Timid barristers

SIR – The Bar Standards Board’s suggestion that student barristers may find the tradition of “dining in” at the Inns of Court “intimidating” (report, October 13) is mystifying.

A barrister’s whole career is dedicated to standing up in open court and addressing judges, jurors, lawyers, witnesses and the public. If a student feels that having dinner with likeminded future colleagues in a friendly environment is intimidating, then he or she is not on the right career path. M G Curl Knaresborough, North Yorkshire