2019 Competition Announcement

PRESS RELEASE (Embargoed to Thursday 16 January)

114 NEW QUEEN’S COUNSEL APPOINTED IN THE 2019 COMPETITION

The appointments of 114 new Queen’s Counsel (also known as silk) are announced today.

These appointments are made by Her Majesty The Queen on the advice of the Lord Chancellor, Robert Buckland QC, MP, following consideration by the independent Queen’s Counsel Selection Panel.

Sir Alex Allan, Chair of the Selection Panel, said today:

’I am delighted at the announcement of the new silks. I congratulate each one of them.   The selection process is a rigorous and demanding one. We collect confidential assessments from judges, fellow advocates and professional clients, who give freely of their time to provide evidence about an applicant’s demonstration of the competencies. Those applicants who are not filtered out following consideration of the assessments are then interviewed by two members of the Selection Panel, following which the whole Panel discuss all the evidence on each interviewed applicant.

We remain concerned that the number of female applicants remains comparatively low, but I am pleased that of those women who did apply, almost 60% were successful. I was also pleased to note that a record number of 22 BAME applicants were appointed..    

Each year, the Panel has the difficult task of identifying the truly excellent advocates. I am confident that those appointed today truly deserve to be Queen’s Counsel. “

A full report on the 2019 competition, with statistical information relating to successful and unsuccessful applicants, will be published on the QC Appointments website.

A list of the new silks is attached. Among the 114 appointments are:

  • 30 women applicants of the 52 who applied. Last year, 30 out of 55 female applicants were successful;
  • 22 applicants who declared an ethnic origin other than white of the 42 who applied. Last year 13 such applicants out of 42 were appointed;
  • 26 applicants aged over 50 were appointed. Last year 19 such applicants were appointed. The youngest successful applicant is 37 years old and the oldest is 60.
  • Four solicitor advocates of the nine who applied. In the previous competition four solicitor advocates were also appointed. 

Notes for Editors

  1. Queen’s Counsel are appointed by The Queen, on the advice of the Lord Chancellor. He is in turn advised by an independent Selection Panel which receives and considers each application and makes recommendations as to appointment.
  2. The members of the Queen’s Counsel Selection Panel for the 2019 competition were:

Sir Alex Allan (Chair)

Douglas Board

Sir Christopher Clarke

Wanda Goldwag

Celia Hughes

Rachel Langdale QC

Edward Nally

Penelope Reed QC

Maggie Semple OBE

Monisha Shah

The Selection Panel is supported by its own Secretariat.

  1. The QC appointment scheme was developed by the Bar Council and the Law Society, with the support of the (then) Department for Constitutional Affairs, and approved by the then Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State (Lord Falconer) in November 2004. Applications were first invited in 2005 and the first round of appointments under the new arrangements was announced in 2006. Refinements to the scheme, building on experience of the first year, were agreed in 2006. The selection process is financed entirely through applicants’ fees. A copy of the agreed Process and further information is available from the Queen’s Counsel Appointments website: www.qcappointments.org
  2. Applications for the 2019 competition closed on 28 March 2019 and the Selection Panel submitted recommendations to the Lord Chancellor on 24 October 2019. Each applicant has been considered against five competencies:
  • Understanding and using the law
  • Written and oral advocacy
  • Working with others
  • Diversity
  • Integrity
  1. 181 of the 258 applicants were interviewed by the Selection Panel. All unsuccessful applicants receive written personal feedback on their application. The Panel expects to invite applications for the next round of appointments in February 2020.
  2. The new Queen’s Counsel announced today will formally become silks when they make their declaration before the Lord Chancellor at the ceremony on 16 March 2020.
  3. Copies of the Selection Panel’s report will be available on the QCA website shortly. Further information can also be obtained from Russell Wallman, Chief Executive of QCA, on 0207 831 0020.

 

2019 Competition Opening – Press Release

PRESS RELEASE 2019 QUEEN’S COUNSEL COMPETITION LAUNCHED

The 2019 QC competition opens for applications today. There is a change in the information required from applicants this year: applicants are expected to name a potential judicial and practitioner assessor from each of their 12 listed cases, instead of listing only eight judges and six practitioners.

QCs are appointed by Her Majesty The Queen on the advice of the Lord Chancellor, The Rt Hon David Gauke MP, following recommendations by the independent Queen’s Counsel Selection Panel.

Sir Alex Allan continues as Chair in 2019. Sir Alex was formerly a senior Civil Servant in a number of Government Departments, as well as being High Commissioner to Australia. Sir Alex has been a member of the Selection Panel since 2013.

Sir Christopher Clarke, Dr Douglas Board, and Celia Hughes have joined the Selection Panel as new members.

Notes for Editors
1. The members of the independent Queen’s Counsel Selection Panel for the 2019 competition are:
Sir Alex Allan (Chair)
Douglas Board
Sir Christopher Clarke
Wanda Goldwag
Celia Hughes
Rachel Langdale QC
Edward Nally
Penelope Reed QC
Dr Maggie Semple OBE
Monisha Shah

The Selection Panel is supported by its own Secretariat, headed by Chief Executive Russell Wallman.

3. The QC appointment scheme was developed by the Bar Council and the Law Society, with the support of the (then) Department for Constitutional Affairs, and  approved by the then Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State (Lord Falconer) in November 2004. Applications were first invited in 2005 and the first round of appointments under the new arrangements was announced in 2006. The selection process is financed entirely through applicants’ fees. A copy of the agreed Process and further information is available from the Queen’s Counsel Appointments website:
www.qcappointments.org

4. Each applicant will be considered against five competencies:
• Understanding and using the law
• Written and oral advocacy
• Working with others
• Diversity
• Integrity

5. In past years, around 40-45% of applicants have been successful, although there is no quota. All unsuccessful applicants receive written personal feedback on their application. The Panel expects to make its recommendations to the Lord Chancellor in late October 2020. It is hoped that results of the competition will be announced in December 2020.

6. Applicants pay a fee of £1,800 plus VAT on application, and a further £3,000 plus VAT if appointed.

7. Copies of the Selection Panel’s report on the previous competition are available on the QCA website. Further information can also be obtained from Russell Wallman, Chief Executive of QCA, on 0207 831 0020.