Members will be aware of Practice Note 39PG.5, issued on 8 November 2023 by the Lady Chief Justice, Master of the Rolls and the Heads of Divisions, which notes that allowing junior counsel to participate in oral argument supports their continuing development as advocates and directs judges to enquire, in all suitable cases involving leading and junior counsel, whether a speaking part for junior counsel has been considered. Further to that guidance, specific Practice Guidance on Junior Advocacy has now been issued for the Commercial Court and London Circuit Commercial Court by the Judges in Charge – The Honourable Mr Justice Henshaw and His Honour Judge Pelling KC.
The COMBAR Executive and Chair of the COMBAR Junior Advocacy Committee would like to commend the guidance to you. The detailed Practice Guidance may be found here and members are encouraged to familiarise themselves with this and, where appropriate, share the details with their (professional and lay) clients.
If any COMBAR member wishes to provide feedback in relation to this guidance or initiatives to encourage junior advocacy more generally, they are welcome to do so by emailing admin@combar.com, marked for the attention of the Chair of the Junior Advocacy Committee.