 During the 19th century , the Inns began to stagnate ; little had been changed since the 17th century in terms of legal education or practice , except that students were no longer bound to take the Anglican sacrament before their call to the Bar . In 1852 the Council of Legal Education was established by the Inns , and in 1872 a formal examination for the call to the Bar was introduced . Gray 's Inn itself suffered more than most ; as in the 18th century , the fortunes of its members declined , and many barristers who had been called to the Bar at the Inn transferred to others . 
