Bar Council reaction to the King’s speech 2026
Bar Council reaction to draft legislation announced in the King's speech including the Courts and Tribunals Bill, Immigration and Asylum Bill, and the European Partnership Bill.
Bar Council statement on contempt of court
Judge instigated contempt proceedings risk a chilling effect on the profession.
Time to ratify the safety convention, says Bar Council
The Bar Council is calling on the UK Government to ratify the Council of Europe’s Convention on the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer.
Bar questions 5-month delay in delivering £34m criminal legal aid injection
In early December, the government said it would address the shortage of criminal barristers by giving publicly funded barristers an additional investment in criminal legal aid fees of up to £34 million yet no progress has been made.
Pump Court Chambers - Family Finance (29 May 2026)
£ N/A | Family Finance | London, Winchester, Swindon, Canterbury | start date ASAP
Pump Court Chambers - Employment (29 May 2026)
£ N/A | Employment | London, Winchester, Swindon, Canterbury
Pump Court Chambers - Children (29 May 2026)
£ N/A | Children | London, Winchester, Swindon, Canterbury | start date ASAP
Charterhouse Chambers - Mixed (No Deadline)
£ N/A | Liverpool | Mixed |start date ASAP
3PB Chambers - Mixed (30 May 2026)
£ TBD | London | Mixed | start date ASAP
Statement on the 10,000 Black Interns programme
An update from the Bar Council in light of media coverage
Kent courts are ‘going in the right direction’ despite doubled backlog
Kent’s Crown Courts are ‘going in the right direction’ despite its backlog more than doubling in 10 years, the Leader of the South Eastern Circuit has said.
Government rejects first opportunity to deliver timely justice for victims through setting up rape court instead of reducing jury trials
The government has rejected calls to amend the Courts and Tribunals Bill and bring in specialist rape courts, despite it being a Labour manifesto pledge.
Mercantile Barristers - Mixed (15 May 2026)
£40, 000 | London | Mixed | Start date asap
Claire Davies KC elected as Bar Council Vice Chair for 2027
The South Eastern Circuit Leader will join Heidi Stonecliffe KC, Lucinda Orr and Dame Maria Miller on the 2027 officer team
Advice for applying for King's Counsel
"Don’t convince yourself “I don’t have the cases”. It is something I hear a lot and I had the same thought myself.
St Joseph Chambers - Civil (1 June 2026)
£ TBD | Civil | London | start date ASAP
What the jury reforms would mean for junior barristers
In this blog, barrister Hannah Forsyth explores how the government’s proposal to restrict the right to a jury trial would impact the junior criminal Bar.
Barristers’ professional standards are robust enough for AI use, Bar Council says
The Bar Council has published its response to the Civil Justice Council’s consultation on using Artificial Intelligence (AI) when preparing court documents.
Whose freedom? Law, power and social justice by Kirsty Brimelow KC
Chair of the Bar Kirsty Brimelow KC speech to the Association of Law Teachers Conference on 16 April 2026.
Barristers welcome Harrow Crown Court’s reopening as an example of how to cut court backlogs
Barristers have welcomed the Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ) announcement that Harrow Crown Court has reopened after nearly three years.