The Bar Council is ramping up efforts to compete directly against solicitors as it attempts to encourage local authorities to hire barristers directly.

Bar Council chairman Nicholas Green QC has held talks with around 10 local authorities to discuss tender processes for large contract work, with Green wanting to encourage local authorities to look beyond law firms and discuss with chambers how they can better compete.

The Bar Council will be issuing guidelines by the end of the year to answer any questions local authorities may have on issues including how the Bar could conduct work and handle client money. Green said that chambers would be able to use ProcureCos – separate business units to be used to win contract work directly from companies and public bodies – to tender for the work as independent billing entities.

The Bar could be in the running to pick up work by early 2011, with one group of London authorities already planning to put out a joint tender for a large contract.

Green (pictured) said: "We have been in a number of discussions with local authorities and they want to use us but some don't yet understand how to get the best out of the Bar. The Bar is rapidly transforming itself and we are making great efforts to make it much more accessible."