The Bar Council has criticised government proposals for courts to start earlier and finish later. It said this would disadvantage barristers who have childcare responsibilities, especially women, due to the Cab-Rank rule.
The Ministry of Justice announced this week that it will pilot extra sittings at civil, Crown and magistrates’ courts to increase the number of cases they see each day, with the Crown court sitting until 6pm, civil courts until 7pm and magistrates’ courts until 8.30pm.
The Bar Council pointed out that, under the Cab-Rank rule, barristers must accept any appropriate instructions, but will not know until a case is listed whether it will be an early start or a late finish, and cannot withdraw from a case on the grounds that it clashes with childcare arrangements.
Andrew Langdon QC, Chairman of the Bar, said: “These arrangements will make it almost impossible for parents with childcare responsibilities to predict if they can make the school run or to know when they will be able to pick children up from the child-minders.
“Childcare responsibilities still fall disproportionately to women, many of whom do not return to the profession after having children. It is hard to see how these plans sit with the government’s commitment to improving diversity in the profession and the judiciary.”
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