The
call to the bar is a legal
term of art in most
common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party, and are then said to have been
"called to the bar" or to have received a
"call to the bar". "The bar" is now used as
collective noun for
barristers, but literally referred to the wooden barrier in old courtrooms, which separated the often crowded public area at the rear from the space near the judges reserved for those having business with the Court. Barristers would sit or stand immediately behind it, facing the judge, and could use it as a table for their
briefs.