Welcome
Welcome to the new QC Appointments website.
This is the revised QC Appointments website. We hope you find it user friendly.
This website contains information about the process for the award of Queen’s Counsel. It provides information to applicants, assessors and others during a competition. It also provides information about completed competitions run by the Queen’s Counsel Selection Panel. It is updated regularly.
2010-11 Competition is now open for applications
The Queen’s Counsel Selection Panel is inviting applications for appointment as Queen’s Counsel in 2011 from suitably qualified advocates.
The closing time and date for applications is 5pm on Thursday 22 April 2010.
The application fee has been reduced to £2,200 (+ VAT). The appointments fee for successful applicants remains £,3,500 (+ VAT).
Click on the links to the right to find the 2010-11 Application Form and the 2010-11 Guidance for Applicants.
The Application Form is a Microsoft Word document. If you have issues with compatibility when downloading the form to your computer, please let the Secretariat know. Previous years’ Application Forms will not be accepted.
The award of Queen’s Counsel is for excellence in advocacy in the higher courts. It is made to experienced advocates, both barristers and solicitors, who have higher rights of audience in the higher courts of England and Wales and have demonstrated the competencies in the Competency Framework to a standard of excellence. “Advocacy” includes both oral and written advocacy before the higher courts, arbitrations and tribunals and equivalent bodies. There is no specific requirement as to the amount of in court or written advocacy, so long as there is sufficient evidence for the Panel to reach a conclusion as to excellence in respect to each of the competencies.
Applications are invited from any suitably qualified advocates. Applications are particularly welcome from women, members of ethnic minorities, people with disabilities and other groups that are currently under-represented. We also welcome applications from solicitors and employed advocates.
It is expected the new appointments will be announced in the early part of 2011.
If you or the members of any group you represent require further information that cannot be found in our FAQs, the Secretariat will be very happy to answer queries. Please feel free to Contact Us via telephone or email.
SIR DAVID KEENE APPOINTED TO THE SELECTION PANEL
It was announced on Tuesday 9th March 2010 that Sir David Keene would take the place of Sir Paul Kennedy on the QC Selection Panel for the 2010-11 competition. Sir David’s biography can be found by following the appropriate links on the Selection Panel page.
> Click here to view the Press Release issued by the General Council of the Bar and the Law Society
INFORMATION FOR APPLICANTS
We offer guidance for applicants on completion of the application form as well as information about all aspects of the process.
>Please click here to find out more
Completed Competition 2009-10
Announcement
The names of the new Queen’s Counsel, who were successful in the 2009-10 competition, were publicly announced on Friday 26 February 2010. The MoJ’s announcement of the list of appointees can be found on the MoJ’s website.
> Click here for a link to the Ministry of Justice website
129 Queen’s Counsel were appointed from 275 applicants. The full list of appointments, the Selection Panel’s Report on the 2009-10 competition (including monitoring information and statistics), a document setting out how the Panel went about its task and the press release relating to the announcement are each available on this website on the Completed Competitions page.
The MoJ has told us that the Ceremony date for successful applicants will be Monday 22 March 2010.
If you would like to comment on the way the competition is currently run, or provide suggestions for the future, please use the feedback form on this site, link to the left, or write to the address under Contact Us.