BARRISTER, in England and Ireland the term applied to the highest class of lawyers who have exclusive audience in all the superior courts. Every barrister in England must be a member of one of the four ancient societies called Inns of Court, viz., Lincoln's Inn, the Inner and Middle Temples, and Gray's Inn, and in Ireland, of the King's Inns. The existence of the English law schools can be traced back to the 13th century. Associations of lawyers acquired houses of their own in which students were educated in the corn mon law, and the degrees of barrister (corresponding to apprentice or bachelor) and serjeant (corresponding to doctor) were con ferred. These schools of law are now represented by the Inns of Court (q.v.).
Both sexes are admitted as members of the Inns of Court, on paying certain fees and on passing a general (elementary) exam ination or (alternatively) producing evidence of having passed a public examination at a university; their subsequent call to the bar depends on their keeping terms (of which there are four in each year), and passing certain further examinations (see ENGLISH LAW ad fin.). A term is "kept" by dining six times (three for a stu dent whose name is on the books of a university) in hall. The pro fession of barrister is open to almost every one ; but no person connected with the law in any inferior capacity or who is a char tered or professional accountant, can enter au Inn of Court as a student until he has entirely and bona fide ceased to act or practise in such capacity. Some of the Inns also make a restriction that their members shall not be engaged in trade. A form of admission has to be filled up, containing a declaration to this effect, and men tioning inter alia the age, nationality, condition in life and occu pation of the applicant. Previous to the student's call this declara tion must be repeated, and he must further declare that he is not in holy orders, has not held any clerical preferment and has not performed any clerical functions during the year preceding. Sub ject to the above, practising solicitors of not less than five years' standing may be called to the bar without keeping any terms, upon passing the necessary examinations, and, per contra, a barrister of the same standing may, without any period of apprenticeship, be come a solicitor upon passing the final examination for solicitors. Irish barristers of three years' standing may be called to the Eng lish bar without passing any examination upon keeping three terms, and so also may barristers of those colonies where the professions of barrister and solicitor are still kept distinct. No one can become a barrister till he is 21 years old.
The benchers of each Inn of Court may reject any applicant for membership with or without cause assigned ; and for sufficient rea sons, subject to an appeal to the judges as visitors of the Inns, they may refuse to call a student to the bar, or may expel from their society or from the profession ("dis-bar" or "dis-bench") bar risters or benchers.
The peculiar business of barristers is the advocacy of causes in open court, but in England a great deal of other business falls into their hands. They are the equity draftsmen and special pleaders. The higher rank among barristers is that of king's or queen's coun sel. They lead in court, and give opinions on cases submitted to them, but they cease to practise as equity draftsmen or special pleaders and to take pupils. Precedence among king's counsel, as well as among outer barristers, is determined by seniority. A king's counsel is appointed by letters patent to be "one of His Majesty's counsel learned in the law." The appointment rests with the lord chancellor, to whom the barrister desiring a silk gown makes application. There is no definite time required to elapse between "call" and application for a seat within the bar, but it is generally understood that a barrister must be of at least 10 years' standing before he is appointed a king's counsel. The first king's counsel was Sir Francis Bacon, who was appointed by James I., and received a payment of a fee of £40 a year. Succeeding king's counsel received a similar payment, until its abolition in 1831. There was not another appointment of a king's counsel until 1668, when Francis North was so honoured. From 1775 king's counsel may be said to have become a regular order. Their number was very small so late as the middle of the 19th century (2o in 1789; 3o in 181o; 28 in 185o), but at the beginning of the loth century there were over 25o. A king's counsel may not, unless by special licence, take a brief against the crown, but such a licence is never refused unless the crown desires his services in the case. The old order of serjeants-at-law (q.v.) is now extinct. Although every barrister has a right to practise in any court in England, each special class of business has its own practitioners, so that the bar may almost be said to be divided into several professions. The most marked distinction is that between barristers practising in chancery and barristers practising in the courts of common law. The fusion of law and equity brought about by the Judicature Acts 1873 and 1875 was expected in course of time to break down this distinction; but to a large extent the separation remains. Common law counsel usually attach themselves to a circuit and to one or more quarter sessions. Business before the court of probate, di vorce and admiralty, the privy council and parliamentary com mittees, also exhibits this tendency to specialization. In some of the provincial cities there are also local bars. The bar of Ireland presents generally the same features as the bar of England. For the Scottish bar, see under ADVOCATES, FACULTY OF. There is no connection whatever between the Scottish and English bars.
Counsel is not answerable for anything spoken by him relative to the cause in hand and suggested in the client's instructions, even though it should reflect on the character of another and prove absolutely groundless, but if he mention an untruth of his own invention, or even upon instructions if it be impertinent to the matter in hand, he is then liable to an action by the party injured. Counsel may also be punished by the summary power of the court or judge as for a contempt, and by the benchers of the inn to which he may belong on cause shewn.
The rank of barrister is a necessary qualification for nearly all offices of a judicial character, and a very usual qualification for other important appointments. Not only the judgeships in the superior courts of law and equity in England and in her colonies, but nearly all the magistracies of minor rank—recorderships, county court judgeships, etc.—are restricted to the bar. The result is a unique feature in the English system of justice, viz. the perfect harmony of opinion and interest between the bar as a profession and all degrees of the judicial bench. Barristers have the rank of esquires, and are privileged from arrest whilst in at tendance on the superior courts and on circuit, and also from serving on juries whilst in active practice.
Barristers cannot maintain an action for their fees, which are regarded as gratuities, nor can they, by the usage of the profession, undertake a case without the intervention of a solicitor, except in criminal cases, where a barrister may be engaged directly, by having a fee given him in open court, nor is it competent for them to enter into any contract for payment by their clients with respect to litigation.
See J. R. V. 1VIarchant, Barrister-at-law: an Essay on the legal position of Counsel in England (1905) ; Holdsworth, History of Eng lish Law vol. vi.