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Written question asked by Apsana Begum (Labour) on Tuesday, 18 July 2023, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 20 July 2023. It was answered by Mike Freer (Conservative) on Tuesday, 25 July 2023 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.


Bar Standards Board: Complaints

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of changes in the level of complaints made to the Bar Standards Board by criminal law barristers over the last three years.

Answer

The Ministry of Justice has not carried out an assessment on any factors affecting the level of complaints made to the Bar Standards Board about barristers. The regulators of the legal profession in England and Wales, including the Bar Standards Board, are independent of Government.

There are two routes for complaints about barristers in England and Wales - the Legal Ombudsman and the Bar Standard Board. The Legal Ombudsman deals with complaints about the service provided to the complainant by an authorised person, while the Bar Standards Board deals with complaints where a barrister is alleged to be in breach of the Bar Standards Board’s codes of conduct. The Bar Standards Board publishes data on its complaints in its Regulatory Decision-making Annual Report.


Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
194951
Session
2022-23
Subjects
Complaints Bar Standards Board
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk