The office of solicitor general: 500 years on

So, how many solicitors general have you met, and do you know what they do?

Looking at a list, I reckon I've met about a dozen over 40 years, but I'm sure many legal commentators can do much better than that. I asked the current solicitor general, Robert Buckland QC, MP for Swindon South, for an interview about his work and found out very quickly how little is really known of the role of the two law officers, particularly that of the solicitor general, who is the deputy to the attorney general (currently Jeremy Wright QC), whom we all think we know much more about.

Most of us, as lawyers, will go back to two books from our days as law students for a clue on the role: Brazier's Ministers of the Crown (1997) and, even earlier, Edwards's The Law Officers of the Crown (1964). The reality of the appointments is now rather different, however, as they act as the government's family lawyers. Brazier describes the ancient offices as 'ministerial in character', setting the date of the office of solicitor general from 1515, on the authority of no less a legal luminary than Sir William Anson in his definitive work, The Law and Custom of the Constitution (1907).

Today, our two law officers are active politicians, albeit ones charged with special ministerial duties, and, fascinatingly, are able to give legal advice to such a rare client. Buckland's office can be traced back to what is seen as its first recognised holder, Sir John Port, around 1514-1515. Port was involved later in the trials of Sir Thomas More and Anne Boleyn, indicating the post was mostly developed during the Tudor period.

Delicate duties

What immediately becomes noticeable is the approach law officers are required to adopt and have developed over the centuries. They have performed some delicate duties which have been devolved upon them: 'tricky' would appear to be the word. This has led to the need to achieve a balance between the political ticket they have been elected on in the House of Commons and the legal responsibility to give the government of the day bad news when the occasion demands it, which can be quite frequent without going into specific cases.

This is where Robert Buckland comes in.
He has a refreshing approach to his work, which is why David Cameron appointed him on a
dry St Swithin's Day in 2014. Born in Llanelli, Buckland was educated at Durham and called
to the Bar at Inner Temple at the same time as me, in 1991. His early years in practice were predominantly on the Wales and Chester circuit with work at chambers in Swansea specialising in criminal matters.

Human rights and austere Britain

The first enquiry was inevitably about human rights and where we are today. Buckland disclosed that he did go on strike with colleagues over legal aid cuts some years ago, and is well aware of the specific problems at the criminal Bar, which any member of counsel is. Both he and the attorney are very well aware of what we face in austerity Britain, though they do not have the power to do much about the cuts even if they wanted to.

Consequently, dealing effectively with the human rights issue really is an exercise in the art
of the possible. In a speech on Human Rights Day last year, Buckland said: 'My practice in South Wales was predominantly criminal legal aid, so the liberty of the individual lay at the heart of work. I have been a human rights lawyer, like thousands of fellow barristers and solicitors, for nearly 25 years. It's just that I didn't think to call myself one.'

This quote surely sums up virtually all lawyers' feelings towards human rights, and it was apparent that human rights reform will run for many months before we see new proposals from the incoming government.

The solicitor provides support for the attorney in a number of particular areas: superintendence of the Treasury Solicitor's Department (now
called the Government Legal Department),
the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), the Service Prosecuting Authority, HM Crown Prosecuting Service Inspectorate and the Serious Fraud Office.
He also offers support on civil litigation and advice on civil law matters and the public interest function. As an aside, in typical British style, the post of solicitor general is held by none other than a barrister, and Buckland does appear in court regularly.

The continuing development of legal apprenticeship schemes is an important policy
for the law officers, and continues after the Addleshaw Goddard initiative on offering higher apprenticeships. Buckland is a great communicator and has an infective enthusiasm for the legal trailblazer apprenticeship scheme, which is the start of a new entry route into the profession.

Public legal education

With the end to a 'legal aid for all' culture, which will not return in the foreseeable future, where do we go with the vexed question of litigants in person? The solicitor confirmed his strong support for the continuing development of the public legal education initiative (PLE), which has an important role to play in modern legal proceedings if access to justice is to be made available to all. Tasked with maintaining the 800-year old, Runnymede-born rule of law, PLE is being rolled out in welfare law and is another key priority for the experienced law officers during this parliament.

Political processes

The public are clearly well served by our current law officers, who, if nothing else, act as a break on some of the more outrageous policies of the day, although they remain to some extent outsiders from the
party political process because of their functions.
It's astonishing that criticisms still surface from the usual suspects about new appointees emerging
as complete unknowns to many on appointment,
but that's the political process in practice - after
all, who had heard of Thatcher or Major as they emerged from the ministerial shadows to become party leaders?

The law is in two safe pair of hands in the attorney and the solicitor generals, who are starting their
new terms of office after their respective political pupillages under the coalition government.
Neither are jobs I would wish for, but the work is fascinating and they do it well, and I'm sure there will be many more hard cases to handle. Happy 500th anniversary, solicitor general. SJ

Philip Taylor MBE is a barrister practising from Richmond Green Chambers