The traditional Chancery versus commercial divide is narrower than ever – meaning research into each chambers is essential to understand their specialisms, says Dominic Carman

Young barristers used to start out by going to a court they couldn't find, for a case that didn't matter, for a fee they never got – or so distinguished grandees at the Bar might tell you. But in modern commercial disputes, courts are usually easy to find, cases frequently matter a great deal and solicitors generally pay on time. Perhaps more pressing issues for today's law student-turned-aspirant barrister with a head for figures are a) understanding the diminishing difference between Chancery and commercial work and b) deciding whether or not to specialise.

Bleak House is probably the closest many students have got to the realities of Chancery practice. But the Dickensian world of Jarndyce & Jarndyce – 'so complicated that no man alive knows what it means' – has long since been replaced by a Chancery Division that incorporates finance, property and business law, often with an international dimension, involving worldwide asset tracing, cross-border insolvency, estates and offshore trusts. The Division also includes three specialist courts: the Companies Court; the Patents Court; and the Bankruptcy Court. The term 'Chancery' therefore covers a wide umbrella of specialist practice areas.

A generation ago, the Chancery versus commercial divide was clear. Characterised as brilliant but dull, Chancery lawyers did little advocacy, being more focused on dry analytical work, whereas commercial barristers were seen as more flamboyant advocates, if not as smart. Although such distinctions are largely nonsense, there was a grain of truth. But during the past decade Chancery sets have increasingly straddled both areas and now frequently describe themselves as commercial-Chancery – a practice area defined in its own right by the legal directories. While the Chancery Bar Association lists nearly 100 chambers with individual members in England and Wales, only about a third of that number do significant volumes of Chancery work.

The increasing overlap of Chancery and commercial practice has various causes: chambers mergers (notably Serle Court, Maitland and Radcliffe Chambers), strategic diversification and rapid changes in how individual practitioners position themselves. The increasingly fluid definition is demonstrated by leading pensions set, Wilberforce Chambers, which boasts an impressive 18 silks out of 45 members of chambers and a 20% annual increase in 2006-07 turnover. In recent years, barristers have joined Wilberforce from leading commercial, property and planning sets. They even have Anna Carboni, a refugee partner from the intellectual property (IP) department of top City law firm Linklaters.

Wilberforce senior clerk Declan Redmond commented: 'If I could, I would drop the Chancery label tomorrow. It is outdated. You shouldn't talk about commercial or Chancery law any more – it is business law. That is what we do. With the new Business Court being built, commercial and Chancery will come together under one roof."

The Business Court, scheduled to open in 2010 in Fetter Lane, will include work from the Chancery Division, the Commercial Court, the Technology Court and the Construction Court. It will also cover patent, trademark and international contract disputes.

The contemporary lawyer's advice on whether to litigate in the commercial or Chancery Division is more often dictated by practical or tactical considerations rather than prescribed limits of legal jurisdiction. Lots of cases can be started either in the Commercial Court or in the Chancery Division. The choice may depend on the sort of judge that is wanted – technical or commercial – but more often it is a question of which division counsel and solicitors feel more comfortable with and in which court a case can be listed most quickly. As summarised by one leading silk: 'If you take out shipping and insurance, the overlap between Chancery and commercial is almost total."

It is no surprise therefore that following the recent decline in commercial litigation, some of the bigger commercial sets, most notably One Essex Court and Fountain Court, have built up a Chancery practice, particularly in international trusts and fraud.

Jonathan Sumption QC, once labelled the 'cleverest man at the Bar' and head of top-flight commercial set Brick Court, explains that the Chancery Division is "stuffed full of outstanding, highly-intelligent judges trying serious international disputes of great importance. For some years, the Division has had a better general level of excellence than the Commercial Court". Most prominent among these is Sir Michael Briggs, formerly of Serle Court, who became a judge last July. Prior to his appointment, he was widely regarded as the best Chancery silk. Since appointment he is now considered by some to be the most outstanding judge on the current Chancery bench.

Inevitably, such judges are appointed from the leading Chancery sets. No less than five of the 17 High Court judges in the Chancery Division practised at Maitland Chambers, the largest Chancery set, with more than 70 barristers.

Trusts, charity work and some of the more complex property matters are practice areas which they regard as exclusively Chancery. Maitland's senior clerk, Lee Cutler, advises his pupils and baby barristers to: "Keep an open mind, try your hand at everything available and find your own niche, which takes about five to six years. By that time you should have a name in the market. However, switching from Chancery to other types of commercial work can be difficult – and foolish".

This is a point echoed by Hugh Norbury, a barrister at Serle Court, who comments: "Changing direction to commercial work, or vice versa, is not a choice you can easily make five years into practice, but is a choice for some at the end of pupillage. It is much easier if you are in a set that does both."

Redmond adds: "Specialising too early within any set is dangerous. In the current climate, I wouldn't advise anyone to specialise exclusively in Chancery or commercial work if they can avoid it."

Paul Cooklin, senior practice manager at insolvency powerhouse, 3-4 South Square, believes there is an advantage in specialising early because it allows young barristers to get themselves noticed and progress more quickly.

This year Maitland took on two pupils, while next year there will be three vacancies with applicant numbers expected to run to several hundred. It is a similar story at other premier Chancery sets: Serle Court, Wilberforce Chambers, 4 Stone Buildings, Erskine Chambers and 3-4 South Square. A first-class degree (or a very good 2:1) is merely a starting point to have a hope of getting in. You need to offer much more than academic achievement. Doing as much as possible to find out about individual sets may help. 'Tell me about the research you have undertaken on the work done by this chambers' is a favoured filter question of one Chancery pupillage committee. Message: do your homework.

By common consensus, successful applicants should also demonstrate: superior intellectual ability; outstanding communication; strong judgement; incisive analysis; lateral thinking; plus charm, common sense and a likeable personality. To determine their suitability prospective pupils are routinely put through the hoops with several days of difficult interviews, challenging practical tests and presentation of verbal arguments.

"We need to be tough to find the very best people," says the head of one prominent Chancery set. Mini- pupillages are seen as a very valuable way to build experience, adding value to your CV and helping you decide if Chancery is really for you.

From the various sub-sections of Chancery work – apart from some areas of tax law – IP is arguably the most discrete. Many IP barristers are scientifically, as well as legally, qualified, with the lion's share of patent, copyright and trademark work done by three leading specialist sets: Three New Square, 8 New Square and 11 South Square. Between them they have 17 silks and 57 barristers.

Ian Bowie, senior clerk at Three New Square says: "We have three Chancery Division judges sitting in the Patent Court and all my chaps are members of the Chancery Bar Association. Apart from the patent stuff, the rest of our work is general Chancery. Once you specialise in IP chambers, the reality is that you don't move on to do other commercial work."

And if you are lucky enough to get a pupillage in a Chancery set, what next? "Work incredibly hard as soon as possible," advises one Chancery barrister. "Too many swan in and think they're home and dry. The six months of pupillage fly by. Concentrate on impressing people as soon as you get in."

Redmond adds one practical suggestion: "If you are applying for pupillage, take a look at the clerks' room – see if they're up to scratch."

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