Why The Magistrates Courts Aren’t Working – Each Other

Posted May 23rd, 2023 in courts, criminal justice, diversity, magistrates, news by sally

‘In 2022, the Criminal Bar Association voted to undertake industrial action, bringing the dire state of much of the criminal justice system into the public eye. Following successive cuts by the government, among the issues were unusable court buildings, including broken toilets, leaking ceilings and malfunctioning heating systems, and the dismal remuneration received by barristers – barristers who are tasked with working on the most serious cases across the Crown Courts.’

Full Story

Each Other, 19th May 2023

Source: eachother.org.uk

Profession paying “lip service” to diversity, LSB told – Legal Futures

Posted May 18th, 2023 in diversity, legal profession, Legal Services Board, news, reports by sally

‘The legal profession pays only “lip service” to diversity and “there is a lack of action or appetite to pursue meaningful change”, a report for the Legal Services Board (LSB) has suggested.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 17th May 2023

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Thousands more can apply to become judges under plans to expand diversity – Ministry of Justice

Posted May 12th, 2023 in diversity, judiciary, legal profession, Ministry of Justice, news by tracey

‘New rules will see up to 4,500 more lawyers from diverse backgrounds eligible to become judges under plans announced by the government today (11 May 2023).’

Full Story

Ministry of Justice, 11th May 2023

Source: www.gov.uk

Employers must review progress on race and ethnicity commitments – OUT-LAW.com

Posted April 12th, 2023 in diversity, employment, equality, news by sally

‘Employers across the UK must ensure that the focus on improving racial equality in their workforces does not wane.’

Full Story

OUT-LAW.com, 11th April 2023

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

Law Commission widens planned discrimination ban in arbitration – Legal Futures

Posted March 30th, 2023 in arbitration, consultations, diversity, Law Commission, news, sex discrimination by sally

‘The Law Commission has suggested widening its proposed ban on discrimination in arbitration from the appointment of arbitrators to the conduct of the arbitration generally.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 30th March 2023

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Review pilot ‘will disproportionately affect black barristers’ – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted March 23rd, 2023 in barristers, diversity, equality, news, pilot schemes by tracey

‘Black barristers will be disproportionately affected by negative reviews posted on digital comparison platforms, the Bar Standards Board has been told. An event organised by the Black Barristers Network also highlighted the potential limits to what barristers can say publicly in response to negative feedback – a problem that equally applies to law firms and individual solicitors.’

Full Story

Law Society's Gazette, 22nd March 2023

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Taking the neurological lead: Professor Jo Delahunty KC – Counsel

Posted March 20th, 2023 in barristers, bullying, diversity, equality, mental health, news by tracey

‘Being neurodivergent is something of which to be unashamedly proud and offers the Bar an extraordinary skill set. Professor Jo Delahunty KC, the silk well known for challenging the status quo, tackles the preconceptions of what it takes to be a barrister in an interview with Charlotte Plowman.’

Full Story

Counsel, 13th March 2023

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

Credibility at Bar linked to “masculine heterosexuality” – Legal Futures

‘Macho masculinity and the alignment of what is generally considered professional at the Bar with heterosexuality, is creating problems for sexual minority barristers, according to a paper published recently.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 17th March 2023

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

International Women’s Day 2023: Interview with the Honourable Justice Martha Koome – Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

Posted March 10th, 2023 in diversity, judges, judiciary, Kenya, news, Uncategorized, women by tracey

‘International Women’s Day 2023: Interview with the Honourable Justice Martha Koome, EGH (Elder of the Order of the Golden Heart), Chief Justice and President of the Supreme Court of Kenya.’

Full Story

Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, 8th March 2023

Source: www.judiciary.uk

Three new reports from the BSB show the impact of Bar training reforms – Bar Standards Board

Posted March 10th, 2023 in barristers, diversity, legal education, news by tracey

‘The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has today published: an interim report from AlphaPlus evaluating the BSB’s Future Bar Training (FBT) reforms; the BSB’s 2023 Bar Training Report, covering the period from 2011/12 to 2022/23 and the Central Examinations Board (CEB) Chair’s Report, which presents the latest results for candidates sitting the centralised assessments in civil and criminal litigation in December 2022.’

