OPINION WRITING
LAW TUTORS
DO YOU NEED A OPINION WRITING LAW TUTOR?
THE ROLE OF A BARRISTER
Barristers are highly educated and specialised legal professionals. They appear before courts and tribunals on behalf of individuals and organisations, either through written submissions or personal appearances. Barristers must be highly intelligent and possess a command of both the written and spoken English languages. They must be able to think clearly and communicate effectively under duress, as well as possess stamina and emotional fortitude. They must sift through and analyse massive amounts of data, apply the law to the facts, and present persuasive legal arguments in court, among other things.
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THE NEW BAR COURSE
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By 2020, the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC) will have entirely replaced the Bar Courses as the vocational component of bar training. While course providers may use a number of words to describe their programmes, it is important to remember that all courses lead to the same goal: completion of the vocational portion of bar training. In addition, bar courses are referred to as:
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Bar/Barrister Training Course (BTC)
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Bar Practice Course (BPC)
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Bar Vocational Course (BVC)
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Bar Vocational Studies (BVS).
Authorised Education and Training Organizations (AETOs) are institutions that have been approved by the BSB to conduct Bar exams. The amended qualification standards, according to the Bar Standards Board (BSB), make legal training more flexible, accessible, and cheap than ever before. Furthermore, the amendments expand the pool of prospective talent for the Bar by allowing students to pick from a variety of paths to qualifying.
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WHAT IS OPINION WRITING?
A well written and detailed legal opinion is something that demonstrates why a barrister is a professional that knows the law. After or alongside Advocacy skills, writing a legal opinion to a client is one of the most important and specialist things a barrister can professionally provide. It summarizes the case, and gives a highly detailed assessment of the law on the area from multiple angles, discussing all the different legal causes of action under statute and case law the lay client has, what arguments can be used, any rebuttal to all potential counterarguments, and a reasoned professional opinion on the strength of each cause and the merits of the case. It will further need to provide advice to another legal professional (solicitor) as to the Civil Procedure Rule and next steps in litigation.
HOW A LAW TUTOR CAN HELP?
Having very limited time in the assessment to write this, as well as not having much time to learn the skill on such an intensive (crash) course, being able to produce a barrister quality opinion is a high hurdle for many if not most Bar students. Opinion writing law tutors with experience can help guide you to this standard. They can show you first hand how to attack a case legally and factually from each angle, and structure this into a detailed barrister’s opinion. Contact me if you need tutoring for the Bar.