Features

Judge-led inquiries are a vital tool for accountability and politicians must set an example in this age of mass-media attack, argues Khawar Qureshi QC  

Anyone who wishes to understand the background to tribunals of inquiry should read the excellent report of Lord Justice Salmon (as he then was) for the Royal Commission on Tribunals Inquiry in 1966 (Cmnd 3121).  

Sir Daniel Bethlehem QC shares his route from Bar basecamp to all-round public international lawyer with Anthony Inglese  

‘It’s helpful when teaching public international law to have what’s been called ‘the smell of gunpowder on your clothes’.  

Counsel talks to Gifty Edila who forged an award-winning career in local government despite encountering early prejudices at the Bar  

Q What drew you to the Bar initially, and what was your experience of applying for pupillage and early years of practice? 

Counsel talks to Gifty Edila who forged an award-winning career in local government despite encountering early prejudices at the Bar  

Q What drew you to the Bar initially, and what was your experience of applying for pupillage and early years of practice? 

A woman who defied death threats to give evidence in a landmark ‘honour killing’ case turned trainer when agencies failed to learn lessons from the case. By James Keeley  

A few months ago I met one of the bravest women I know.  

Mark Cannon pays tribute to Lord Toulson and his great contribution to the law  

In Willers v Joyce  [2016] UKSC 43 & 44 Lord (Roger) Toulson said: ‘The common law is prized for its combination of principle and pragmatism.’  

Quick to establish inquiries, are we getting any better at acting on their recommendations? Tom Kark QC and Polly Dyer consider the efficacy of the modern public inquiry system  

With the Grenfell Inquiry now set up, the blood contamination inquiry announced, the lessons learned from Hillsborough to be assimilated and the ongoing lessons being acquired in the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, it would seem timely to revisit this area to look at the public/legal value of public inquiries, their scope, usefulness or otherwise.  

The fertile fields of Islamic finance and banking in Britain have a growing relationship with English contract law and ADR. By Scott Morrison  

Shari’a-compliant financing made possible the construction of London’s Shard and the purchase of Chelsea Barracks by a Qatari sovereign wealth fund (Project Blue Ltd v Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs  [2016] EWCA Civ 485).  

The first Circuit-based mentoring scheme for women barristers is building confidence and camaraderie. Kate Brunner QC explains what sets it apart  

The Bar may appear to be awash with mentoring schemes, but only a small minority of barristers actually have a mentor, and it is particularly difficult on the far reaches of Circuit to access support and events based in London.  

With European links under pressure, HELP is at hand to preserve shared values grounded in respect for human rights and the rule of law. Guy Vassall-Adams QC reports  

These are testing times for race relations and the culture of respect for human rights in Europe.