Senior counsel
The title of Senior Counsel or State Counsel (post-nominal letters: SC) is given to a senior lawyer in some countries that were formerly part of the British Empire. "Senior Counsel" is used in current or former Commonwealth countries or jurisdictions that have chosen to change the title "King's Counsel" to a name without monarchical connotations, usually related to the British monarch that is no longer head of state, such that reference to the King is no longer appropriate. Examples of jurisdictions that have made the change because of the latter reason include Mauritius, Zambia, India, Hong Kong, Ireland, South Africa, Kenya, Malawi, Singapore, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago. Jurisdictions that have retained the monarch as head of state, but have nonetheless opted for the new title include some states and territories of Australia, as well as Belize.[1]
Just as a junior counsel is "
Dress
In Hong Kong, every Senior Counsel must wear a black robe and silk gown together with a wig when appearing in open court.[2] In Ireland, Senior Counsel wear a silk gown which differs from that of a Junior Counsel; the wig is optional.
Australia
The rank of Senior Counsel has also been introduced in most
The formal difference appears to be that QCs receive a warrant signed by the relevant state governor, who is the formal representative of the sovereign, whereas SCs receive a certificate issued by the relevant bar association or bureaucracy such as by the judicature of the state supreme court as the case may be.[citation needed]
Barbados
The title of Senior Counsel has replaced that of
Those who were appointed as Q.C. are now free to change their postnominal letters to K.C., due to the
All new appointments will be as S.C. only.
Belize
Senior Counsel is appointed in Belize, even though King Charles III is
Hong Kong
"Senior Counsel" (
King's Counsel from England or other senior counsel from other jurisdictions is not accorded any precedence if they are admitted generally in Hong Kong. However, visiting King's Counsel from another jurisdiction who have been admitted for a specific case are entitled to use the title, and to be accorded the status, of Senior Counsel for the purposes of those proceedings.[9]
India
A member of the bar could be designated as a Senior Advocate upon a selection process that employs various criteria for designation. The said designation happens by the Supreme Court directly, or through the concerned state High Court. In August 2018 the Supreme Court issued guidelines to regulate the conferment of designation of Senior Advocate.[10] Senior advocates' gowns have a flap at the back to distinguish them from junior counsels.
Ireland
The
The title "K.C." continued to be used by many Senior Counsel, both those created before July 1924 and those after.
The Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 provides for the Legal Services Regulatory Authority (LSRA) to establish an Advisory Committee on the grant of Patents of Precedence. The committee comprises the Chief Justice, the Presidents of the
- (a) has, in his or her practice as a legal practitioner, displayed—
- (i) a degree of competence and a degree of probity appropriate to and consistent with the grant to him or her of a Patent,
- (ii) professional independence, and
- (iii) one or more of the following:
- (I) a proven capacity for excellence in the practice of advocacy;
- (II) a proven capacity for excellence in the practice of specialist litigation; or
- (III) specialist knowledge of an area of law;
- (b) is suitable on grounds of character and temperament;
- (c) is in possession of a tax clearance certificate that is in force;
- (d) is otherwise suitable to be granted a Patent.
It is still the government which grants the patent of privilege and the
In Northern Ireland, the designation King's Counsel (KC) or Queen's Counsel (QC) has continued since 1921, as in the rest of the United Kingdom. In 1983 Richard Ferguson, former head of the Northern Ireland bar, was called to the Inner Bar in Dublin, becoming the first to be simultaneously QC and SC.[29] Conversely, the first SC to become QC was Paddy MacEntee in 1985.[29]
New Zealand
The title "Senior Counsel" was briefly established in New Zealand from 2007 until 2009. It was abolished by the following government in favour of restoring the title of Queen's Counsel on the basis of the respect felt accorded to those appointed Queen's Counsel. Those appointed as Senior Counsel were given the option of becoming Queen's Counsel or remaining as Senior Counsel.
Singapore
"Senior Counsel" is used in the law of Singapore.[30] There is no independent bar in Singapore and senior counsel practice as members of law firms. Prior to independence, select members were given the title of King's Counsel or Queen's Counsel.
South Africa
"Senior Counsel" (in Afrikaans Senior Advokaat) replaced QC in South Africa after the Union became a republic on 31 May 1961, with appointments being made by the state president until 1994, when the office was succeeded by that of president. A judge in the High Court in the province of Gauteng ruled that under the 1993 constitution, the president did not have the power to grant Senior Counsel status.[31] This judgment has been overturned by the Supreme Court of Appeal and also the Constitutional Court. See Advocate § South Africa.
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, the position of senior counsel (lowercase) is used to denote an experienced solicitor (who need not be an advocate), who is not on the path to partnership. This position is therefore analogous to the American title of counsel and is not directly comparable to the position of King's Counsel/Senior Counsel, which is held by barristers.
Similar titles
Other jurisdictions have adopted similar titles:
- Senior Advocate under the law of Bangladesh,[32] law of Pakistan,[33] and that of Nigeria (see Senior Advocate of Nigeria).
- public prosecutorsin the legal system of Sri Lanka.
