Judiciary and Diversity Flashcards
what makes jobs within the legal sphere a profession?
historically self-regulating based on expertise and knowledge restrictions on entry/ regulations on exit professional codes duty to maintain public confidence certain privileges
how can increase state intervention on the legal profession be recognised?
separation of representation and regulation
law society, solicitors regulation authority, bar council, bar standards
enhanced diversity expectations
who are solicitors represented by?
who are they regulated by?
Law Society
Solicitors’ Regulation Authority
who are barristers represented by?
’’ regulated by?
The Bar Council
The Bar Standards Board
how many justices are there in the SC?
’’ CA?
'’HC?
12
38
110
who make up the largest group of legal adjudicators who are not legally qualified?
Magistrates / JPs
25,170
what are the challenges the legal profession faces?
monopoly of the bar in higher courts
growth of case management/ alternative dispute resolution
virtual justice
cut of legal aid for young training barristers
introduction of conditional fees
diversity debate
what are general reasons for the need for diversity?
non-discrimination with appointment on merit, equal opportunity
representativeness
legitimacy: democratic/popular
effectiveness - greater understanding of general context
where does representative disproportionality seem to become more apparent?
how can this be seen with those practicing in the bar?
higher up in the legal profession
Black/Black British underrepresentation - 3.2% vs 3.4%
individuals with a disclosed disability - 6% vs 13.4%
how have there been improvements in regard to representation?
BAME solicitors rose by over 200% between 1996-2006
1/5 lawyers is BAME by 2020
how did Lord Neuberger describe the result of bar recruitment and a lack of strategy on the composition of the judiciary?
‘male, white, educated at public school, and from the upper and middle classes’
Justice 2017
how does Passmore (Stategy Director at the Legal Services Board 2010) describe representation in the legal profession?
‘should be proud of the gender and ethnic diversity of its students and new entrants’
‘but diversity quickly evaporates in the upper echelons’
how does Passmore describe representation in the QC rank?
‘the QC remaining dominated by 90% men’
what was Liz Truss’, former Justice Sec and LC, 2016 address at the Tory Party Conference?
‘only 1/7 QCs and 1/3 of partners in law firms are women’
‘fewer than 1/10 judges come from ethnic minorities’
‘only 1/4 went to state school’
‘this is modern Britain - we can do better than this’
what did the Legal Standards Board ‘Diversity in the Legal Profession’ report find?
‘persistent structural inequalities within the profession across a range of indicators’
‘segmented and stratified on gendered, raced and classed lines, suggesting that opportunities available to young lawyers are not evenly distributed’
how did the judicial system of England and Wales compare with Slovenia in the percentage of female judges?
England/Wales - 23%
Slovenia - 78%