Barrister

My new partner and I got into a discussion last night about Barristers and I thought what better place to get some opinions than on here! There's a good chance my case will be going to court which is what prompted this.

I currently have a female solicitor (I am the husband) and my stbx has a female solicitor as well. I am none too impressed by my sol and sometimes feel she is riding the fence too much so to speak. She isn't as enthusiastic in my representation as I'd like and I sometimes wonder if she's on my stbx's side.

So in discussing what we would look for in a Barrister my new partner asked if I would go for a man or a woman and I replied a woman. My reasoning being that if I am a man represented by a man and the stbx is a woman represented by a woman it would look like a sexist argument on top of a divorce. Asked if my opinion would change if I was aware that all of the judges in my local court were men I couldn't respond. Also asked if I was aware that the head of my local chambers was male (who appears to be the best family law Barrister) and whether that would change my mind I couldn't say.

So what do you all think? Does any of this really matter? How does one find the best Barrister? My partner (being a graduate of a legal program in another country) seems to think it does.

Surely gender is irrelevant? It is the ability and legal knowledge of whoever is representing you that is crucial.

I am a woman, and had a male solicitor - who had about as much bite as a toothless codfish. I never once considered his gender as being important, only the lack of "oomph" he had, not to mention his lack of knowledge on family law matters

here's my opinion.
I thought my solicitor was being a bit nonchalant afterwards I realised they look at the bigger picture and probably have a view of what the worst outcome may be, so if you appear to be coming better of they just ride it to make sure the waters dont get muddy, that was my case i think, basically my ex could have gone for SM but didnt so my sol probably thought I was doing well out of it.
For my contact order, in court she had a young male barrister, he tried to unnerve me but didnt work, he had a young family and realised what ex had been trying to dp with my kids so he became sympathetic to a point.
Barristers are game players, they see what happens on the day to see what bluff they can use to get an outcome.

I agree that sex shouldn't be an issue but I suspect it is to some degree. I've wondered on occasion if as a man instructing a female sol whether that sol sympathises with the plight of the opposing side and is therefore not as robust in representation.

My partner, with her experience in the legal field abroad, insists that the legal field is a boys game (at least on her side of the pond). She maintains that is why often (except in my case for one) women sols are sought by men as they have to fight harder for what a man can achieve just by being a man. She says she's seen it in both her own divorce, family/friend divorces, and the profession itself.

She readily admits things may be different in this country though and we're both fascinated by not only the debate and opinions, but how to find a good barrister if needed.

The best person to advise on which barrister to instruct is your solicitor after all they will work with local barristers.

Gender makes no difference experience does its as simple as that, for what its worth the most successful barrister i know stands at 5ft2 and is very much a lady - thinking on some of the most powerful law makers are also women.

Before engaging a barrister you really need to talk to your solicitor to see if its really worth the cost, very often the person that knows your case best apart from you is your solicitor meaning if a barrister is instructed they have to play catch up.

And if you don't entirely trust your solicitor based on her performance throughout? I don't see it as a financially sound decision to hire a new solicitor given there are virtually no assets other than my pension which I've agreed to give her 50% of. It is simply SM we're arguing over here.

I understand there is a good possibility I won't need a Barrister but the conversation came up and my interest was peaked.

panda32 wrote:

I've wondered on occasion if as a man instructing a female sol whether that sol sympathises with the plight of the opposing side and is therefore not as robust in representation.

I would doubt that very much - the vast majority of sols dont get involved with the "personal" or emotional stuff that their client brings with them, sticking to the [legal]matters at hand. To turn your theory around, would a male sols with a female client sympathise with the plight of the other side?

women sols are sought by men as they have to fight harder for what a man can achieve just by being a man

Utter Poppycock. Thats like saying that man gets what he wants simply because he has a penis, and that because women dont own such an organ they have to fight harder. - certainly in English/Welsh law, the system is so skewed against men, and fathers in particular, that men have to fight to extremes often just to see their children - regardless of the gender of their legal representation. Its not a myth that men often come out of a divorce worse off financially than the women do (generally speaking).

I would suggest that gender of a sols/barrister etc is irrelevant, it is the system itself that needs changing.