The Cab Rank Rule

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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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Giannarelli v Wraith (1988) 165 CLR 543, 580 (Brennan J).

Mr Justice Wilson, ‘Lectures on Advocacy and Ethics in the Supreme Court’ (1979) 15 Legal Research Foundation Inc.

Maree Quinlivan, ‘The Can Rank Rule: A Reappraisal of the Duty to Accept Clients’ (1998) 28 Victorian University Wellington Law Review 113.

Michael McLaren et al, ‘The Cab-Rank Rule: A Fresh View’, (Discussion Paper, January 2013).

Sir Anthony Mason, ‘The Independence of the Bench’ (1993) 10 Australian Bar Review 1, quoted in The Hon Sir Gerard Brennan AC, ‘Profession or Service Industry: The Choice’ (Speech delivered at the Australian Bar Association Conference), San Francisco, 18 August 1996.

Stephen Warne, The Cab Rank Principle, 1 November 2010, Lawyers Net, .

The Victorian Bar Incorporated Practice Rules 2009 (Vic).

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