Features

Winter of Discontent? Toby Craig looks at what the year ahead holds both for the country and for the Bar  

As the strains of Auld Lang Syne fade gently away, the stoppers on the sherry decanters are replaced for another year and the festive decorations are restored to the attic, we should all now be rested, rejuvenated and ready to greet 2013. And what a year it promises to be. We may not have a home Olympics to look forward to, or a big election, or even a Jubilee, but there will be plenty to fill these pages in the coming months. 

“The lights are beginning to go out for some, including the most able, all over the Temple - and not just the Christmas ones” 

December 7, 2012: “A fool may be known by six things: anger without cause; speech without profit; change without progress; inquiry without object; putting trust in a stranger, and mistaking foes for friends” - Arabian Proverb 

There is something wonderfully reassuring about public inquiries. First, we have a scandal; then we have embarrassed politicians who desperately want to kick the problem into the long grass; next there is the high-ranking judge lured into the public arena together with an army of barristers and solicitors; this is followed by months of public hearings where some advocates achieve minor cult status for a very short time and then, after a delay of weeks, months or sometimes years we get the report. Finally, we have the politicians’ response, in which they agree to do anything a clever civil servant could have told them to do in the first place and resolutely refuse to do that which they had no intention of doing from the kick-off. Predictably, whilst our courts fall apart around us and the facilities deteriorate below those of a run-down housing estate and the legal profession is squeezed and browbeaten, there is always plenty of money for these public circuses of utter pointlessness. 

Joseph Giret QC took time away from the Bar to compete in the Haute Route on behalf of Parkinson’s UK. He describes his journey ...  

Charity is a vital part of oiling otherwise creaking joints in our society and community at all levels, including bursaries on the one hand and the sick and needy on the other. Charity works with business today on an unprecedented scale; it is a valuable partnership for a business because of its positive projection. Charity begins at home for sure, but most assuredly ends with the business end of finding the cash. This is my story of a fundraising campaign I ran on behalf of the charity Parkinson’s UK. It was a season-long, full-on bike racing campaign to raise as much funding as possible and to raise awareness of Parkinson’s. 

Prisoners Abroad is the only UK charity caring for the welfare and most basic human rights of British people in prison overseas. Sir Henry Brooke CMG, a long term supporter and now a Patron of the charity, looks at the reality of life for British prisoners overseas on remand and after they are sentenced.  

The actress Harriet Walter recently made a radio appeal for the charity Prisoners Abroad. She spoke of a man called Paul who was serving his sentence in a jail in Thailand. He described the prison conditions in these terms... 

Counsel’s David Wurtzel interviews the incoming Chairman of the Bar, Maura McGowan QC, about her new role  

The first question I asked the 2013 Chairman of the Bar, is why she wanted to be chairman. Maura McGowan QC’s answer was a modest one. It is a good idea to have a change between civil and publicly funded practitioners, and it is good that “every so often” a woman does the job. It is in fact 15 years since the first woman chairman, Heather (now Lady Justice) Hallett. Maura adds, “I’d like to think I would make things better”. 

Demonstrating the nature of his practice and what drives him forward professionally, LALY Legal Aid Barrister of the year, Leslie Thomas, recounts the case of Sean Rigg  

Over the last 23 years I have represented many bereaved families in inquests following the death of a loved member of their family. This is a particular niche given the fact that my practice tends to be death in custody cases, as opposed to more general inquests. The work is fantastic, challenging and always interesting. But it is undoubtedly also very taxing, emotionally draining and energy sapping at times. It is not an area chosen for financial rewards, but the other rewards in terms of career satisfaction are great. 

Job title: Barrister, DeKoven Chambers 

DeKoven Chambers specialises in commercial disputes arising out of complex international transactions.   

What have been some of the highlights of your career?
Several matters that I was instructed on in the ‘90s (acting for the liquidators of BBCI, acting for the administrators of KWELM, acting for Equitas and the Society of Lloyd’s of London, and acting for the administrators of Barings) were very important to my career at Shearman & Sterling and in creating expertise in cross border insolvency. 

Following  R v Riat & Others and  R v Ibrahim, Oliver Weetch, who appeared in  Riat for the appellant (Wilson) whose conviction was quashed, considers the law relating to hearsay evidence  

With its recent twin judgements of R v Riat & Others  [2012] EWCA Crim 1509 and R v Ibrahim  [2012] EWCA Crim 837, the Court of Appeal have finally dealt with the fallout from the long running spat over the correct approach to hearsay evidence which had been taking place between the British and European courts. 

Andrew Hood on the tax implications of ceasing your self-employed status.  

When leaving the Bar whether on retirement, or to take up either a judicial appointment or a position of employment as a barrister, you will no doubt remember to deal with the major issues such as the ongoing relationship with Chambers, informing your business contacts and notifying the Bar Council. But there are, of course, also tax and financial implications which need to be considered. 

David Hislop QC on the consequences of legislation drafted in haste  

On the 18th September 2012 the European Court of Human Rights gave judgment in the case of James, Wells and Lee v The United Kingdom (Applications nos. 25119, 57715/09 and 57877/09) . 

This case is an important reminder for those responsible for the continued detention of long term prisoners that a failure to afford rehabilitation schemes and an effective system of review may lead to findings that the continued detention is unlawful and that compensation is due.