Features

It’s been a busy few months for the Bar Pro Bono Unit. This month’s Pro Bono Watch celebrates the launch of Pro Bono Champions and announces the expansion of the Bar Pro Bono Awards  

A referendum does not have to lead to division  

Too little, too late? As the CPS publishes its disclosure review, Narita Bahra and Fiona Robertson assess whether its assurances and safeguards can possibly achieve the pledged sea change  

As funding, wellbeing and retention crises hit the publicly funded Bar where it hurts, Frances Judd QC and Stephen Knight are candid on pain points and turn arounds  

With barristers and clerks increasingly exposed to the cryptocurrency sector, Anthony Eskander explains how to get smart on smart contracts, maximise market opportunities and prepare for key perils  

As the Bar leaders’ evidence cuts to the core on what’s wrong with the criminal justice system, Mark Hatcher puts his hope in Gauke to deliver a larger share for justice  

Best books, favourite films, top tracks and an essential:  Counsel invites barristers to share their cultural influences. In this issue, we talk to Tahir Ashraf, recently named in the Muslim 100 Parliamentary Power List and who also runs 5 Chancery Lane Commercial Barristers Chambers  

As armed drone strikes blur the boundaries of the battlefield, Jo Morris and Libby Anderson look at the ethical and legal issues raised and the law of armed conflict  

Penelope Gibbs briefs readers on Transform Justice’s video hearings research and calls for a clearer evidence base before virtual justice is extended any further  

The criminal Bar’s future occupies hearts and minds; is it too much to hope the MoJ wakes up and smells the coffee from its spanking-new reception, asks Mark Hatcher