Bencher
Information about Bencher
A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher can be elected while still a barrister (usually, but not always, Queen's Counsel), in recognition of the contribution that the barrister has made to the life of the Inn or to the law. Others become benchers as a matter of course when appointed as a High Court Judge. The Inn may elect non-members as honorary benchers - for example, distinguished judges from other countries, eminent non-lawyers or members of the Royal Family.
The most senior bencher of each Inn is the Treasurer, a position which is held for one year only. Whilst it may be the case that succession to the post of Treasurer was once dependent purely on seniority within the list of benchers, this is no longer the case, given the amount of work involved and the need of the Inn to see that the most suitable bencher is Treasurer.
The practices and regulations vary from Inn to Inn, but the benchers are the ultimate governing body of the relevant Inn. The benchers govern the finances of the Inn, and they alone have the authority to admit students to the Bar, to call students to the Bar, and to elect other benchers. Today, the benchers of the four Inns have common standards agreed with the Bar Council. They have the power to discipline members of their Inn by suspending or expelling them from membership of the Inn, and by disbarring or disbenching them. Disciplinary duties are now shared with the Council of the Inns of Court, the Bar Standards Board http://www.barstandardsboard.org.uk/and its Complaints Committee (formerly known as the Professional Conduct and Complaints Committee).
Historically, the most junior student barristers (known as "inner barristers") were only permitted to watch moot trials and stood within the bar of the mock courtroom. More qualified barristers (known as "outer" or "utter" barristers) were permitted to join the argument and stood outside the bar. The most senior barristers were permitted to sit at the edge of the room. This third class of barristers became known as "Benchers" or "Masters of the Bench".
The terms bencher and Treasurer originated in England, but they are also in use by the legal profession in Canada, for example by the Law Society of Upper Canada.
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The most senior bencher of each Inn is the Treasurer, a position which is held for one year only. Whilst it may be the case that succession to the post of Treasurer was once dependent purely on seniority within the list of benchers, this is no longer the case, given the amount of work involved and the need of the Inn to see that the most suitable bencher is Treasurer.
The practices and regulations vary from Inn to Inn, but the benchers are the ultimate governing body of the relevant Inn. The benchers govern the finances of the Inn, and they alone have the authority to admit students to the Bar, to call students to the Bar, and to elect other benchers. Today, the benchers of the four Inns have common standards agreed with the Bar Council. They have the power to discipline members of their Inn by suspending or expelling them from membership of the Inn, and by disbarring or disbenching them. Disciplinary duties are now shared with the Council of the Inns of Court, the Bar Standards Board http://www.barstandardsboard.org.uk/and its Complaints Committee (formerly known as the Professional Conduct and Complaints Committee).
Historically, the most junior student barristers (known as "inner barristers") were only permitted to watch moot trials and stood within the bar of the mock courtroom. More qualified barristers (known as "outer" or "utter" barristers) were permitted to join the argument and stood outside the bar. The most senior barristers were permitted to sit at the edge of the room. This third class of barristers became known as "Benchers" or "Masters of the Bench".
The terms bencher and Treasurer originated in England, but they are also in use by the legal profession in Canada, for example by the Law Society of Upper Canada.
References
- Halsbury's Laws of England, Barristers, para.431
External links
Inns of Court, in London, are the professional associations to one of which every English barrister (and those judges who were formerly barristers) must belong. They have supervisory and disciplinary functions over their members.
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barrister is a lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions which employ a split profession (as opposed to a fused profession) in relation to legal representation. In split professions, the other type of lawyer is the solicitor.
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Queen's Counsel (postnominal QC), during the reign of a male sovereign known as King's Counsel (KC), are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of "Her Majesty's Counsel learned in the law"; the position exists in various Commonwealth countries around
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royal family is the extended family of a monarch. Generally, the head of a royal family is a king or queen regnant. The term "imperial family" more appropriately describes the extended family of an emperor or empress regnant, while the terms "ducal family", "grand ducal family" or
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In many governments, a treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury. Treasurers are also employed by organizations to look after funds.
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Government
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A bar council (Irish: Comhairle an Bharra) in a Commonwealth country and in the Republic of Ireland is a professional body that regulates the profession of barristers together with the Inns of Court. Solicitors are generally regulated by the Law society.
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The Bar Standards Board regulates admission to the bar for barristers in England and Wales. In addition, it responds to complaints from the public regarding behavior and adequacy of representation by members of the bar and conducts disciplinary proceedings.
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Moot may refer to:
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- from Moot as an Old English language (Anglo-Saxon) term for meeting:
- Jamtamót, the old assembly of Jämtland
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Handrails are railings used on stairways and escalators.[1] They are designed to be grasped by the hand while ascending or descending the stairs. They are supported by posts or fixed directly to a wall.
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Moot court is an extracurricular activity at many law schools in which participants take part in simulated court proceedings, usually to include drafting briefs and participating in oral argument.
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The Law Society of Upper Canada (LSUC) is responsible for the self-regulation of lawyers in the Canadian province of Ontario. Founded in 1797, it is known in French as "Le Barreau du Haut-Canada". The motto of the Society is "Let Right Prevail".
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Halsbury's Laws of England is a definitive encyclopedic treatise on the laws of England. It includes restatements of the common law with remarks to the relevant judicial authority and the statutory law which has in many cases codified, modified or supplemented common law.
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The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple is one of the four Inns of Court around the Royal Courts of Justice in London which may call members to the Bar and so entitle them to practise as barristers. (The other Inns are Middle Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn.
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The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. Lincoln's Inn is thought to be the oldest of the four Inns of Court,[1]
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