Bar students lose legal challenge

Four graduates denied places on a one-year course to train as barristers yesterday lost their legal battle over new selection criteria adopted by the Bar law school. Robin Halstead, 43, Desmond Vine, 36, Nicholas Peacock, 23, and Charles Eddis, 31, were denied a place because of indifferent A-level results.

They argued the system failed to give due weight to their subsequent outstanding degree results. The High Court ruled that the Council of Legal Education had not acted unfairly or irrationally and the problem arose because the course was oversubscribed, with 2,300 students applying for 800 places.