White & Case duo among four solicitors made up in reduced silk round

Four sets boast the highest number of successful QC applications

White & Case arbitration partners Dipen Sabharwal and Aloke Ray made up half of the solicitor-advocates taking silk in this year’s Queen’s Counsel (QC) appointments, with 108 making the cut overall.

Completing the all-male group of solicitor-advocates taking silk were Allen & Overy partner Mark Levy and Stephen Fietta, founder of disputes boutique Fietta.

Sabharwal is head of White & Case’s EMEA international arbitration practice and was promoted to partner in 2012. Ray joined the firm in 1999 and was promoted in 2006.

Sabharwal described taking silk as ‘the ultimate badge of recognition’. Ray, meanwhile, told Legal Business: ‘The pleasure and privilege comes from the fact it is associated with the high-quality standard of work we do as a firm. Not all clients will react the same, but I can’t see how the extra recognition would hurt.’

The four solicitors appointed in this round marked the third consecutive year of decline: five solicitors took silk in 2017 and six the year before. Solicitors were far more successful on average this year, however, with four out of five succeeding in their applications. Last year, only half of the ten applicants were successful.

There were also significantly fewer overall appointments, falling 9% to 108 from 119. There was an even greater fall in applicants: to 240 from 272.

Four barristers’ chambers shared the distinction of having the most tenants take silk: Brick Court Chambers, 39 Essex Chambers, Red Lion Chambers and Littleton Chambers each had four barristers appointed.

It continues a strong run for criminal law set Red Lion, which topped the list outright last year with six barristers taking silk. For elite commercial set Brick Court, it is a return to form after only one tethe nant was made up last year.

Of the remainder of the Bar’s supposed ‘Magic Circle’ sets, Fountain Court Chambers saw one member appointed, Nicholas Medcroft, compared to three in the previous round. It was a slightly quieter year for Blackstone Chambers too, with two members (Tom Hickman and Diya Sen Gupta) taking silk, down on the previous year’s three successful applicants.

A more drastic drop was seen at Essex Court Chambers, with the set producing no successful applicants. In the 2017 appointments, Essex Court had four barristers taking silk. Lastly, One Essex Court had just Anna Boase appointed, compared to two successful applicants in the previous round.

Unsurprisingly, male appointees far outweighed successful female applicants by 78 to 30 – at 72%, roughly the same percentage as last year. However, women enjoyed a superior success rate again this year, with 55% of female applicants making the cut (64% last year) compared to 42% for men. Ethnic minority representation remained sluggish, with 13 out of 30 non-white applicants taking silk compared to 18 out of 33 last year.

Sir Alex Allan, chair of the Queen’s Counsel Selection Panel, said: ‘We remain concerned that the number of female applicants remains comparatively low, but I am pleased that of those women who did apply, well over 50% were successful. I was also pleased to note that the number of BAME applicants appointed was in proportion to their representation among applicants and amongst the relevant cohort of the profession.’

Sabharwal added: ‘The Queen’s Counsel Appointments and the Bar Council have been making strenuous efforts in improving diversity in recent years. Why the needle isn’t moving in the right direction is a complex story, but perhaps it’s a case of laying the groundwork now for a better result in a few years’ time.’

The silk swearing-in ceremony will be held on 11 March 2019.

tom.baker@legalease.co.uk