Direct Access Barrister Advice: Frequently Asked Questions
Find answers about instructing a Public Access barrister directly through Barristerly. Learn what the £690 fixed-fee consultation includes, how to request an appointment, what documents you may provide and what happens after your consultation.
Instructing a barrister directly
Can I instruct a barrister without using a solicitor?
Yes. A barrister authorised to undertake Public Access work may accept instructions directly from an individual, business or organisation without a solicitor being involved.
Public Access is not suitable for every case. Before accepting your instruction, the barrister must decide whether your matter can properly be handled in this way or whether you need assistance from a solicitor or another professional.
What is a Public Access barrister?
A Public Access barrister is a practising barrister authorised to accept instructions directly from members of the public.
A barrister can provide specialist legal advice, explain your options and recommend the next steps. Depending upon the circumstances and what is separately agreed, a barrister may also draft legal documents, negotiate on your behalf or represent you before a court or tribunal.
What is Barristerly?
Barristerly is an independent booking and introduction service connecting individuals, businesses and organisations with participating independent Public Access barristers.
Barristerly is not a law firm or barristers’ chambers and does not itself provide legal advice. Your legal advice is provided by the independent barrister whom you instruct.
Areas of law
What legal problems can Barristerly help with?
Participating barristers may be available to advise in areas including:
banking and finance;
company and directors’ disputes;
consumer disputes;
contract and commercial disputes;
criminal law;
defamation and privacy;
insolvency and bankruptcy;
landlord and tenant matters;
licensing and regulatory law;
motoring law;
negligence and other tort claims;
partnership disputes;
probate, inheritance and trusts;
professional and clinical negligence; and
property and land disputes.
See the Areas of Law page for further details.
What if I do not know which area of law applies?
You do not need to identify the precise legal category.
Simply explain what has happened, identify the parties involved and tell us what questions you would like answered. Barristerly will use that information to identify a potentially suitable participating barrister.
Can every case be accepted?
No. Each barrister retains professional responsibility for deciding whether an instruction can be accepted.
A barrister may be unable to accept your request because:
a conflict of interest exists;
the matter falls outside the barrister’s expertise;
Public Access is not suitable;
a solicitor or another professional is required;
the issues cannot properly be considered within the fixed-fee package;
there is insufficient time before a hearing or deadline; or
the barrister is unavailable.
If your request cannot be accepted, you will be told as soon as reasonably possible.
The fixed-fee consultation
How much does the consultation cost?
The fixed fee is £690, including VAT.
There is no separate booking or administration charge payable to Barristerly.
What is included in the £690 fixed fee?
The package includes up to two hours of the barrister’s professional time in total, comprising:
consideration of the information and supporting documents supplied before the consultation;
an online consultation lasting up to 60 minutes; and
a short written summary of the principal advice and recommended next steps.
The consultation may last up to 60 minutes. The remaining time is divided between preparation and producing the written summary at the barrister’s professional discretion.
The precise questions to be considered and the scope of the work will be confirmed in the barrister’s client care letter.
Is the package a complete review of my case?
No. The package provides focused legal advice about the particular questions accepted by the barrister.
It is based on limited information and documents and a defined amount of professional time. It is not an unrestricted review of an entire case or a detailed formal opinion addressing every issue that might arise.
A focused question can involve difficult or complex law. The relevant consideration is whether the question can properly be considered within the available time and on the information provided.
If reliable advice cannot be given within the package, the barrister may ask you to narrow your questions, decline the instruction or discuss separate terms for additional work.
What will the written summary contain?
The written summary will record the principal advice and recommended next steps.
It is not intended to be a transcript of the consultation, a comprehensive analysis of every possible issue or a detailed formal legal opinion.
The barrister will confirm when the summary will be provided. Ordinarily, it will be sent within 24–48 hours after the consultation.
Booking an appointment
How do I request a consultation?
Select the relevant area of law and an available provisional appointment time through the Booking page. You will then be asked to provide information about your case, the parties involved and the questions you would like answered.
The barrister will contact you to:
undertake conflict and suitability checks;
confirm whether the instruction can be accepted;
confirm the scope of the consultation;
provide a client care letter and fee note; and
explain the payment and appointment arrangements.
Is my appointment confirmed when I select a time?
No. The time selected through the website is provisional.
The appointment is confirmed only after the barrister has completed the necessary checks, accepted the instruction, sent the required client care documentation and completed any applicable payment arrangements.
Is submitting the form the same as instructing a barrister?
No. Submitting the form creates a booking request only.
It does not:
require a barrister to accept your case;
confirm the requested appointment;
create a barrister–client relationship;
protect a limitation period or other deadline; or
transfer responsibility for your case to Barristerly or a barrister.
A professional relationship is created only if and when the barrister accepts your instruction on the terms set out in the client care letter.
Can I choose a particular barrister?
Where the website allows you to request a particular barrister, you may do so.
The request remains subject to that barrister’s availability, conflict checks and assessment of whether the case is suitable. Barristerly cannot guarantee that a particular barrister will be able to accept your instruction.
Why must I provide the names of all the parties?
Barristers must check whether accepting an instruction would create a professional conflict of interest.
You should provide the full names of all relevant individuals, businesses, organisations and legal representatives. A conflict check cannot be completed properly if important names are omitted.
Documents and information
How many pages of documents may I provide?
Your supporting documents should ordinarily be limited to 20 pages in total, unless otherwise agreed.
You should select the documents most relevant to the particular questions you want the barrister to answer. Do not submit an entire case file unless expressly requested.
