The majority of barristers in London are based at Temple, Gray's Inn or Lincoln's Inn. Each has its own particular characteristics but all possess the scholarly air of an Oxbridge college. As you walk into the heart of Temple, where my chambers is located, from the Strand, the thing that strikes you is the sense of history: it is as though the tranquility of the surroundings has led time itself to settle in and take a break from its relentless march. But lest you should forget the gravity of the worldly woes from which solicitors and clients have come here to unburden themselves, the sun dial in Pump Court intones: "Shadows we are and like shadows we depart."

My own chambers are at the bottom of Middle Temple Lane, past Middle Temple Hall, where Shakespeare's Twelfth Night was first performed. The building was designed by Sir Charles Barry, the architect responsible for the Houses of Parliament, and we look out over Temple Gardens, which has a statue in the middle engraved with the unlikely observation that "Lawyers were children once".

As you enter, you are assailed with reminders of the legacy we have inherited: the names etched on the board, the shelves of old law books, the Punch cartoons of long-departed judges. But despite the daunting surroundings - and the corporate nature of many of the clients - the feel of many chambers is similar to the rooms of many academics: homely and slightly dishevelled. Barristers often spend their entire working lives in one set of chambers, and come to regard its members as an extension of their family. It comes through in the atmosphere.

Visitors are often struck by the contrast between the elite status of many barristers and the poor quality of their working environment. The architecture may be beautiful but in reality many chambers suffer from overcrowding and a lack of central heating and air conditioning. Some chambers even operate a system of "hot-desking", with barristers sharing communal desks.

The increasing modernisation of the profession has led some chambers to move out of the Inns of Court and into commercial office space. Some have even bought their own buildings. Such modernisation will inevitably affect the way some chambers are structured and run, but the system itself should endure. It would be a shame if it did not.

Chambers are basically a collection of self-employed barristers who have pooled expenses and resources. They share rent and the cost of paying clerks and administrators to manage their practices. Often their joint income runs into the millions of pounds. Unlike a firm of solicitors, each barrister takes home only what he himself bills. The business model is geared toward maximising the earnings of its members rather than to continual expansion, unlike most firms of solicitors, though with increasing competition at the Bar smaller chambers are finding it increasingly necessary to offer a broader range of services.

Technically in most chambers each member has an equal say. However, the appearance of democracy can sometimes be illusory. Many big decisions are taken by key committees and only in extreme circumstances would they not be rubber-stamped by a chambers’ meeting. The main players tend to be the head of chambers and the members who generate the highest earnings. This is not just based upon seniority but also upon the fact that contributions tend to include a percentage element. It is sometimes the case that a minority contribute a disproportionate amount towards chambers’ expenses.

When you find yourself working in a chambers, there are various traditions that must be taken into account. As with MPs, barristers traditionally don’t shake hands on meeting - though this convention is in decline among the younger Bar. Chambers tea sounds a pretty simple affair but it still takes some getting used to; best advice for pupils on such occasions is not to pipe up with anything unless asked.

Becoming a member of a chambers is no mean feat and applications for pupillage are extremely competitive. Gaining a tenancy is even more so. However, for those with the ability, persistence tends to pay off and eventually you are likely to find a chambers that will suit you. The flip-side of this competition is that it has transformed the Bar into a meritocracy and any remnants of its slightly stuffier history and hints of possible snobbery have fallen by the wayside.

Perhaps the most surprising thing about the chambers system is that, at a time when many traditions have been sacrificed in the name of modern economics, it has not only survived but is in fact flourishing. John Mortimer said that the Bar allowed people “to escape jury duty in England, wear a bowler hat and carry a copy of The Daily Telegraph”. Whilst the jury exemption and the bowler hats have now gone, there is no doubt that Rumpole would still feel at home.

Tim Kevan is a barrister at 1 Temple Gardens and the editor of the free email newsletter www.lawbriefupdate.com. Visit www.timkevan.com

Times Recommends

• The best legal yarns this Christmas
• Legal school 'earned £1m by exploiting bar course'
• Axe may fall on 5,000 more City lawyers