COUNSEL is the official magazine of the Bar of England and Wales. As the Bar’s own magazine, it is largely written by and for barristers.
We welcome unsolicited articles and ideas for consideration across all sections of our magazine: Legal Personality, Practice Toolset, Justice Matters and Bon Vivant. If you would like to submit an article or précis for consideration, please send to the commissioning editor of the magazine: elsa.booth.1@lexisnexis.co.uk.
If accepted for publication, authors will be e-mailed proofs for their approval and have the opportunity to make corrections prior to press/online publication.
We ask for an exclusive right to first publication. Copyright rests with the Bar Council and re-publication of article PDFs, unless a variation is agreed in writing, is subject to an embargo and requires written permission. All articles are also posted online – currently free to view – at www.counselmagazine.co.uk.
Please note, a distinguished Policy and Editorial Board, mainly drawn from the ranks of practising barristers, works with the editorial team on COUNSEL; they may be consulted from time to time regarding publishing decisions and points of law.
The majority of articles will be published in the print version of COUNSEL. Depending on production schedules, some articles may be published online first, in addition to print, or online only.
Online, e-newsletter and social media ‘trails’ may be used to highlight and promote the online content and boost the profile of the authors.
If you would like to submit an article or précis for consideration, please send to the commissioning editor of the magazine: elsa.booth.1@lexisnexis.co.uk
Chair of the Bar reports back
Marie Law, Director of Toxicology at AlphaBiolabs
A £500 donation from AlphaBiolabs has been made to the leading UK charity tackling international parental child abduction and the movement of children across international borders
Marie Law, Director of Toxicology at AlphaBiolabs, outlines the drug and alcohol testing options available for family law professionals, and how a new, free guide can help identify the most appropriate testing method for each specific case
By Louise Crush of Westgate Wealth Management
Marie Law, Director of Toxicology at AlphaBiolabs, examines the latest ONS data on drug misuse and its implications for toxicology testing in family law cases
A career shaped by advocacy beyond her practice, and the realities of living with an invisible disability – Dr Natasha Shotunde, Black Barristers’ Network Co-Founder and its Chair for seven years, reflects on a decade at the Bar
Responding to criticism on the narrow profile of government-instructed counsel, Mel Nebhrajani CB describes the system-wide change at GLD to drive fairer distribution of work and broader development of talent
The odds of success are as unforgiving as ever, but ambition clearly isn’t in short supply. David Wurtzel’s annual deep‑dive into the competition cohort shows who’s entering, who’s thriving and the trends that will define the next wave
Where to start and where to find help? Monisha Shah, Chair of the King’s Counsel Selection Panel, provides an overview of the silk selection process, debunking some myths along the way
Do chatbot providers owe a duty of care for negligent misstatements? Jasper Wong suggests that the principles applicable to humans should apply equally to machines
