The Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine is set to launch an inquiry into whether in-house barristers and solicitors should be allowed to appear in the higher courts on behalf of their company’s clients.

In a letter to Susan Ward, the chair of the Bar Association for Commerce, Finance and Industry (Bacfi), Lord Irvine says he is “minded” to refer the issue to the new Legal Services Consultative Panel, which will be established once the current Access to Justice Bill has passed into law.