Being paid to move a call
I have been told and thanked on enough occasions to finally accept that I am good at moving a pupil’s call. I don’t think I have any particular talent at this. The two things that distinguish me from the run-out-of-the-mill mover are firstly, my desire to give as good a speech as I can given what I have. Secondly, I craft my own speeches. Because, if you want something done just right, you best do it yourself. My goals and therefore my approach are different from that of others. The differences between mediocre and good calls are that marginal. You would be pleasantly surprised how far giving just a little bit more drives us past our comfort zone, past the realms of mundane, routine and predictable experiences into the realms of originality and creativity. Several months ago, one of my young colleagues mentioned that I should consider charging a fee for moving a pupil’s call. Given how much effort I put into my call speeches and how good they are, it is not unreasonable to command a fee for it. He envisaged a sweet side income stream from such a service. No one could begrudge me for it. My speech and its delivery are sufficient proof that paying me to move their call was money well spent. In short, since I am already doing it for free, why not make money from it? I thanked him for his flattering entrepreneurial suggestion but told him I had no plans to demand a fee for it. After all, who would pay for a call speech? The Universe, apparently, heard me ask this question in my head because recently I have received a messages from pupils inquiring whether I moved calls as a service and if so, how much. Finally, the opportunity to earn money for this voluntary and free service had arrived! Finally, I was going to be financially reimbursed for my efforts! Finally, my time in the monetary sun had arrived! It was time for the Elite Bespoke Call Speech Service (TM) division to be set up at the firm. Instead of feeling all that, the truth is, I was filled with overwhelming sadness and a sense of tragedy at reading those requests. If tears were available, I would have spilt them, but I have so few left these days. I know what you are thinking. What? Someone asked you for your fee rate to move a call and you want to cry about it? Man up and send that fee quote! Let me explain why. It will give you some insight into why I think I am considered to have the values, outlook and attitude of an anachronism. I need to start with how I appreciate the call to the bar. Firstly, I am traditional about it. As I understand the tradition of the bar, it was a privilege to be invited to move a pupil’s call. The mover is akin to a midwife at the birth of a lawyer. We are important to the pupil’s call, but our importance is only for this one occasion. To accept an invitation to move a pupil’s call is to accept that privilege of midwifery. Another tradition of the bar is that masters find movers for their pupils. This was the practice because it is far easier for a senior lawyer to find, ask and secure a fellow senior lawyer’s participation as compared to a pupil. It is not the business of the pupils to find their movers. It is difficult because they are complete strangers to the mover. But that is now regrettably the practice. I frequently get pupils contacting me directly to move their calls. I don’t like this, but I understand. Their masters abandoned them. The fault for this lies exclusively with irresponsible lawyers that take pupils on and fail to do their duty by them. As a master, arranging a mover is one of the at-least-you-could-have-done things. If you are not willing to do this, do not take a pupil on. They are an apprentice, not an employee in the legal sense of the word. Second, I have respect for the occasion, the court, the pupil, their parents and the general audience. Even though to us lawyers and the judge it is just another call to the bar, we appreciate the importance and significance of the call not just for the pupils but for their family and friends, so we play our part. Playing our part means taking the occasion seriously. I demonstrate my seriousness by treating the call like I would an application hearing in court. That is why I must interview the pupil before I prepare my speech; to get at the facts. How can I give a call speech without having at least a passing acquaintance about this person? I acquaint myself with sections 10 – 28E of the Legal Profession Act 1976 (LPA76) and the cases relating to them; to get up on the law. How can I as a lawyer not read any law before going in for a ‘hearing’? Like any other case, I go over the material with a fine toothcomb. Find the character traits that make for a good character. Look up references. Find answers to turn into narratives. When I sit down to write the speech, the materials are close at hand. Keeping it relevant, rich and resonant. Like any other case, I try to make the best out of the materials given to me. Third, being a mover is one of those ‘traditions of the bar’ matters. When a fellow brother or sister-at-law asks me to move their pupil’s call, it is, as I said, a privilege, but it is the master that owes me the ‘favour’ of the call, not the pupil. And that favour is nothing sinister. It is more or less returning the favour of moving my pupil’s calls when I need them to. Although it is common for the pupil to give me a
