Bar Standards Board Standard Contractual Terms

Five Paper accepts instructions from solicitors under the Bar Standards Board Standard Contractual Terms – to see a copy click here. These terms will apply to every new case unless:

• A Conditional Fee Agreement is agreed.
• The client is Publicly Funded.
• The client is a Public Access or Licensed Access client.
• Alternative or varied contractual terms have been agreed in writing.

Timescales for work undertaken

For drafting and advisory work, members of chambers endeavour to work to a turnaround time of 14 days. However, the timescale for all work undertaken may be affected by the barrister’s / parties’ availability, the complexity of the case, court listings, the urgency of the matter and whether not any additional documents or information might be required after the initial instruction is received.

What happens when you instruct us?

We will send you a copy of Our Promise, which outlines the standards of service you can expect to receive from all of us in Chambers. It also explains our approach to timescales and communication, and tells you how our billing procedures work.

We are happy to receive instructions and send out completed work by any written method of your choice. We do ask that, wherever possible, you copy in our clerks to any emailed instructions: this will enable us to progress urgent matters for you if your barrister is not available.

If you would like to instruct one of our members, or enquire about our availability to carry out work, our clerks will be glad to recommend a suitable barrister. Email them or telephone: 020 7815 3200.

All of our barristers are regulated by the Bar Standards Board. The Bar Standard’s Board publishes a Barristers’ Register which shows who currently has a practising certificate and whether a barrister has any disciplinary findings. The Barristers’ Register can be found here.