King's Counsel

In most Canadian jurisdictions, the designation is regulated by formal statute, such as, for example, "King's Counsel Act" of British Columbia, that requires the candidates to have a minimum five years of experience, and to have made an outstanding contribution to the practice of law with high professional standards and good character and repute.

In 1898, Lord Watson noted in his opinion in Attorney General of the Dominion of Canada v. Attorney General for the Province of Ontario, writing on behalf of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, that: The exact position occupied by a Queen's Counsel duly appointed is a subject which might admit of a good deal of discussion.

King's Counsel were originally considered an office of profit and hence, under the Act of Settlement 1701, incompatible with membership of the House of Commons.

[7][17] These restrictions had a number of consequences: they made the taking of silk something of a professional risk, because the appointment abolished some of the staple work of the junior barrister; they made the use of leading counsel more expensive, and therefore ensured that they were retained only in more important cases; and they protected the work of the junior bar, which could not be excluded by the retention of leading counsel.

Supporters included those who considered it as an independent indication of excellence to those (especially foreign commercial litigants) who did not have much else to go on,[27][28] and those who contended that it was a means whereby the most able barristers from ethnic minorities could advance and overcome prejudice as well as better represent members of an increasingly diverse society.

[citation needed] In November 2004, after much public debate in favour of and against retaining the title,[30] the government announced that appointments of Queen's Counsel in England would be resumed but that future appointees would be chosen not by the government but by a nine-member panel, the Queen's Counsel Selection Panel,[31] chaired by a lay person, to include two barristers, two solicitors, one retired judge, and three non-lawyers.

In 1998 two Northern Ireland barristers (Seamus Treacy and Barry Macdonald) opposed the requirement of swearing an oath of allegiance to the Crown.

The Bar Council, the body which represents barristers' interests, had agreed, in the Elliott Report, that the royal oath should be dropped and replaced by a more neutral statement.

In 1897, a petition by the Faculty of Advocates for the establishment of a Scottish roll of Queen's Counsel was approved, and the names of the first appointees were published in the Edinburgh Gazette on September 3, 1897.

[41][42] Until the 1990s there was a practice that sitting members of the UK Parliament (MPs) who were barristers were appointed QC, if they wished, on reaching a certain level of seniority of around fifteen years at the bar.

Upon the death of Queen Elizabeth II and the succession of Charles III, the General Council of the Bar wrote that all QC titles changed to KC "with immediate effect".

In New South Wales, for example, the process involves a committee made up of senior members of the State's bar, and usually a non-practising former barrister such as a retired judge.

Candidates are increasingly screened by committees composed of representatives of the bench and the bar, who give advice to the relevant Attorney General on appointments.

Candidates must be acknowledged by their peers as leading counsel, have demonstrated exceptional qualities of leadership in the profession, or have done outstanding work in legal scholarship.

[88] Recipients must have 15 years of active practice of the law in New Brunswick, with extensive experience before the courts, or demonstrate exceptional service to the profession.

[96] According to the criteria published by the Nova Scotia Barristers' Society on the nomination form, candidates must demonstrate professional integrity, good character and outstanding contributions to the practice of law through recognition by other members of the profession as an exceptional barrister or solicitor, exceptional contributions through legal scholarship, teaching or continuing legal education, demonstration of exceptional qualities of leadership in the profession, and engaging in activities of a public or charitable nature in such a way as to raise the esteem in which the legal profession is held by the public.

[97] The Nova Scotia Barristers' Society also indicates that the committee is asked to consider regional, gender and minority representations among the persons recommended for appointment.

[103] On 30 June 2023, the Attorney General for Ontario reinstituted the practice of appointing King's Counsel, in honour of the coronation of Charles III.

In November 2023, the Advocates' Society wrote to the Attorney General to say that the main criterion for a KC appointment should be professional excellence rather than political affiliation and patronage, stating "If the designation is permitted to fall into such disrepute again, public confidence in the legal profession will be undermined".

[112] The lawyer must meet the following three criteria: (1) must be learned in the law; (2) must have consistently exhibited a high standard of professional integrity; and (3) must be of very good character.

Over thirty years later, the Barreau of Quebec instituted a professional award, the distinction of Lawyer Emeritus / Avocat émérite, with the postnominal "Ad.

To be eligible for appointment, a lawyer must reside in Saskatchewan and must have been called to the bar of any province or territory of Canada or the United Kingdom, for a period of at least 10 years.

In June 2009, Attorney-General Hon Christopher Finlayson announced that the title of Queen's Counsel would be reinstated,[119] and a bill to implement the restoration was introduced into Parliament in March 2010.

Also, this title was given to lawyers with an outstanding career in the Law Office of the Colonial Government, such as Ioannis Clerides, Neoptolemos Paschalis and George Chryssafinis.

A practising barrister could be appointed as Queen's Counsel in recognition of his or her professional eminence by Crown Patent on the advice of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Hong Kong.

The change is in name only; the role is in all practical respects unchanged even down to the full bottomed wig, gloves, robe and shoes worn annually at the commencement of the Judicial Year.

As late as the 1960s, R. G. L. Leonard (made KC before 1922) was described in the official Irish law reports as "Queen's Counsel", reflecting the accession of Elizabeth II in 1952.

In 2013, the Law Association of Zambia objected to the process used when President Michael Sata appointed Mumba Kapumpa, John Sangwa and Robert Simeza as SCs.

A female junior barrister wears similar garb, except that the wing-collar with bands may be replaced with a court bib (or collarette).

When wearing the full bottomed wig, King's Counsel have a black rosette hanging from the back of the neck, which was originally intended to catch oil and powder that might otherwise mark the silk gown.