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‘The first duty of society is justice,’ wrote Alexander Hamilton, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He recognised that fairness is in the veins of civilisations.
The American Bar Association annual conference in Chicago celebrated 250 years of the Declaration of Independence. Constitutional evolution was picked over by a dream panel of Lord Reed, Lord Lloyd-Jones, Justice Rosalie Abella (former Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada) and Justice Stephen Breyer (former Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court). With Gerard McDermott KC, resplendent in snappy jackets, and Amelia Clegg, Chair of the Young Barristers’ Committee, by my side, we successfully worked for the Bar across meetings, events and discussions.
International law is under strain and independent courts and the lawyers and judges who serve them must be supported. I issued a statement deprecating the latest US sanctions issued against the President of the International Criminal Court, Tomoko Akane of Japan, and ICC Senior Trial Lawyer, Abdoulaye Seye of Senegal (tinyurl.com/44e8ujxw).
‘Serendib’ derives from an ancient name for Sri Lanka. With serendipity at its roots, our first joint Legal Symposium with the Bar Association of Sri Lanka delivered opportunities for our barristers. Organised by Chrishmal Warnasuriya and Paul Mylvaganam, I and Natalie Darby of the Bar Council led the delegation of Colin Aylott KC, Nakul Dewan KC, Andrew Miller KC and Sailesh Mehta. Themes ranged from ADR to climate literacy to children in the justice system. We met Presidents and Judges of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal and were hosted by the British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka. I also visited courts in Galle, thanks to the kind hospitality of the Galle Law Association.
In London, I met the Japanese Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Hiroshi Suzuki and, of course, Paddington Bear, perhaps the UK’s most famous immigrant. We visited Japan and South Korea to strengthen relationships and build trust between legal markets in Asia-Pacific, promoting English law and the specialist expertise of our Bar.
I returned to India, continuing the focus on fly in, fly out arbitration, noting the lack of impediments in Sri Lanka, and joining the Combar India roundtable.
In continuing to develop work on combatting violence against women and girls (VAWG), I chaired a Barnardo’s organised roundtable in Parliament to share the voices of survivors of abuse linked to beliefs in witchcraft. The use of these harmful practices is not resigned to history but is happening today. Victoria Climbié is just one of some 23 egregious recorded cases since 1991 (tinyurl.com/3st67fwp).
In 2021, the UN Human Rights Council passed a resolution condemning violence and human rights abuses arising from witchcraft accusations. However, we remain in the bleak foothills without adequate data collection.
I will be speaking at the swearing in of our new Lord Chancellor, Attorney General (AG), Solicitor General and Master of the Rolls and am sorry to miss the ceremony of the President of the King’s Bench Division (thanks to Heidi Stonecliffe KC for stepping in), as I am committed to panels at the International Bar Association conference.
I have in mind X, Y and Z [2026] EWCA Crim 913 which examined a materially inaccurate press release from the Crown Prosecution Service and subsequent commentary by the former AG and former Prime Minister. The sentencing judge was subjected to widespread personal and professional vilification. I stated publicly at the time that the sensational commentary by politicians was inappropriate.
The judgment refers to the separation of the AG’s powers to seek to refer ‘unduly lenient’ sentences to the Court of Appeal from political policy. While acknowledging the AG previously had spoken in defence of the judiciary, the Lady Chief Justice (LCJ) underlined the key practical role of the AG to protect the independent judiciary.
Significantly, the Bar was recognised as having stepped up in light of the media frenzy. The LCJ commended ‘the independent Bar, and in particular Mr Evans for X, Mr Henry for Y and junior counsel for the prosecution, Ms Francisca Da Costa, for their attempts to procure corrections of the factual inaccuracies through the CPS and the Attorney General and to defend the independent judiciary and the rule of law.’
I look forward to working constructively with the new Lord Chancellor and Law Officers, addressing access to justice, AI, VAWG, legal aid and reform of our courts while retaining our jury trials. Political party conference season also is upon us, and the Bar Council continues to speak and act to inform and influence policy.
Bar Council elections are approaching. We need diverse voices, practices, Circuits and experiences around the table. I encourage you to stand and vote.
It brings together self-employed and employed barristers, across all jurisdictions. We have collated doyens of the Bar and Bench, with the leading experts who are shaping the future of innovative legal practice. Make sure that you are in the room where it happens.
‘The first duty of society is justice,’ wrote Alexander Hamilton, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He recognised that fairness is in the veins of civilisations.
The American Bar Association annual conference in Chicago celebrated 250 years of the Declaration of Independence. Constitutional evolution was picked over by a dream panel of Lord Reed, Lord Lloyd-Jones, Justice Rosalie Abella (former Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada) and Justice Stephen Breyer (former Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court). With Gerard McDermott KC, resplendent in snappy jackets, and Amelia Clegg, Chair of the Young Barristers’ Committee, by my side, we successfully worked for the Bar across meetings, events and discussions.
