Research Essay
Introduction
Australia has taken from English Law in adopting the cab rank rule, encoded in The Victorian Bar Incorporated Practice Rules 2009 (Vic). This essay will discuss the application of the rule, the strengths and weaknesses and will conclude to discuss why the rule should remain an integral part of the Bar despite many calls for its abolition.
What is the “cab rank principle”?
The cab rank rule states that a lawyer practicing solely as a barrister must accept a brief in a field they profess to practice. Barristers are professionally bound by this duty if the brief is in the barrister’s capacity, skill and expertise; the barrister is available to appear and is not committed to other engagements which may inhibit their ability to advance a client’s interests; the fee offered is acceptable to the barrister; and the barrister is not obliged or permitted to refuse the brief pursuant to any exceptions.
Strengths and Weaknesses
There are two main rationales behind the cab rank principle; access to justice and protection of barristers. The former has been widely accepted as a worthwhile and valuable goal, while the latter is often overlooked. The two justifications are equally important, and both have strengths and weaknesses.
Firstly, as barristers are professionally bound to accept a brief, the cab rank rule promotes access to justice by ensuring legal representation is available to all, including the undesirable client or the unpopular cause. This ensures equality before the law and allows clients to be represented by a barrister of their choice. As the choice belongs to the client, not the lawyer, this improves the quality of legal representation available. It promotes the ideal of service for t...
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Justice was dilatory, expensive, uncertain, and remote. To the rich it was a costly lottery: to the poor a denial of right, or certain ruin. The class who might profit most by its dark mysteries were the lawyers themselves. (Plucknett 73)
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This concludes my summary of lessons gleaned from the course BSL 301 Legal Research, Writing, and Analysis referencing Honigberg, G. "Gilbert Law Summaries: Legal Research, Writing, and Analysis" 10th ed. BarBri Group, 2006.
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