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Are you keen to make a contribution to the regulation of barristers?…. BSB seeks barrister and lay members for its new Independent Decision-Making Body

The Bar Standards Board (BSB), the independent regulatory body for barristers in England and Wales, is seeking barrister and lay members for its new Independent Decision-Making Body. This is an exciting period of change for the BSB which we would like to encourage a more diverse range of people to join us in taking forward.

The organisation

The BSB regulates barristers and specialised legal services businesses in England and Wales in the public interest. We are responsible for:

  • setting education and training requirements;
  • setting standards;
  • authorising organisations;
  • monitoring the service provided; and
  • handling complaints about conduct.

The BSB is creating a new non-executive body responsible for taking all our regulatory decisions that require independent input.  The body, known as the Independent Decision-Making Body (IDB), will start operating in June 2019.  It will consist of a pool of suitably qualified decision makers from which panels of lay and barrister members will be formed to take decisions on individual cases – panels of three will be used for authorisations and five for disciplinary cases. Most of the decisions for which the IDB will be responsible will be in relation to whether disciplinary action should be taken where breaches of the professional obligations, as set out in the BSB Handbook, may have occurred.  However, the IDB will also be responsible for, amongst other things, taking decisions in relation to appeals against executive decisions not to grant waivers from the Handbook requirements or decisions not to authorise or licence a body to provide legal services.

The work of an IDB member will include preparing for, chairing and/or attending Panel meetings, attending training sessions as required and ensuring that they stay up to date with issues related
to the regulation of the Bar.

We are also recruiting to the position of Vice-Chair of the IDB.  This position, in addition to the above functions, will be responsible, with the Chair of the IDB, for: providing the leadership of the IDB; assisting with carrying out the annual appraisals process of IDB members; providing feedback on panel member performance; and taking limited decisions outside panel meetings.

We welcome applications from barristers and lay people with experience across a range of practice areas, both executive and non-executive. Knowledge of higher legal education and/or qualification as a barrister are also sought.

Appointments will be for an initial period of up to three years, subject to a satisfactory appraisal on completion of 18 months’ service. Candidates are invited to indicate which of the roles they are applying for in their covering letter, and to address the corresponding competencies contained in the application pack.

Remuneration for all members of the IDB is paid at a flat rate of £308 per day or £154 per half day (plus VAT, if relevant) – this covers both attendance at meetings and preparation time.

Meetings will be hosted from London, but we encourage applications from those located elsewhere in the country as facilities can be provided to attend IDB panel meetings remotely. However, all members will be expected, from time to time, to attend events in London for which reasonable expenses will be paid.

For more information and details on how to apply, please visit the About Us section of our website www.barstandardsboard.org.uk. Candidates should provide a covering letter outlining how they meet the competencies required for the position(s)s, together with a brief CV.

We welcome applications from all people who meet the role requirements regardless of background and particularly encourage those from groups that are currently underrepresented in our independent decision-making processes such as women, and members of the LGBT, disability and BME communities.

If you have any queries, please contact Alex Williams, Operational Support Team Manager, or Sophie Maddison, Senior Supervision & Authorisations Officer in the first instance:

 AWilliams@BarStandardsBoard.org.uk

SMaddison@BarStandardsBoard.org.uk

Please send completed applications to: OST@BarStandardsBoard.org.uk

Closing date for applications: 9am Monday 7 January 2019.

Interviews will take place in London in the week commencing 25 February 2019.  The date may change, including the possible addition of other dates, depending on interview panel and applicant
availability.

Mandatory training will take place in April and May 2019.