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Glite Dictionary
to call to the bar

to call to the bar

1 8.9
To become a barrister and be officially allowed to work in court
  • idiom
  • /kɔːl tə ðə bɑː/
  • UK
translation icon : ser admitido en la abogacía
  • He celebrated his achievement with friends when he was called to the bar and became a practicing barrister.

Examples

  • After years of studying law, she was finally called to the bar and ready to represent clients in court.

  • I was called to the bar in London... and enrolled at the High Court of Chancery.

    Gandhi (1982)

  • Thirty-six years, four months since the day we were called to the bar, and you've never once talked about India.

    The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012)

  • He was called to the bar in 1685, though he never seems to have practiced law.

    Academic text (2018)

  • Following his graduation, he was called to the bar and was excited to start his new career in law.

Surface Forms

call to the bar infinitive
called to the bar past
called to the bar past participle
calling to the bar present participle
calls to the bar third person singular

Morphology

call + to + the + bar

If a learner knows 'call' (to summon) and 'bar' (the legal community), they can plausibly infer a meaning like 'being summoned/admitted to the legal profession', so there is a clear link to constituent meanings. However, this is an institutionalized legal phrase whose specific procedural sense ('to be admitted as a barrister') is conventional and culture-bound, so the exact meaning is not fully predictable without exposure.

Etymology

The verb call to the bar comes from old courtrooms where a low wooden bar kept the public away from the lawyers, and a student was formally 'called' forward to cross that bar and speak in court. So today call to the bar means 'to be allowed to practice law in court'.