Full Story

Bar Standards Board, 8th March 2023

Source: www.barstandardsboard.org.uk

City law firms using diversity schemes for “reputation laundering” – Legal Futures

Posted March 1st, 2023 in diversity, equality, law firms, news, solicitors by sally

‘The efforts of City law firms to become more diverse and inclusive are a form of “reputation laundering”, offering only the “illusion of change”, an academic and diversity specialist has argued.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 1st March 2023

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

The chain of reasoning: Lady Rose of Colmworth – Counsel

Posted February 20th, 2023 in diversity, equality, judges, judiciary, news, Supreme Court, women by tracey

‘Currently the only female UK Supreme Court Justice, Lady Rose gives a rare insight into the subtext of judicial interventions, the process of deliberations and makes the case for a broader pool of advocates and judges.’

Full Story

Counsel, 13th February 2023

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

RBB’s 10 next steps for an anti-racist justice system – Counsel

Posted February 15th, 2023 in bias, diversity, equality, judiciary, legal profession, news, race discrimination, racism by sally

‘In 2022, the Racial Bias and the Bench report found evidence of institutional racism in the justice system and fundamental flaws in the Judicial Diversity Strategy. Change is coming and all judges and lawyers can help revitalise the rule of law by implementing RBB’s 10 anti-racist recommendations, say Keir Monteith KC and Professor Leslie Thomas KC.;

Full Story

Counsel, February 2023

Source: www.counselmagazine.co.uk

Bar Council launches a plan of action to improve ‘Life at the employed Bar’ – The Bar Council

Posted February 13th, 2023 in barristers, bullying, diversity, employment, harassment, news, statistics by tracey

‘Greater visibility, better career progression, and stamping out bullying and harassment are key recommendations in a new report on ‘Life at the employed Bar’ published by the Bar Council today. The employed Bar is more diverse, reports higher levels of wellbeing, and experiences greater flexibility and work/life balance than the self-employed Bar. However, the employed Bar also experiences bullying and harassment at similar levels to the whole Bar, has a far lower rate of taking Silk, and expresses some concern about perceptions of careers at the employed Bar.’

Full Story

The Bar Council, 8th February 2023

Source: www.barcouncil.org.uk

Accent bias still holding back regional barristers, research finds – Legal Futures

Posted January 31st, 2023 in advocacy, barristers, bias, diversity, news by tracey

‘Barristers with regional accents still encounter bias from both clients and professional colleagues that those who speak in what is regarded as an “acceptable” accent do not, new research has found.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 30th January 2023

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

BSB publishes its Report on Diversity at the Bar 2022 – Bar Standards Board

Posted January 30th, 2023 in barristers, diversity, equality, news, statistics by tracey

‘The Bar Standards Board (BSB) has today published a summary of the latest available diversity data for the Bar. Overall, the data shows the continuation in 2022 of several longer-term trends, including an increase in the proportion of practising barristers who are female; who are from a minority ethnic background; who have primary care of a child; who have a disability; and who are aged 55 or more. The most noticeable increase was a rise of 3.3 percentage points in the proportion of pupils who are female to 59.9 per cent.’

Full Story

Bar Standards Board, 27th January 2023

Source: www.barstandardsboard.org.uk

Judiciary calls on office holders to avoid “shouting” and treat others fairly in ‘expected behaviours’ list – Local Government Lawyer

Posted January 24th, 2023 in bias, complaints, diversity, judiciary, news, professional conduct by sally

‘The Courts and Tribunals Judiciary has published a list of expected behaviours for judicial office holders, which includes a call to avoid “shouting or snapping” and to ensure that no one in a hearing room is exposed to bias or prejudice.’

Full Story

Local Government Lawyer, 23rd January 2023

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

External research on equality and diversity in the work of the Sentencing Council published – Sentencing Council

Posted January 16th, 2023 in diversity, equality, news, sentencing by tracey

‘New research that examines the potential and perceived impact of sentencing guidelines on specific groups of offenders has been published by the Sentencing Council.’

Full Story

Sentencing Council, 10th January 2023

Source: www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk

Half of black British police suffer racial incidents from colleagues, survey finds – The Guardian

Posted December 16th, 2022 in bullying, diversity, equality, harassment, news, police, race discrimination, racism, statistics by tracey

‘More than half of Britain’s black police officers and staff suffered racial incidents from colleagues in the past year, a survey has found.’

Full Story

The Guardian,15th December 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

In conversation with District Tribunal Judge Noel Arnold – Courts & Tribunals Judiciary

Posted December 15th, 2022 in diversity, judges, judiciary, news by tracey

‘In conversation with District Tribunal Judge Noel Arnold.’

Full Story

Courts & Tribunals Judiciary, 8th December 2022

Source: www.judiciary.uk