Counsel Magazine

THE 24th Annual Bar Conference, which took place on 7 November 2009 in central London, focused this year on Access to Justice. At a time when the Bar is facing regulatory changes which could revolutionise the way it works, and the future of the publicly-funded Bar is endangered by repeated cuts to the legal aid budget, the Conference heard leading figures from the legal, political, media and academic worlds discuss the future of the justice system. The keynote speaker was Sir Nicolas Bratza, one of the Vice-Presidents of the European Court of Human Rights. Other speakers, such as Dominic Grieve QC MP, Lord Carlile of Berriew QC, Diane Abbott MP and Sara Payne, the first Victims’ Champion, addressed issues such as mediation, the treatment of women in the justice system, pro bono work, and international access to justice.