The relaunched QC body is unlikely to finalise its new appointment round this year in a development that will raise questions about the future of the silks system.

The body responsible for assessing and handing out the rank said this week that the second round of QC awards was unlikely to be announced before January – 18 months after the first batch of silks were unveiled under the revamped kitemark.

The QC selection panel, which was set up in 2005 as an independent body to replace the Government in handing out the award, said delays to the current round were partly due to changes to the entry criteria to streamline the application process.

QC appointment secretariat David Watts said: "The hope was that it could be done within 12 months but in practice it became clear this was not achievable."

It has also become uncertain whether the award will return to its traditional annual cycle, as Watts told Legal Week it is possible that the panel will make further changes to the system. Areas likely to be looked at by the nine-member body, which is chaired by Sir Duncan Nichol, are costs and the reference process.

Signs that the relaunched silk award is struggling to maintain its predecessor's place as an established part of the legal calendar have raised questions over the model's future. The panel had already decided to raise application costs substantially after a shortfall in applications in its first year of operation.

Herbert Smith advocacy head Murray Rosen QC (pictured) said: "We have had years of disruption. The system clearly had to be changed but after five years or so there are a lot of individuals whose careers have been put on hold to some extent. The right balance needs to be struck."

Watts responded: "Both panel and applicants will want a new QC process as soon as possible, but I am sure they will understand that everyone is working to make the process as good as it can be."

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