What is avocacy? Top tips for developing key barrister skills
Learn everything you need to know about advocacy from BPP. We discuss what advocacy is, and how you can learn these top barrister skills. Read now!
For those navigating the legal system, barristers act as advocates and represent their client’s interests in court. If you’re looking to become a barrister, advocacy is a key skill you will need to be successful at the Bar.
Read on to find out everything you need to know about advocacy, including how you can gain advocacy experience and become a confident advocate.
What does advocacy mean?
In law, advocacy is the practice of presenting a client’s case to a court or tribunal. A barrister will use their advocacy skills and their knowledge of the law to persuade a judge, tribunal, or jury to reach a judgment in their favour.
What does an advocate do?
Advocacy comes in both written and oral forms. As an advocate, you must be skilled in both to create a persuasive case in your client’s favour.
Oral advocacy involves planning and delivering effective submissions to a judge, submission advocacy, and using witnesses to make points that help a client’s case, known as witness handling. Written advocacy involves drafting documents intended for a judge, such as skeleton arguments.
Skills in these different types of advocacy are developed during the vocational stage of training on the Bar Training Course (BTC).
What are good advocacy skills?
The key advocacy skills of a barrister include being able to:
Establish trust. Knowing the law is not enough. Successful barristers must have good people skills and develop a rapport with clients, other professionals, and the court or tribunal.
Exercise sound judgement. Professional advocacy is based on sound preparation, where a barrister understands their brief, the facts of the case, and the relevant law. This allows a barrister to think on their feet and deal with questions of fact and law without hesitation.
Communicate persuasively. A barrister must be able to communicate their case clearly and precisely, both orally and in writing. Good communication should follow the five C’s: Clear, Concise, Coherent, Complete, and Compelling.
Logically structure submissions. A court or tribunal is more likely to remember a barrister’s arguments and be persuaded in their favour if submissions are structured well. A submission should be well-ordered, sign-posted, and focused on the important matters in the case.
How can aspiring barristers gain advocacy experience?
Becoming a skilled advocate takes time and practise. There are many opportunities during your barrister training to develop these skills outside of the classroom, including:
Mooting competitions
Work experience, a mini-pupillage, or shadowing barristers in chambers
Debates or public speaking
It is also helpful to learn from skilled advocates, which you can do by:
Learning from your experienced tutors on the BTC
Watching barristers in your local court or at a tribunal
Watching senior advocates online at the Supreme Court website and the Court of Appeal website
Final thoughts
Advocacy is one of the most important skills for a barrister and is essential for success at the Bar. An advocate should be able to establish trust, exercise sound judgement, and communicate persuasively to effectively represent a client. There are many ways for an aspiring barrister to become a skilled advocate, with lots of opportunities available during barrister training. BPP students can receive help in developing their advocacy skills through the Careers Service, including accessing help with vacation scheme and pupillage applications.
Find out more about becoming a barrister.
