Barristers' clerks in Victoria: frequently asked questions

Eleven questions solicitors and clients ask about barristers’ clerks, each answered directly. The answers draw on the Victorian Bar’s Clerking Regulations 2020 and its published guidance on briefing counsel.

A barristers’ clerk acts as agent for a group of barristers, known as a List. The clerk knows the skills, experience and availability of every barrister on the List, advises solicitors on who suits a matter, negotiates the fee, books the brief into the barrister’s diary, and handles the billing that follows.

A List is a group of barristers who have engaged the same clerk to manage their practices. Every barrister at the Victorian Bar is a sole practitioner, so the List is not a firm: each member keeps their own practice and diary, and shares only the clerk’s office that serves them all. Victoria has thirteen.

Yes. Every barristers’ clerk in Victoria holds a licence issued by the Bar Council under the Clerking Regulations 2020. A clerk must be a fit and proper person, financially viable and able to provide adequate services, must run an audited clearing account for barristers’ money, and can have the licence revoked.

Usually a solicitor briefs counsel on the client’s behalf, and for litigation that remains the normal route. In-house counsel and government solicitors can brief a barrister directly. Individuals can approach a barrister or their clerk directly, though barristers are not obliged to accept work from individuals.

Yes. To brief a barrister you can contact the barrister directly or contact their clerk, and the Victorian Bar’s own guidance is that if you are unsure which barrister would be right, a clerk can connect you with one who is available and appropriately skilled. Each of Victoria’s thirteen Lists has a direct line and email.

Nothing to the solicitor or the client. A clerk is paid by the barristers on their List, by way of a clerking commission, and the Clerking Regulations provide for the clerk’s fee to be deducted from the barrister’s money before it is paid to the barrister. It is not added to the fee you are quoted.

Barristers’ fees vary with the type of work, the likely length of a hearing and the barrister’s experience. You will know the likely cost before committing: every Victorian legal practitioner, including a barrister, must provide a costs disclosure, and a written costs agreement is agreed before work begins.

Contact a clerk. A clerk is familiar with the skills, expertise, experience and availability of every barrister on their List and can advise on suitability as well as seniority. For a complex matter, a King’s Counsel or Senior Counsel will advise whether their involvement is warranted and can bring in a junior to assist.

Often on the same call. The clerk holds the diaries for the whole List, synced to the barristers’ own calendars, so availability on a particular date is a matter of looking rather than asking. Where the barrister is available and suitable, the clerk can enter the brief into the diary immediately.

A solicitor advises the client and conducts the matter. A clerk gives no legal advice and takes no part in running it: they will tell you which barristers are available, what their practice covers and what they charge, and will book the brief. Prospects and strategy are for the solicitor and the barrister.

The Victorian Barristers’ Clerks Association represents the thirteen barristers’ clerking Lists in Victoria: Chapman’s List, Dever’s List, Foley’s List, Greens List, Holmes List, Lennon’s List, List A, List G, Meldrum’s List, Parnell’s Barristers, Patterson’s List, Svenson Barristers and Young’s List. Each has its own page on this site.

Find a clerking List  ·  How to brief a barrister  ·  Contact VICBCA