References
Footnotes
- ^ The official Irish equivalent of "senior counsel" is abhcóide sinsir since 1949,[14][15] though the previous standard abhcóide sinsearach remains common.[15][16][17] There is no Irish abbreviation equivalent to "SC".[17]
- ^ a b This view was subsequently rejected by the Supreme Court of Ireland in 1972 and 1988 rulings that the 1922 constitution had abolished the royal prerogative; these decisions, in turn, have been criticised by jurists.[18]
Citations
- ^ "Michael Young, SC, dead at 61", Amandala, October 22, 2016.
- ^ "Code of Conduct Annex 11". Hong Kong Bar Association. Archived from the original on 3 October 2009.
- ^ Pelly, Michael (14 June 2013). "States divide over restoration of 'Queen's Counsel' title". The Australian. Archived from the original on 14 June 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
- ^ "Victoria to give senior barristers option to become QCs" (PDF).[dead link]
- ^ Nelson, Felicity (27 January 2015). "New Victorian silks given choice of QC or SC". Lawyers Weekly. Archived from the original on 7 September 2023.
- ^ Siebert, Bension (18 February 2019). "Govt to reinstate QCs, spurning Supreme Court judges". InDaily. Archived from the original on 3 March 2024.
- ^ "Attorney-general's Chambers 总检察署". Translation Standardisation Committee for the Chinese Media, Singapore. Archived from the original on 17 April 2004.
- ^ See the savings and transitional provisions contained in s. 2 of Schedule 2 to Ordinance No. 94 of 1997
- ^ Legal Practitioner's Ordinance, S.31B
- ^ "SC issues guidelines for conferring lawyers with senior designation".
- ^ a b Rice, Vincent (10 July 1943). "His Majesty's Counsel". The Irish Times. p. 3. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
- ^ JSTOR 44505852.
- ^ a b "Questions. Oral Answers — Irish Bar Senior Counsel". Dáil Éireann (13th Dáil) debates. Oireachtas. 24 February 1949. cols.493–5. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
- ^
- An tOrdú Téarmaí Dlíthiúla Gaeilge (Uimh. 4) 1949 (S.I. No. 68 of 1949). Signed on 8 September 1949. Statutory Instrument of the Government of Ireland. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 8 April 2020.
- de Bhaldraithe, Tomás, ed. (1959). "counsel". English–Irish Dictionary. Retrieved 8 April 2020 – via teanglann.ie.
- ^ a b "Senior Counsel". téarma.ie: The National Terminology Database for Irish. Foras na Gaeilge. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
- ^ "Courts of Justice Act 1936 Part VI". Acts of the Oireachtas (in Irish and English). Oireachtas. s. 67(5). Archived from the original on 2 November 2012.
[English] of whom one shall be a member of the Senior Bar and the other shall be a member of the Junior Bar / [Irish] beidh duine den bheirt sin ina Abhcóide Sinsearach agus an duine eile ina Abhcóide Sóisearach
- ^ a b "Abhcóidí". Citizens Information (in Irish). Citizens Information Board. 8 August 2023. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
Féadfaidh Abhcóide Sinsearach na litreacha SC a bheith i ndiaidh a n-ainm.
- ISSN 2009-6410. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
- ^ a b c "Calls to the Inner Bar". The Irish Times. 1 April 1926. p. 3. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
- ^ Executive Powers (Consequential Provisions) Act 1937, s. 2: Transfer of certain powers, etc., to the Executive Council (No. 20 of 1937, s. 2). Enacted on 8 June 1937. Act of the Oireachtas. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 16 April 2020.
- JSTOR 44506045.
- ^ a b c Therese, Molloy Marie (3 July 2019). "Government Grants Admission to Inner Bar". merrionstreet.ie (Press release). Retrieved 16 April 2020.
- ^ "Estimates for Public Services. - Vote No. 63—Army (Resumed)". Dáil Éireann debate. Vol. 93. Oireachtas. 25 April 1944. no. 10; cc. 1486, 1519.
- ^ "Questions. Oral Answers. - Description of Senior Counsel". Dáil Éireann (13th Dáil) debates. Oireachtas. 23 March 1949. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
- ^ Hall, Eamonn (April 2005). "The ancien régime" (PDF). Law Society Gazette. 99 (3). Law Society of Ireland: 14. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 May 2017. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
- ^ "Advisory Committee on the Grant of Patents of Precedence". Legal Services Regulatory Authority. 10 October 2019. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
- ^ "About Us". Law Library. Bar Council of Ireland. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
The Bar of Ireland ... has a current membership of approximately 2,300 practising barristers ... There is approximately 325 senior counsel in Ireland
- ^ Gallagher, Conor (3 September 2020). "Centuries-old requirement ends as solicitors awarded senior counsel titles for first time". The Irish Times. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
- ^ a b "MacEntee makes legal history". The Irish Times. 30 January 1985. p. 10. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
- ^ "Senior Counsel Directory". Singapore Academy of Law. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
- Mail and Guardian, 9 February 2012
- ^ "Advocate". banglapedia.org.
- ^ "Legal Practitioners & Bar Councils Act, 1973 [XXXV of 1973] With Rules" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 April 2012. Retrieved 9 November 2011.