Features

A media storm followed the conviction of Levi Bellfield for the murder of Milly Dowler. Ali Naseem Bajwa QC examines the fallout from the case

The medieval practice of determining guilt or innocence by subjecting the accused to trial by ordeal has happily long since passed. However, following the conviction of Levi Bellfield for the murder of Milly Dowler, the victim’s family described their experience of the trial as an ordeal and said that they had paid “too high a price” for the conviction. In the ensuing media and, inevitable, political storm the Criminal Justice System came in for intense criticism, much of it centred on a claim that the trial process is balanced unfairly in favour of the rights of the accused over the rights of victims of crime and witnesses. 

Recent events surrounding News International and the phone hacking  scandal raise questions about the future of the Press Complaints Commission. Desmond Browne QC investigates

Never can the press have shown so much interest in its own affairs as when examining where responsibility lies for the phone-hacking which took place at the now-defunct News of the World. Not only has this inevitably raised questions about corporate governance at News International, it has also led to the reading of the obsequies over the Press Complaints Commission (“PCC”). Typical was the contribution from the former Lord Chancellor, Jack Straw MP, in his Gareth Williams Memorial Lecture in July: “The PCC’s failure, not least in the face of the hacking scandal, has been abject. Its obituaries have now been pronounced, from across the political spectrum. All we await is the last rites”. 

The Bar Council recently co-hosted “English Law Week” in Moscow to promote the English Bar in Russia. Rupert D’Cruz and Christian Wisskirchen report.  

Between 27-29 June, the Bar Council co-hosted the first “English Law Week” at the British Embassy in Moscow. Organised in conjunction with the British Embassy, the Law Society, the British-Russian Law Association and the Anglo-Russian Law Association, this was the largest event to promote English legal services in Russia to date. 

A look at the Bar Standards Board’s Clementi Debate on Continuing Professional Development - and the views of those who took part.  

The need for barristers to do Continuing Professional Development (“CPD”) was noted as long ago as the Ormrod Committee in 1971. It finally became compulsory for all in 2005. Things have moved more rapidly since then. In January 2010, Derek Wood CBE QC and his Working Group embarked on an inquiry into CPD as the third and final part of the Bar Standards Board’s (“BSB”) review of all stages of education and training for the Bar. In May 2011 it reported. Next has been the consultation process on the recommendations of the report. 

In the wake of the riots, Charles Hale and Toby Craig look ahead to the conference season. 

Preparations for the party political conferences were no doubt in place when the riots struck in early August, and politicians turned their exclusive attention to the question of how to make sure they never happened again.  It showed once more how the focus in politics can change in an instant. 

A seasoned troupe of actors performed two radio plays, Rumpole on Trial and Rumpole and the Right to Privacy, for this year’s Kalisher Scholarship fundraising event, writes Melissa Coutinho.  

Sunday, 15 May 2011 was a beautiful balmy evening that saw Middle Temple host what has become an annual Kalisher Scholarship fundraising event. We were entertained by a seasoned troupe of actors, some of whom had generously given their time at previous events: Martin Shaw, Maggie Steed, Philip Franks, Patricia Hodge, Anthony Howell, Maxine Peake (fresh from Silk), Duncan Bell, Daniel Hill, Tim Frances, Nicholas Le Prevost and Mark Farrelly. 

Summertime - and the living is no longer quite so easy in the Temple during August.

August 3, 2011: “In summer, the song sings itself.” -William Carlos Williams.


Publicly funded barristers nowadays work all the year round. When I was a nipper at the Bar, it was simply not done for a Silk to be seen in the precincts of the Temple during August. Today, there is the appearance of a holiday season – my club closes, there are no more meals in the Inns of Court and the like; but, in reality, professional life carries on.

The Bar is changing. Toby Craig of the Bar Council looks at how the Bar is having to adapt to meet these changes.  

A modern Bar prides itself on its values and on high quality, well trained, specialist advocacy. Its product is second-to-none. It is a small profession; a cadre. Barristers are very good value, highly mobile and can provide relevant and realistic advice to their clients. However, as with so much in life, it is one thing having a good product; it is another to sell it. Good work will not alone speak for itself. Effective marketing, and ensuring that the sales pitch is responding to a rapidly changing clientele of varying sophistication, is essential. 

The Conference is open to barristers under 10 years’ Call, pupils and BPTC students. A Conference brochure and registration form will be available from mid-August. Places will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis so early booking is advisable.  

Stephen Cobb QC looks at The Family Justice Review and the refreshingly positive view it takes of Family lawyers, and considers its implications

Every year, half a million people are involved in the family justice system, turning to it in times of great stress and conflict. But it is a system under great strain, with “shocking” delays in the resolution of cases (“little short of scandalous”); this is one of the key findings of the Family Justice Review (FJR) panel, chaired by David Norgrove, which has recently published its Interim Report.