Simplify the following text for a Grade 9 native English-speaking person.
Original: After briefly working for Jeffrey Archer , then a Member of Parliament ( MP ) , while studying for his bar exams , Mellor became a barrister in 1972 and a Queens Counsel in 1987 . He is currently not practising .
Simplified: Mellor became a barrister in 1972 , and a Queen 's Counsel in 1987 but is currently not practising .