Why barristers need to take a stand on jury trials

Latest Post Barrister -
I first went to watch jury trials at Liverpool Crown Court after a rudimentary 1980s computer careers test informed me, with the kind of brutal confidence only primitive technology can muster, that I was fit for only two possible futures: the Bar, or stage and screen. Despite having no clue what it really entailed, I chose the first, though I can see the overlap. Criminal advocacy, at its best, is performance with a moral purpose. It is theatre, yes,...

Inside a Murder Trial: Reflections from a Mini-Pupil

  By Jack Woolcombe I was born in April 2003. He was born in May 2003. I was sitting behind his junior counsel at the Old Bailey as a mini-pupil at Red Lion Chambers, watching him face a charge of murder. Mini-pupillages...

From Nuanced to Negligible: Ethical Behaviour Among Barristers in Context

The title of this piece was based on a claim made by the Bar Council some time ago, (suggesting the claim predates the pandemic), which was that ‘unethical behaviour among barristers is more limited and nuanced than in other...

Developments in the public interest defence in defamation

The impact of the rapid development of the digital technology on data usage and its distribution has become one of the central topics of discussion in modern society. Media has evolved to become...

Cognitive Bias: Forensic Science  

Dr David Schudel forensic chemist at Keith Borer Consultants. According to the Oxford English dictionary, “bias” has several meanings, including: “to influence, affect (often unduly and unfairly)”. No one likes to think of themselves behaving...

Jury proposals “a cure worse than the disease” – founding head of Doughty Street Chambers, Geoffrey Robertson KC

Breaking News Barrister -
To coincide with this week’s committee stage of the Courts and Tribunals Bill, which threatens to significantly restrict jury trials, the Bar Council is publishing a polemical attack on the proposal by Geoffrey Robertson KC, founding head of Doughty Street Chambers. In his treatise ‘For Mercy’s Sake’, Mr Robertson explains how the government has overlooked the constitutional importance of trial by jury – to stand up independently against the state and to extend mercy to defendants who deserve it. He suggests that the Bill will work to worsen delays in the court system and recommends alternative measures that can eliminate them. Mr Robertson’s report traces the history of jury trials and...

Phil Golding appointed Director General of the Bar Standards Board 

The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has appointed Phil Golding to be its new Director General. He will take up the role on 1 July,...

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Extradition: Women on the run

Legal Barrister -
In my job as an extradition defence barrister I deal with clients who have been arrested because they are sought by another jurisdiction to stand trial or serve a sentence for offences they have committed there. These offences may...

Forum Chambers: A Boutique Set taking on the Big Boys

Chambers are a feature of the English legal landscape which have few parallels in other countries. There are just over 400 Chambers, which come in various different shapes and sizes. There are the mega-sets which are large, which commodify the work of many of their barristers, and which often charge lower fees and have lower overheads. Being a barrister at one of those sets can feel like being a cog in a machine, with strategy and career development being...

Barristers urge government to deliver specialist courts for sexual and domestic abuse cases, instead of restricting jury trials

Barristers are calling on the government to honour its 2024 manifesto promise and set up specialist sexual and domestic abuse courts, rather than restrict jury trials which risks undermining justice. In its manifesto, Labour...

Are you an unwitting sponsor – could you be a more effective conscious sponsor?

  How sponsorship helps career development with relatively little effort. At the ICWA garden party in June 2025  Lady Simler’s keynote...
Comment & Opinion

Immigrants in the UK: When Vilification Becomes Policy and Peril

“When political rhetoric turns a human being into an...

Short-Term Politics, Long-Term Decline: Britain’s Economic Risk

The UK government’s recent policy direction prioritises immigration controls,...

Politicians and Political Parties Jumping on the Immigration Bandwagon Expose themselves as lacking the ability-or the willingness-to think deeply, act responsibly, or offer real...

Immigration is one of the most hotly debated topics...

The Mags Court- Tippin the broken scales

Like many criminal barristers, I entered the profession with...
In Brief

Phil Golding appointed Director General of the Bar Standards Board 

The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has appointed Phil Golding to be its new Director General. He will take up the role on 1 July,...

Jury proposals “a cure worse than the disease” – founding head of Doughty Street Chambers, Geoffrey Robertson KC

To coincide with this week’s committee stage of the Courts and Tribunals Bill, which threatens to significantly restrict jury trials, the Bar Council is...

The Bar Standards Board publishes its 2026-27 Business Plan

The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has published its annual business plan which details our activities and commitments for 2026-27. The year ahead will see the BSB improve...

Inside a Murder Trial: Reflections from a Mini-Pupil

  By Jack Woolcombe I was born in April 2003. He was born in May 2003. I was sitting behind his junior counsel at the Old...

Barristers urge government to deliver specialist courts for sexual and domestic abuse cases, instead of restricting jury trials

Barristers are calling on the government to honour its 2024 manifesto promise and set up specialist sexual and domestic abuse courts, rather than restrict...
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