Almost 50% of applicants successful but only one solicitor-advocate award
Nearly half of all QC applicants have been successful in the latest round of competition. However, of the 129 new appointees only one solicitor gained the prestigious award.
The new silks include 20 women (out of 46 applicants) and 17 ethnic minority applicants (out of 35). Six applicants are aged 55 years or above.
Eversheds partner Marcus Trinick was the only successful solicitor-advocate applicant, out of 10 who applied. Last year three out of four solicitor-advocates were awarded silk.
Desmond Hudson, chief executive of the law Society, says: “These figures show a worrying trend. The society is disappointed that the [panel] has failed to broaden the scheme rules to recognise that excellence is more than merely oral advocacy in the higher courts. It’s not just solicitors but also employed barristers who are not getting through.
“The way in which QC appointments are being dealt with still appears to place certain categories of candidate at a disadvantage.”
Professor Dame Joan Higgins, chair of the QC selection panel, said: “It is disappointing that we have not been able to recommend more solicitors or employed advocates, after the higher number of appointments last year. But all applicants are assessed against a common competency framework and a common standard of excellence. There are no quotas, and we treat all applications in the same way.” She added that she was encouraged that the proportion of successful applicants from an ethnic minority background broadly matches that for white applicants and that the number of successful women applicants has remained high.
The formal appointment ceremony will take place on 22 March at London’s Westminster Hall.
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