Advocacy tests reform on the cards?

Proposals to revise qualifying requirements for solicitor advocates have been launched by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).

Advocacy on behalf of clients in the senior civil and criminal courts can only be undertaken by solicitor advocates (solicitors who have the Higher Rights of Audience qualification). The SRA proposes adding serious cases in the youth courts to the category of cases reserved for solicitor advocates. Its consultation, ‘Assuring advocacy standards’, due to end on 13 November, proposes introducing revised standards for the Higher Rights of Audience qualification, creating a single, centralised Higher Rights of Audience assessment, and developing more online resources to help solicitors improve their advocacy skills.

The SRA is also seeking feedback on how to make it easier for judges to report any concerns about the quality of advocacy in cases coming before their courts.

The proposals follow suggestions that some judges have concerns about the competence of solicitor advocates appearing before them. These were voiced in the Ministry of Justice’s 2014 Jeffrey Review, while a review into youth courts advocacy proceedings in 2015 by the Bar Standards Board and The Chartered Institute of Legal Executives found advocates were lacking in training in the youth courts.

The SRA says it received 89 complaints from judges about poor advocacy in the three years between January 2015 and February 2018. However, it points out that there is no definitive evidence of these concerns.

Paul Philip, SRA chief executive, said: ‘While the majority of solicitors do a good job, we do hear comments that this is not always the case. We are keen to hear from as many people as possible about our proposals to make sure that the advocacy done by solicitors meets our high standards.’

There are currently 6,764 solicitor advocates in England and Wales. According to the SRA, nearly one quarter of these have never undertaken advocacy in a higher court.