English Lawyers between Market and State: The Politics of Professionalism

by Richard L. Abel

Overview

The English legal profession, uncharacteristically, was often in the headlines during the 1990s. Reforms initiated by a Conservative Lord Chancellor and extended by his Labour successor transformed traditions, over the vigorous objections of the judiciary, Bar, and Law Society. Rapid market developments enriched some barristers and solicitors while squeezing others. The two professional associations confronted crises in self-regulation and governance. This book mines that tumultuous period for insights into the prospects of professionalism in the 21st century.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780198260332
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	10/09/2003
Series:	Oxford Socio-Legal Studies
Pages:	752
Product dimensions:	6.60(w) x 9.30(h) x 2.00(d)

About the Author

Richard Abel is Connell Professor of Law, UCLA. He is a member of the Bars of New York and Connecticut.

Table of Contents

1. The Legal Profession in English Politics2. An Unlikely Revolutionary3. Halting the Tide4. Reflecting Society? 5. Defending the Temple6. Controlling Competition7. Conservatives Cut Legal Aid Costs8. Labour Ends Legal Aid As We Know It9. Serving Two Masters: The Dilemma of Self-Regulation10. Governing a Fractious Profession11. The Future of Legal Professionalism

Editorial Reviews

"Richard Abel's most recent project has turned history like a craftsman to provide us with a punctilious chronicle of a transformative period in English legal politics. Those who take up this book will be rewarded with what might be the best account of how one country's legal profession-understood as a collectivity but the creature of individual and sub-group action-attempts to maintain its traditional position of strength in the face of external assaults and internal discord."—The Law and Politics Book Review

From the Publisher