Terence Etherington, Chancellor of the High Court whose
message focused on the challenges faced by young barristers
and the ways in which such challenges can be met.
Breaking into overt political discussion was, again,
something rather new this year. It was the political
debate which featured a panel of real live politicians. Not
unpredictably, this turned to be one of the most popular
of the specialist sessions held at the Conference. Debating
human rights, anti-terrorism legislation, access to justice,
the funding of the justice system and more, the cross-party
panel included Robert Buckland QC MP, the Solicitor General
for England and Wales, Andrew Slaughter MP, Shadow
Minister for Justice and the Liberal Democrat peer Lord
Marks of Henley-on-Thames.
A valedictory
When at last the Conference drew to a close, Dominic Grieve
rose to the occasion with what some would have called
an end-of-term address. Striking an almost elegiac note,
he described, for example, his encounter with the more
enthusiastic students of the law, greatly impressed with their
unwavering commitment to the Bar as a true vocation.
Here, excellence in advocacy at the Independent Bar became
the prevailing theme of Dominic Grieve’s remarks, as did the
Rule of Law in the UK. ‘The Independent Bar can deliver a
more competent service than litigants in person or McKenzie
friends,’ he said, adding that with access to justice severely
limited, we -- the Bar -- are “a whited sepulchre”, especially
with reference to the Criminal Bar. ‘We must ensure that
criminal advocacy standards are enforced,’ he said, basically
in support of a panel system -- and that ‘our independence
and professional ethics are maintained.’
‘New Cinderellas’
Also mentioned in the closing speech were such issues as
the proposed Bill of Rights possibly replacing the HRA, (but
who knows where or when – as this matter seems to have
been relegated to ‘the back burner’). Also put forward was
the obvious need for reform, or at least raised awareness in
so many other areas, including the relationship between the
Bar and Parliament, considering the dangerous times we live
in, with justice and national defence ‘the new Cinderellas of
government expenditure’.
Change in the offing
Continuing on a fairly positive note, however, were
Dominic’s comments on the current Lord Chancellor, who
even though ‘at the neocon end of the spectrum’, has ‘keen
intelligence and a strong sense of the significance of his
office.’ The Bar then, must be prepared for the advent of
certain changes, some eagerly awaited, like the abolition
of the awful ‘criminal government surcharge’, which it is
hoped, will soon be long gone. Nevertheless, as stressed
in most of the debates throughout the Conference, Dominic
concluded by saying that the Bar must remain vociferous in
its own defence and that of the public interest, ever fiercely
protective of ‘the balance between citizen and state’.
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