The cost of applying to become Queen's Counsel (QC) has risen steeply after the company that administers the appointments scheme ran up a £50,000 deficit, it has emerged. The independent selection panel announced this week that applicants for the 2007 competition will have to stump up £2,500 to apply for the quality mark - an increase of £700 on last year. Successful candidates will also have to pay a further £3,000 on appointment, up by a third on £2,250 the previous year.


Several changes have been made to the selection process, including a reduction in the number of competencies that applicants will have to demonstrate, and the removal of the initial filter stage.



The process was intended to be self-funding. David Watts, head of QC Appointments (QCA), said the shortfall was a result of it only receiving 443 applications last year - it had budgeted for 500. There were also unforeseen costs and the process took longer than expected.



Mr Watts denied that the cost had deterred candidates and did not anticipate that this year's increase would do so either. 'People seeking appointment to QC should be in a position to afford this,' he said.



In a joint statement, Law Society chief executive Desmond Hudson and Bar Council chairman Stephen Hockman QC expressed disappointment at the need for an increased fee but added that 'it is essential that the costs are met by applicants rather than being subsidised by the profession'. The Society and the council will provide a small loan to QCA for short-term cash-flow support. 'There is no evidence at present of well-qualified candidates being deterred by the level of the fee', they said.



But barrister Peter Herbert, chairman of the Society of Black Lawyers, said the fee would make it harder for ethnic minority lawyers and women to apply because they often had a lower earning capacity than their white or male counterparts.



Applications must be submitted by 2pm on 15 January 2007.



By Catherine Baksi



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