coming to the Bar, including a spell as a dustman.
Most recently, he represented Mohamed Fayed at the inquest into his son’s death.
