Brimelow: No need for major changes
A third of barristers face regular ethical issues and challenges in their practices but they benefit from “a solid system of training and support”, Bar Council research has found.
“Common ethical issues reported included conflicts of interest, fee arrangements, pressure from clients or solicitors, disclosure duties, political pressure, clerk, chambers issues/behaviour including bullying and harassment (this was cited in several areas of the system),” according to a new report published yesterday.
“Abuse of power and lack of clarity around reporting misconduct were also cited. Several respondents note the negative effect of mandatory reporting requirements, especially in cases involving sensitive interpersonal issues.”
The research was based on statistics from the Barristers’ Working Lives Survey 2025, which this time included specific ethics questions at a time when lawyers’ ethics have been in the spotlight. It received over 4,600 responses from practising barristers – 27% of the profession.
A large majority of barristers, more than eight out of 10, reported having a very good understanding of their professional obligations, with one in three saying they had undertaken ethics training in the last year.
Two-thirds of barristers reported that they never or seldom faced ethics issues, but 31% said it happened a few times a year and 2% every month.
Pressure from clients to act in a way that might be unethical was by far the most frequent challenge for self-employed barristers, followed by maintaining independence, “pressures from others to act in a way which might be unethical” and the requirement to report serious misconduct to the Bar Standards Board (BSB).
Independence, pressure from clients to act unethically and “isolation from wider barrister networks” were the main challenges for employed barristers.
Researchers said that while strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) and non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) “had been the subject of much coverage, they only concern very small numbers at the Bar, which suggests that any further work on these subjects should be highly specialised and targeted”.
Only 3% of barristers mentioned unlawful use of NDAs and 2% SLAPPs. A bigger proportion (6%) mentioned unethical fee sharing arrangements.
Self-employed barristers were more than twice as likely to seek support on ethics as their employed colleagues – 34% compared to 15% – while young barristers with no more than three years of experience were the most likely to need support on ethics.
Colleagues were a much more common source of advice (79%) than the BSB Handbook (46%) or the Bar Council’s ethical enquiries service (35%).
Six out 10 young barristers with up to three years of experience said they had received ethics training within the past year. A significant minority (16%) were yet to receive any training.
A third of all barristers said they had received ethics training in the past year, with a further 35% in the past one to five years.
Researchers concluded: “Our analysis of barristers’ understanding of their professional ethical obligations leads us to conclude that there is at present a solid system of training and support for professional ethics in place at the Bar. However, there are areas that require improvement.”
It plans to focus on maintaining independence and dealing with pressure from clients to act unethically at its free ethics webinar events, and publish guidance on these topics, as well as explore the feasibility of online on-demand ethics training.
The Bar Council is also to explore establishing an ‘ethics champions’ network.
Kirsty Brimelow KC, chair of the Bar, commented: “Barristers take their ethical obligations very seriously and the range of support on offer ensures that the ethics culture at the Bar remains strong.
“We have found no evidence to indicate the need to make substantial changes to the ethical regulation of the Bar, but we do want to see the BSB Handbook updated to make it clearer and easier to use.”
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