International law is under strain and independent courts and the lawyers and judges who serve them must be supported. I issued a statement deprecating the latest US sanctions issued against the President of the International Criminal Court, Tomoko Akane of Japan, and ICC Senior Trial Lawyer, Abdoulaye Seye of Senegal (tinyurl.com/44e8ujxw).
‘Serendib’ derives from an ancient name for Sri Lanka. With serendipity at its roots, our first joint Legal Symposium with the Bar Association of Sri Lanka delivered opportunities for our barristers. Organised by Chrishmal Warnasuriya and Paul Mylvaganam, I and Natalie Darby of the Bar Council led the delegation of Colin Aylott KC, Nakul Dewan KC, Andrew Miller KC and Sailesh Mehta. Themes ranged from ADR to climate literacy to children in the justice system. We met Presidents and Judges of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal and were hosted by the British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka. I also visited courts in Galle, thanks to the kind hospitality of the Galle Law Association.
In London, I met the Japanese Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Hiroshi Suzuki and, of course, Paddington Bear, perhaps the UK’s most famous immigrant. We visited Japan and South Korea to strengthen relationships and build trust between legal markets in Asia-Pacific, promoting English law and the specialist expertise of our Bar.
I returned to India, continuing the focus on fly in, fly out arbitration, noting the lack of impediments in Sri Lanka, and joining the Combar India roundtable.
In continuing to develop work on combatting violence against women and girls (VAWG), I chaired a Barnardo’s organised roundtable in Parliament to share the voices of survivors of abuse linked to beliefs in witchcraft. The use of these harmful practices is not resigned to history but is happening today. Victoria Climbié is just one of some 23 egregious recorded cases since 1991 (tinyurl.com/3st67fwp).
In 2021, the UN Human Rights Council passed a resolution condemning violence and human rights abuses arising from witchcraft accusations. However, we remain in the bleak foothills without adequate data collection.
I will be speaking at the swearing in of our new Lord Chancellor, Attorney General (AG), Solicitor General and Master of the Rolls and am sorry to miss the ceremony of the President of the King’s Bench Division (thanks to Heidi Stonecliffe KC for stepping in), as I am committed to panels at the International Bar Association conference.
I have in mind X, Y and Z [2026] EWCA Crim 913 which examined a materially inaccurate press release from the Crown Prosecution Service and subsequent commentary by the former AG and former Prime Minister. The sentencing judge was subjected to widespread personal and professional vilification. I stated publicly at the time that the sensational commentary by politicians was inappropriate.
The judgment refers to the separation of the AG’s powers to seek to refer ‘unduly lenient’ sentences to the Court of Appeal from political policy. While acknowledging the AG previously had spoken in defence of the judiciary, the Lady Chief Justice (LCJ) underlined the key practical role of the AG to protect the independent judiciary.
Significantly, the Bar was recognised as having stepped up in light of the media frenzy. The LCJ commended ‘the independent Bar, and in particular Mr Evans for X, Mr Henry for Y and junior counsel for the prosecution, Ms Francisca Da Costa, for their attempts to procure corrections of the factual inaccuracies through the CPS and the Attorney General and to defend the independent judiciary and the rule of law.’
I look forward to working constructively with the new Lord Chancellor and Law Officers, addressing access to justice, AI, VAWG, legal aid and reform of our courts while retaining our jury trials. Political party conference season also is upon us, and the Bar Council continues to speak and act to inform and influence policy.
Bar Council elections are approaching. We need diverse voices, practices, Circuits and experiences around the table. I encourage you to stand and vote.
It brings together self-employed and employed barristers, across all jurisdictions. We have collated doyens of the Bar and Bench, with the leading experts who are shaping the future of innovative legal practice. Make sure that you are in the room where it happens.
The Chair of the Bar reports back
Clement Cowley, Partner at The Penny Group, explains how global events can influence the performance of pensions and ISAs, and why taking a long-term approach to investing is often the most effective strategy
Mário Barroso, Head of R&D and Method Development at AlphaBiolabs, discusses what family law professionals need to know about hallucinogens, from the main hallucinogenic drugs encountered in family proceedings, to their effects and the testing options available
Harmony Christian Ministries is the latest charity to benefit from a £500 donation from AlphaBiolabs via the company’s Giving Back initiative
By David Green
Mário Barroso, Head of R&D and Method Development at AlphaBiolabs, examines the forensic science underpinning hair drug testing, its evidential scope and limitations, and why it remains the gold standard for evidencing patterns of drug use in family proceedings
Reviewed by Daniel Barnett
James McNeill Whistler at Tate Britain until 27 September Rothko in Florence at Palazzo Strozzi until 23 August Reviewed by Stephen Cragg KC
The Chief Legal Officer to the Metropolitan Police, barrister Brett Welch, tells Anthony Inglese CB about his mission and the work to turn the Met around
Barrister apprenticeships – shortly to provide the fourth pathway to the Bar – are an ideal opportunity to support local talent and ‘grow your own’, say Tim Coulson and Dr Jane Dennehy
Oliver Lewis spotlights an overlooked yet rapidly evolving area of law – coercive and controlling behaviour within care contexts
