With an anecdote about a taxi queue Canterbury Crown Court reporter Sean Axtell explains why you shouldn't be so hard on 'fat cat' barristers.

I waited in line at a Canterbury taxi rank among the usual nightlife hullabaloo - crying, rowing and GBH.

Nearby, cabbies returned from jobs, filed to the back of a taxi queue and collected their next punter after reaching the front.

The clientele brimmed, maybe, with characters ranging from the morally dubious to baby bayonetting savages and cannibals.

But as long as this cacophony of knaves behaved, each who patiently awaited their turn could receive a lift home, just like everyone else.

While out meeting new people and conversation predictably moves to “what do you do for work”, I sometimes hear colourful opinions about the court system.

And no subject sparks more wrath than the idea of “fat cat defence barristers,” milking cash by getting criminals off the hook knowing they are guilty.

'And no subject sparks more wrath than the idea of “fat cat defence barristers,” milking cash by getting criminals off the hook knowing they are guilty...'

Yes, I’m sure there are some money greased charlatans out there but we’re not living in the films and this isn’t The Devil’s Advocate.

It’s the England and Wales justice system where barristers follow a code - the cab rank rule.

Adopting its name from the concept of taxi drivers waiting at ranks, barristers are obliged to take the next client and accept instructions regardless of their personal view on the case or the accused.

It means, in practice, if you or I appear before a court we will receive professional aid, no matter how vile the allegations levelled against us, or how unpopular we have become.

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