Did you know the solicitors from Banga Legal can represent you in court?

Solicitors at Banga Legal, unlike solicitors at some other firms, conduct hearings and trials on a regular basis, across several states, including Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. We have represented at trials and hearings in matters, such as those relating to IVO’s, AVO’s, AHPRA, high profile and criminal matters. 

We note the importance of engaging barristers only when necessary, which helps our clients save on legal costs as they do not have to pay for the legal fees of two practitioners. This can especially be beneficial in matters where the solicitor knows the case more intimately.  

In the past, only lawyers who received legal training at the “bar” and qualified as barristers were allowed to represent clients in court. When this was the situation, solicitors would meet with their clients, give them advice, and then send the case to a defence barrister. If necessary, the barrister would then conduct the trial in court. 

Even though barristers continue to appear in court more frequently than solicitors, their functions are no longer as well defined. Barristers aren’t always needed, and when they are, they frequently collaborate with solicitors in a more direct manner than in the past.

Solicitors

Generally, clients who are dealing with serious legal issues will first hire a solicitor to obtain specialised legal help. A solicitor is a member of the legal profession who devotes the most of their time to aiding clients with their regular legal issues. They are accountable for a variety of legal obligations and responsibilities and can offer customers advice or an approach for resolving almost any legal matter. 

The primary distinction between barristers and solicitors is that, as opposed to representing clients in court, solicitors spend the majority of their time managing client needs in their offices. A solicitor’s regular day-to-day duties consist of email and telephone communications, drafting court documents and letters for clients, handling negotiations out of court, managing client legal files, and advising and instructing barristers on behalf of their client.

Even though a solicitor is legally allowed to represent their client in court, they usually delegate court appearances to barristers and provide guidance to these barristers on how to behave in court. Typically, a solicitor will only represent a client during preliminary and intermediate hearings by appearing in court. Normally, the solicitor stays out of the formal argument section of the hearing and/or trial.

Yet, solicitors, especially those with particular legal specialities, can represent their client in court without a barrister present. This means that, should they decide it would be in their client’s best interest, solicitors are legally permitted to assume all of the responsibilities a barrister would have in court. 

However, it is important to recognise that whether or not a solicitor represents in court can depend on the skillset of the solicitor as some solicitors cannot act in court to hearing or trials. 

Barristers

In most cases, barristers are independent practitioners who follow the courtroom directions of the solicitor handling their case. Barristers spend the majority of their time in court as attorneys. They don’t participate as much in their clients’ daily legal affairs. Barristers are distinct in that they are not always essential; for example, in some cases, engaging both a barrister and a solicitor would be repetitive and pointless. Typically, barristers are put on retainer to make court appearances and appearing in trials, handling court applications, providing specialty advice on a specific issue, assisting a solicitor with the drafting of court documents. aid in understanding intricate areas of the laws, and conducting engaging arguments. 

A barrister will typically be called upon by the solicitor or client if a case requires a lot of time in court, but they are frequently only required for cases that will go to trial and/or hearing.

At Banga Legal, barristers are hired in situations where there is an immense amount of work load and court appearances involved, as we understand that, depending on the client’s matter, it can be better in certain matters to have two practitioners working on the case than one. Matters that go to appeal in Court of Criminal Appeal and Supreme Court often still have barristers involved.