What is it the Bar Council does? Here's a glimpse of just some of the work we have done in February 2016
Chairman of the Bar gave evidence to (i) the House of Commons Justice Select Committee on Court Fees and (ii) the Labour Party Commission on Legal Aid and Access to Justice (the Bach Commission).
Meetings went ahead with the Home Office and opposition front bench on the draft Investigatory Powers Bill. The Joint Committee on Draft Investigatory Powers Bill adopted the Bar Council policy of calling for statutory protection of LPP.
Bar Council secured a guest blog from Leader of the Opposition Jeremy Corbyn MP for BarTalk on the topic of access to justice, highlighting the Bar Council's prominence on this issue.
The Young Bar Hub launched its blog platform to engage young barristers on topics affecting practice and access to justice.
Chair of the Young Barristers' Committee gave talks to BPTC students at Middle Temple and Lincoln's Inn about the early stages of a career as a barrister.
Bar Placement week North took place in Leeds, Manchester and for the first time Liverpool. The social mobility scheme now runs in 6 cities (London, Bristol and Birmingham too).
In February, new cases put through BARCO reached an all-time high since it was established.
Bar Council representatives met with the Competition and Markets Authority twice and the Bar Council responded to the CMA's market study into legal services in England and Wales, with the support of a newly established working group. The Bar Council also responded to the Bar Standards Board's draft strategic plan 2016-19 and the Legal Services Board's draft strategic plan 2016-17.
Chairman of the Bar attended the launch of Freebar and contributed to the discussions as a panel speaker. Freebar is a newly formed network designed to promote LGBT+ equality and inclusion across the Bar.
The Chairman of the Bar visited Manchester, Leeds and Brighton to discuss face-to-face with barristers the many challenges and opportunities presented to the Bar.