“I’ve never met a barrister that sounded like I do”: accents, barristers and Bourdieusian capital

Braber, N ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2611-1190, Ching, J ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9815-8804, Jarman, J ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5745-0860, Robson, J and Stevens, O, 2024. “I’ve never met a barrister that sounded like I do”: accents, barristers and Bourdieusian capital. International Journal of the Legal Profession. ISSN 0969-5958

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Abstract

Use of Received Pronunciation (RP) is a proxy for particular kinds of elite social capital, but is also a professional norm and part of the Bourdieusian habitus of the Bar. This article uses the first empirical study of accent discrimination in relation to barristers in England and Wales as a basis for a theoretical consideration of the interaction between barristers and others: clients, jurors, judges and other barristers. In particular it evaluates ways in which understandings about accent, as a facet of social or cultural capital, impact on individual career decisions. It concludes that while considerable progress has been made on diversity of the profession, targeted action by the regulator and the profession is required to address perceptions of discrimination (and manifestations of discrimination itself) in a profession to whose activities speech is foundational.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	International Journal of the Legal Profession
Creators:	Braber, N., Ching, J., Jarman, J., Robson, J. and Stevens, O.
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis (Routledge)
Date:	6 May 2024
ISSN:	0969-5958
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1080/09695958.2024.2347390 DOI 1887994 Other
Rights:	This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in International Journal of the Legal Profession on 6th May 2024 available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/09695958.2024.2347390
Divisions:	Schools > Nottingham Law School Schools > School of Arts and Humanities
Record created by:	Laura Ward
Date Added:	25 Apr 2024 08:27
Last Modified:	10 May 2024 13:19
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/51336

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