Back in September 2020, we forecast the increased emergence of genuine ‘Bar firms’ which emulate firms of solicitors but are owned and managed by barristers and non-authorised persons. Such Bar firms, we predicted, would seize upon the regulatory regime introduced by the Bar Standards Board (BSB), after it became a licensing authority in 2016, to be licensed and regulated as BSB entities, more commonly known as alternative business structures (ABSs).
According to the BSB’s Entities Register, last updated on 9th February 2024, there are only 13 BSB licensed bodies, most of which are either solely owned by a previously self-employed barrister, or jointly owned with their spouse. That being said, we acted for a client who was licensed by the BSB effective 12th June 2023, and our client still ...