Counsel Magazine

DESMOND Browne QC, Chairman of the Bar Council, speaking at the 7th Biennial Minority Lawyers’ Conference, has highlighted the Bar’s ongoing commitment to increasing diversity and access to the profession.

Approximately 50% of those entering the profession are currently women, with around 21% from BME backgrounds, up from 16% in 2004. This record reflects the work of the Bar Council to increase access to the profession, for example via mentoring schemes which allow schoolchildren an insight into life at the Bar. The Conference followed the first research paper from the Cabinet Office Panel on Fair Access to the Professions, published on the 14th April, which suggested mentoring as a key mechanism for ensuring that able candidates from less well-off backgrounds can aspire to join the professions.