What documents should I provide?
Depending upon the case, relevant documents might include:
an important agreement or contract;
key correspondence;
a claim form, defence or application;
a court or tribunal order;
a witness statement;
a will, trust deed or title document; or
another document central to the dispute.
What if my documents exceed 20 pages?
Explain this in the booking form.
The barrister may ask you to identify the most important pages, offer a separate arrangement for additional document review or conclude that the case is unsuitable for the fixed-fee package.
The 20-page limit does not guarantee that an instruction can be accepted. A short document may be particularly technical, and documents within the limit may still raise more issues than can properly be considered in the available time.
What if relevant information is missing?
The barrister’s advice can only be based on the information and documents made available.
If material facts are disputed, incomplete or unsupported, the barrister may qualify the advice, request further information or conclude that reliable advice cannot be provided within the package.
You should ensure that the information you supply is accurate, complete and not misleading.
The online consultation and payment
How does the consultation take place?
The consultation takes place online using the video-conferencing service agreed with the barrister.
You will need a suitable device, a reliable internet connection and a quiet, private place from which to attend.
Who do I pay?
You pay the barrister directly using the payment details contained in the barrister’s fee note.
Barristerly does not receive or hold client money and does not operate a client account.
Are there any hidden charges?
No. The advertised price of £690, including VAT, covers the defined fixed-fee package.
Any additional work must be separately identified and agreed with the barrister before it is undertaken.
Do you offer discounts?
No. Barristerly currently offers the consultation package at a single fixed price.
Cancellations and changes
What happens if I cancel?
If you cancel before the instruction has been accepted or before payment is made, no fee will be payable.
Unless the barrister’s client care letter expressly provides otherwise, a full refund will be available if you cancel at least two hours before the scheduled consultation.
If less than two hours’ notice is given, or the barrister has already undertaken preparatory work, the applicable cancellation and refund arrangements will be those contained in the barrister’s client care letter.
Because payment is made directly to the barrister, the barrister is responsible for arranging any refund due. Your statutory consumer rights are unaffected.
What if the barrister cannot accept the instruction after payment?
If the barrister cannot accept or proceed with the instruction, the barrister will arrange the appropriate refund.
Can I change my appointment?
Contact the barrister as soon as reasonably possible.
The barrister will make reasonable efforts to offer an alternative date or time, although this will depend upon availability and existing professional commitments.
Further legal work
Does the package include drafting or representation in court?
No. Unless expressly agreed otherwise, the fixed-fee package does not include:
conducting litigation;
corresponding or negotiating with another party;
drafting pleadings, witness statements or applications;
preparing a detailed formal written opinion;
representation at a court or tribunal hearing;
obtaining evidence or documents;
reviewing more than 20 pages of documents; or
continuing advice after the written summary.
Can I instruct the barrister to undertake additional work?
You may ask the barrister whether they are willing to undertake further work, including drafting or representation.
The barrister is free to accept or decline. The scope, fee and timescale for any additional work must be agreed directly with the barrister in advance.
There is no obligation or pressure to purchase further services.
Does Barristerly offer any other service?
Barristerly currently offers the defined fixed-fee consultation package only.
Any additional professional work is a separate arrangement between you and the barrister.
Urgent cases and deadlines
Can Barristerly help with an urgent legal problem?
Possibly. This will depend upon the availability of a suitable barrister and whether there is sufficient time to consider the matter properly.
You must clearly identify any hearing date, limitation period, appeal deadline or other important deadline in the booking form. Barristerly cannot guarantee that an urgent instruction will be accepted.
Does submitting a booking request protect a deadline?
No.
Submitting a request does not stop a limitation period, extend a court or tribunal deadline or transfer responsibility for taking action to Barristerly or a barrister.
Unless and until a barrister expressly accepts responsibility in writing, you remain responsible for protecting your position, complying with deadlines and attending any hearing.
Regulation, confidentiality and complaints
Who regulates the barrister?
Each participating barrister is an independent practising barrister individually authorised and regulated by the Bar Standards Board.
The barrister’s regulatory details will appear in their client care documentation and can be checked on the Bar Standards Board’s Barristers’ Register.
Barristerly is an independent booking and introduction service. It is not a law firm, barristers’ chambers or a Bar Standards Board-regulated entity.
Will my information be kept confidential?
Barristerly processes personal information in accordance with its Privacy Notice.
Information and documents submitted through the booking process may be provided to a potentially suitable participating barrister so that conflict, availability and suitability checks can be completed and the proposed instruction considered.
Barristerly and the barrister may have separate data-protection responsibilities. Whether a particular communication or document is protected by legal professional privilege will depend upon the applicable law and circumstances.
You should provide only information relevant to your proposed instruction.
What if I am unhappy with the barrister’s service or advice?
You must first use the barrister’s complaints procedure, which will be explained in the client care letter.
After that procedure has been used, the Legal Ombudsman may be able to consider a complaint about the standard of service. Concerns about possible professional misconduct may be reported to the Bar Standards Board.
Barristerly cannot review, change or adjudicate upon a barrister’s independent professional advice.
What if my complaint concerns Barristerly?
A complaint about the website, booking process or Barristerly’s administrative service should be made directly to Barristerly using the details on the Contact page.
Request a consultation
Tell us briefly about your legal problem, identify the parties involved and explain the questions you would like a barrister to consider.
Request a fixed-fee consultation
Submitting a request is not the same as instructing a barrister. Every instruction remains subject to conflict, suitability and availability checks and acceptance by the barrister.