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...
... middle of paper ...
...st 2013.
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).
9. Woodgate, R., Black, A., Biggs, J., Owens, D. (2003). Legal Studies for Queensland, Volume 1, ForthEdition, Legal Eagle Publications: Queensland. 10. Woodgate, R., Black, A., Biggs, J., Owens, D. (2003).
Palmer, Elizabeth A. "The Court and Public Opinion." CQ Weekly 2 Dec. 2000. CQ Weekly. SAGE Publications. Web. 1 Mar. 2000. .
Lord Bingham of Cornhill, ‘The Rule of Law’, November 2006, Sixth Sir David Williams Lecture, Centre for Public Law, University of Cambridge
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)
Burstein, P. (2008). The Role of a Defence Counsel. In J. V. Roberts, & M. G. Grossman (Eds.), Criminal Justice in Canada: a Reader (3rd Edition ed., pp. 48-58). Toronto: Thomson Nelson.
Andrews N, Strangers to Justice No Longer: The Reversal of the Privity Rule under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 (2001) 60 The Cambridge Law Journal 353
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.
Remy, Richard C., Gary E. Clayton, and John J. Patrick. "Supreme Court Cases." Civics Today. Columbus, Ohio: Glencoe, 2008. 796. Print.
Hall, Kermit L, eds. The Oxford guide to United States Supreme Court decisions New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.
Esteemed former Chief Justice, Sir Harry Gibbs, asserted that public confidence ‘in the judiciary can be maintained only if the judges are seen to be not only fully competent to perform their functions, but also independent, impartial and of complete integrity’ and thus, the best method of appointing Justices ought to be in place to fulfill these qualities and allow this confidence to thrive. Therefore, this essay will argue that the current method of appointment of Justices to the High Court should be reformed to better serve the fundamental principles of the Rule of Law and Separation of Powers. This will be argued in accordance with the assertion that the ideal method of reform is informed by what is
Abadinsky, Howard. Law and Justice: An Introduction to the American Legal System. 6th ed. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2008. Print.
Columbia Law Review, 104, 1-20. doi:10.2307/4099343. Reynolds, S. (2009). The 'Standard'. An interview with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Introduction This submission will discuss the problems created by the Doctrine of Judicial Precedent and will attempt to find solutions to them. Whereas, English Law has formed over some 900 years it was not until the middle of the 19th Century that the modern Doctrine was ‘reaffirmed’. London Tramways Co. Ltd V London County Council (1898). Law is open to interpretation, all decisions made since the birth of the English Legal System, have had some form of impact whether it is beneficial or not The term ‘Judicial Precedent’ has at least two meanings, one of which is the process where Judges will follow the decisions of previously decided cases, the other is what is known as an ‘Original Precedent’ that is a case that creates and applies a new rule. Precedents are to be found in Law Reports and are divided up into ‘Binding’ and ‘Persuasive’.
The English legal system is ostensibly embedded on a foundation of a ‘high degree of certainty with adaptability’ based on a steady ‘mode’ of legal reasoning. This rests on four propositions
The aim of this essay is to provide a clear understanding of the concept of the rule of law and the different definitions of the concept and indicate which of the definitions is the best. In order to show clear understanding of the concept of the rule of law this essay will include: the definition of the rule of law, features and aims of the rule of law, the different contending definitions of the concept of the rule of law and brief summary of the different views, how the rule of law is protected in the UK, before concluding with a personal opinion on which of the contending definitions is best and reasons why the definition is the best.