Justice comes in a new garb and starts the debate all over again

London: Britain has always been a place where, if someone asks, "Why?" and the answer is, "Because we've been doing it that way for the last 800 years," the conversation is pretty much over.

So it is perhaps not surprising that the idea of ending the practice of outfitting judges and lawyers in curled wigs and tassled gowns a la 1685 has not been met with enthusiasm.

British lawyers have been - who would have thought it? - arguing over the issue for the better part of the last 16 years, with a substantial majority apparently in favour of keeping things exactly as they have been.

With that in mind, Lord Chief Justice Nicholas Phillips figured that if he was going to take on 300 years of tradition, he'd better do it in style. This week, he unveiled the modern new robe that judges in the civil courts of England and Wales are expected to wear beginning in October - minus the traditional wing collar and minus, oh so importantly, the venerable white horsehair wig.

Judges, barristers and solicitors will continue to sport traditional attire in criminal courts, where lawyers say it's important for defendants not to be judged by their advocates' suits. But even there, wigs already may be on a long slow road to ruin. "The stage is set for anarchy. Did no one tell his Lordship about Samson and Delilah?" the Times wondered.

The new continental-style outfit, featuring such innovations as pockets, snap fasteners and colour-coded bands depending on the court, was conceived by celebrity fashion designer Betty Jackson, who once in another context described her clothing creations as "easy, fabulous and gorgeous." The fashionistas so far have not been wowed. "If humanising the judicial profession was the aim of this makeover, it is interesting that Betty Jackson decided that the outfit best suited for this would be one that looks like something an alien android with menacing religious undertones would wear when waging war with Doctor Who," sniffed the Guardian's deputy fashion editor, Hadley Freeman.

Star Trek comparison

The Daily Mail juxtaposed a photo of a bare-headed Lord Phillips in the new robe next to a picture of baldish actor Patrick Stewart in his Star Trek garb.

Lord Phillips, who says he is seeking to rid the public of any notion that judges are old-fashioned, has admitted that not all his fellow jurists like the new outfit that much. But most do, he asserts, and he assumes the rest will get used to it.

The chief justice's new dress code for judges in the civil and family courts is not binding on lawyers, and the Bar Council is in the process of deciding how it will respond, said spokeswoman Samina Ansari. "Our consultation showed the majority of those involved were in favour of keeping wigs as their uniform," she said. "But the debate seems to have moved on, and they need to look at reassessing their position on it."