Solicitors and barristers are the two main types of lawyer in New South Wales, and the difference shows up in who does what on your matter rather than in who is senior to whom.
What a barrister is
The NSW Bar Association describes barristers as independent, specialist advocates trained to appear in court, in commissions of inquiry and in dispute resolution. Its page also notes that barristers advise on particular legal problems and act as mediators and arbitrators, so appearing in court is not the whole of the work.
How a barrister is briefed
The same page says barristers receive most of their work as briefs from a solicitor, and that in some circumstances a barrister can accept work directly from someone who is not a lawyer, which is known as direct access. Briefing one is a decision taken in a particular matter. If you are told you need a barrister, it is reasonable to ask why in yours.
Who you deal with day to day
Where a solicitor is running the matter, that is usually who holds the file: the correspondence, the evidence, the deadlines and the contact with the other side. Knowing which of them does what is worth settling at the start rather than after something has to be filed.
Questions worth asking
Will a barrister be briefed in this matter, and at what stage? Who makes that decision, and what happens if I would rather it was not made yet? Who do I speak to afterwards, and who reads my emails? How is a barrister’s fee billed, and by whom? Is anything I am being told about court appearances specific to my matter, or a general rule?
Costs, in writing
The Bar Association’s page says an itemised bill should specify in detail what you will pay. Ask for costs in writing from whoever you engage, before the work starts, and ask again if the scope changes. The other checks worth making first — the practising certificate on the Law Society register, who will actually do the work, and where a complaint goes — are set out in what to check before you instruct a lawyer.
Practitioners are listed by practice area in the directory, and the guides explain how the directory is put together and what a listing is.
General information, not legal advice. It does not take your circumstances into account and does not create a lawyer and client relationship. Lawyers of Sydney is operated by Jameson Law; listings describe individual practitioners and firms, and a listing is not a recommendation.