Direct access family law barristers.
Specialist family law barristers instructed directly, without a solicitor, on a fixed fee basis. Divorce, financial remedy, FDR, child arrangements, Schedule 1 and nuptial agreements.
Instructing a direct access family barrister is the most cost effective way to get expert legal advice and senior advocacy in a private family law matter without funding a full solicitor file alongside. You instruct a barrister directly, the work is paid in advance on a fixed fee, and there is no hourly meter ticking against you in the background.
Clerk&Counsel is a clerking agency that places specialist family law barristers across England and Wales on a Public Access basis. We are not chambers barristers in our own right, we are independent clerks who route instructions to the right counsel for the case. Every barrister we place is regulated by the Bar Standards Board, holds a current practising certificate from the Bar Council, and carries professional indemnity insurance.
The Bar Standards Board Public Access scheme allows authorised barristers to accept instructions directly from the public and from businesses, rather than only through a solicitor. The scheme was introduced to widen access to specialist counsel and to give clients a direct route to expert legal advice at a transparent, fixed fee. For most private family work, divorce, financial remedy, child arrangements and Schedule 1 claims, the case is suitable for direct access and a Public Access barrister can take you from first conference through to final hearing.
Send a short brief, the parties, the proceedings, the next hearing and the key issues. A clerk will come back with shortlisted counsel and a fixed fee in writing.
Send a brief →A wide range of private family work, taken directly.
Divorce and dissolution
Sole and joint applications, jurisdiction disputes, recognition of overseas divorces and conditional and final orders.
Financial remedy and FDR
Form E preparation, first appointments, private and court FDRs, final hearings and consent order drafting.
Child arrangements
Live with and spend time orders, specific issue and prohibited steps applications, FHDRA and DRA representation.
Schedule 1 Children Act 1989
Capital and periodical payments for unmarried parents, often paired with TOLATA claims over the family home.
Nuptial agreements
Drafting and advising on pre nuptial, post nuptial and cohabitation agreements, and litigating their weight.
MPS, LSPO and interim relief
Maintenance pending suit, legal services payment orders and short notice interim financial provision applications.
Public law children work, care proceedings and adoption cases are not generally suitable for direct access and we will recommend a legal aid solicitor where the case calls for one. For everything else in the private family list, instructing a direct access barrister is usually the right call.
One specialist, one fixed fee.
In a traditional model a solicitor takes the file, manages it on a day to day basis and instructs counsel for advocacy and advice. You pay both. On a Public Access basis you instruct the barrister directly and pay one professional for a defined piece of work. For most private family matters that is faster and substantially cheaper.
A Public Access family barrister can advise in conference, draft your statement, negotiate with the other side or their solicitors, represent you at the FDR or final hearing, and prepare your consent order. What they cannot do, unless separately authorised to conduct litigation, is issue proceedings in your name or file documents at court for you. In practice this is rarely a problem, the court office accepts filings from litigants in person every day and the barrister tells you what to file and when.
Where the matter genuinely needs a solicitor for case management, heavy disclosure or safeguarding work, the clerks will say so up front rather than take an instruction the case is not suited to.
From brief to barrister in 24 to 72 hours.
Send a brief
A short description of the proceedings, the next hearing and the issues. Please contact the clerks by email or through the brief form.
Clerk shortlists counsel
We identify Public Access qualified specialist family law barristers with the right experience, availability and fee level.
Client care letter
A BSB compliant client care letter sets out the scope of work, the fixed fee and the timetable for your signature.
Work begins
Fees are paid in advance into the chambers client account and counsel begins work. You deal with the barrister directly throughout.
Common questions on Public Access family work.
What is a direct access family law barrister?
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A direct access family law barrister is a self employed advocate who has completed the Bar Standards Board Public Access course and is authorised to take instructions from members of the public without a solicitor in the middle. They handle divorce, financial remedy, child arrangements and a wide range of other areas of law on a fixed fee basis.
Can a Public Access barrister conduct litigation for me?
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Only if they have separately been authorised to conduct litigation by the Bar Standards Board. Most direct access barristers are not litigators, which means you remain the litigant in person on the court record. The barrister advises, drafts, negotiates and represents you at hearings, while you sign court documents and deal with the court office on a day to day basis.
How are fees agreed and paid?
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Every instruction starts with a written client care letter setting out the scope of work, the fixed fee and the timetable. Fees are paid in advance into the chambers client account before the work begins, in line with the Bar Council and Bar Standards Board handbook rules.
Is legal aid available through direct access?
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No. Legal aid family work has to be carried out through a legal aid contracted solicitor. If you may qualify for legal aid we will say so up front and point you toward a contracted firm rather than take the instruction on a Public Access basis.
How do I instruct a direct access family barrister through Clerk&Counsel?
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Please contact the clerks with a short description of your matter, the next hearing date if there is one, and the key documents. We will shortlist suitable counsel, confirm availability and indicative fees, and issue the client care letter for signature, usually within 24 to 72 hours.
Where to go next.
Family barristers
All our family law work, including solicitor instructed counsel for complex and high value matters.
Read more →Divorce barristers
Divorce and financial remedy specialists, FDR and final hearing advocacy.
Read more →Child arrangements barristers
Private children law, live with and spend time orders, specific issue and prohibited steps.
Read more →Direct access barristers
The full Public Access service across family, commercial, property and construction.
Read more →Direct access in London
Central Family Court, Royal Courts of Justice and London tribunals.
Read more →Direct access in Manchester
Manchester Civil Justice Centre and the Family Court at Manchester.
Read more →Direct access civil law
Public Access civil counsel for contract, debt, property and County Court work.
Read more →