Establishing a dedicated Commissioner for Conduct office was a bold move for the Bar Council, and a rapid response to Baroness Harriet Harman KC’s report on bullying, harassment and sexual harassment at the Bar. Baroness Harman reported in September 2025, and I took up the brand new role of Commissioner for Conduct in January 2026. In one swift move, the Bar has shifted the jeopardy of bullying and harassment from being a matter only for individuals, to being integral to the structure of the Bar Council’s operating model.
It’s important that Harman’s recommendations called for a Commissioner for Conduct who is an influencer not a pseudo-regulator. Influencing culture to tackle bullying and sexual harassment at the Bar, helping to up-skill chambers (where needed), and moving towards a position where, over time, barristers see it as worthwhile to report bullying and sexual harassment, when it occurs in chambers, Inns and court, without fearing reputational and career damage.
Gaining traction
This approach has helped the Commissioner gain early traction with a number of important parts of the legal sector. First, with the judiciary, being consistent with the Lady Chief Justice’s renewed diversity strategy for diversity where: “Every judicial office holder fosters an inclusive working environment where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.”
And also, the regulator, where in its newly published 2026–27 Business Plan, the Bar Standards Board makes co-ordinated action with the new Commissioner for Conduct a measure of success for the year ahead, as part of its commitment to tackling problems around culture at the Bar. So, the work of the Commissioner for Conduct is already integral to the priorities of other parts of the profession. As I’ve met with barristers, chambers professionals and representatives from the Inns, I’ve heard loud and clear that you want things to get going, but also that there need to be strong foundations.
In accordance with Baroness Harman’s review, I want the Commissioner to provide a new route for reporting sexual harassment or bullying, but will have absolutely no role in the work of the regulator, investigating or advocating in individual cases. Because this is a tightly regulated sector, establishing a clear agreement of roles and responsibilities with the BSB has been a top priority for me since taking up my role. We are making good progress, with much goodwill all around. Once an agreement has been signed with the BSB, working with the Legal Services Board, new comprehensive guidance will be published and a new online training programme made available to help everyone meet their duties. Watch this space.
The bigger picture
Legal services is a crucial part of the UK’s domestic economy and international trade because we have the best legal sector in the world and the Bar is a pivotal part of that. To maintain that pre-eminence, we need to remain the best, and that includes on matters of culture and behaviour.
But this shift matters far beyond the legal profession.
Every board and governing body now faces the same question: how do you convert values into lived behaviours, especially in a world of remote working? Policies alone cannot change culture. What changes outcomes is visible accountability: clear ownership, trusted escalation routes, reliable data, and leadership prepared to intervene early.
The wider lesson is simple: when both the profession and its regulator redesign around conduct, culture stops being what we talk about and becomes part of what we do.