Jenna Shay – The English Bar has long been regarded as as bastion of some of the brightest lawyers in the country, but no more, it would seem. Instead, a recent report referred to the ‘culture of fear’ at the bar and the bullying and harassment that occurs.
A new report from the UK Bar Standards Board has suggested that bullying,
discrimination and harassment is an issue for many at the Bar.
The report said “barristers who are female, BAME, LGBT or those having a declared disability particularly likely to suffer from experiences of workplace bullying, discrimination and harassment.”
[adrotate banner=”106″]
The bar’s unique framework means that pupil barristers are self-employed and also dependent on clerks for their work and without any super-imposed management that might properly ensure such behaviour could occur.
“When I was a pupil I was really bullied in chambers by my supervisor – every piece of work I did wasn’t good enough. I’d be shouted at because I left the pub at 10 o clock rather than 11pm” (Barrister)
The Pupillage Problem
Junior barrister in the pupillage situation are at their most vulnerable, the report said.
The report noted: “The perceived lack of clear, anonymous and supportive formal and informal pathways to reporting was another barrier. Many barristers did not have access to HR professionals or similar forms of support, and those outside of chambers were often managed by someone who was not well-versed in the legal profession, who participants felt did not fully understand their needs and concerns.”
The study appeared somewhat limited given that it involved 35 telephone interviews conducted with 30 barristers, and five non-barristers, who had directly experienced or observed discrimination and harassment at the bar.
But it was enough to garner evidence of discrimination and bullying that many at the bar would no doubt denounce as unrepresentative of general Bar behaviour.
“I was barely marketed since I’ve been in chambers – we hired a south Asian woman as our marketing manager. She took me in for a meeting and I was so grateful – she said that ‘you are the only BAME woman in chambers and we can market this. Let’s celebrate this and approach the Indian journals and the south Asian business networks.” (Barrister)
One respondent said that they were brow-beaten for leaving the pub too early – at 10pm – while another commented: “I was aware of a pupil barrister who was sexually harassed by a senior member of chambers,” another respondent recalled. “This happened at least once a week.”
Another comments on offensive remarks about her chest. “I was deeply upset about it but wasn’t going to say anything about it,” she said.
An earlier report in 2018 found that bullying at the bar was up by was up 5 per cent, with 21 per cent of employed and 12 per cent of self-employed barristers reporting that they had personally experienced mistreatment at work.
The power imbalance between the pupils, Heads of Chambers and clerks and others who dictate who will receive work and know it will be undertaken has created major professional and behavioural issues at the bar, which is largely based upon the unique nature of the bar and the way it operates.
“He [senior clerk] was an individual who sought to control every aspect of chambers by bestowing on certain people the good work and therefore controlling chambers. He was sexist, racist, had very stereotypical ideas about how a barrister should be or act. Within 2 years the whole chambers collapsed because of him. He was trying to control the profile of
chambers – if he didn’t want someone there he would starve them of work. I was forced to go on multiple secondments…individuals who weren’t perceived to fit his model were forced out… supported by the powers that be in chambers.” (Barrister)
The report also noted that according to the Association of Women Barristers undertaken in 2019 there is a “culture of fear” around reporting bullying, harassment or discrimination exists at the Bar, with many barristers
being afraid to speak out against discrimination, harassment or bullying due to fear that it would harm their careers or that they would wind up being victimised by seniors in chambers or by their peers.
Although law firms have worked hard to create a more gender-friendly atmosphere with anti-bullying programmes and practices, the bar has remained largely outside the scope of the overall efforts to control such behaviour within the legal profession, both in the UK and in other major jurisdictions where there are significant bar associations like Australia, Singapore and New Zealand.
[adrotate banner=”107″]
- BigLaw Pay – Taylor Wessing’s Top Rainmaker Banks the Legal Equivalent of a Premier League Salary
Taylor Wessing’s highest-earning partner managed to haul in a whopping £200,000 a week in the latest financial year — that’s roughly the same as a Premier League striker on a good bonus season. It highlights just how ludicrous top-end pay has become in London’s legal market. According to Law Society Gazette, the top-paid LLP member at Taylor Wessing managed to net that £200k-a-week haul as profits were dished out across the partnership. That kind of pay packet makes even the notorious Cravath scale seem almost modest. Sure, mid-market firms can cry “but we’re all about work-life balance,” but when your top partner’s annual take amounts to north of £10m, it’s hard not to feel the sting of disparity. - California Draws a Line on Legal AI And Lawyers Need to Pay Attention
For years, lawyers have been quietly experimenting with generative AI while publicly pretending it was all very theoretical. That luxury just expired however has expired as the California passes a first-of-its kind bill that will doubtless be replicated in other jurisdictions. The California Senate has passed SB 574 aimed squarely at how lawyers use artificial intelligence in legal practice. If it becomes law, California will be the first major jurisdiction to formally regulate AI use by lawyers, not with vague principles, but with obligations that cut straight to competence, ethics, and liability. In short: lawyers can use AI, but they own the consequences. And that’s something many will find daunting given the hallucinations and legal repercussions of legal AI’s misuse. - Winston & Strawn and Taylor Wessing Partners Greenlight £1.2bn Transatlantic Law Merger
Partners at Winston & Strawn and Taylor Wessing have voted decisively in favour of their landmark transatlantic merger, clearing the path for the creation of Winston Taylor—a new legal powerhouse set to launch in May 2026. The combination, reported last month, will create a firm with more than 1,400 lawyers worldwide and combined revenue exceeding $1.75 billion, positioning the newly-formed entity just outside the Global 200’s top 40 firms. The merger responds to increasing client demand for seamlessly integrated US–UK–EU counsel for the businesses, people, and markets driving capital and innovation. - Brabners’ Eight-Year Growth Streak Powers London Expansion: What Regional Firms Can Learn
While London’s legal market dominates headlines with US firms driving salary wars and Magic Circle mergers, Brabners’ consistent growth story offers a compelling counter-narrative. The firm’s eight consecutive years of profitable expansion demonstrates that sustainable growth doesn’t require a City postcode—it requires strategic vision, client focus, and calculated expansion timing. And leadership from people like managing partner Nik White (Pictured), who the firm described as the ‘driving force’ behind its growth. At a time when UK law firms collectively generated £37 billion in revenue, with more than half posting double-digit increases, Brabners’ measured approach to London expansion represents a textbook case of regional strength leveraging metropolitan opportunity. Log in to read the rest . . - Four Thousand an Hour Arrives in US Big Law Billing
Reuters reports the new top line for Susman Godfrey’s trial stars and sets it against peers where rates already crossed three thousand last year. Public filings and prior coverage show Latham partners at just over three thousand and Quinn Emanuel partners near that mark, with associates at some shops topping one thousand six hundred. Four thousand is not only a flex, but also one that needs to be ‘sold’ to clients. If law firms want this price to clear, they must show time saved, risk shifted and outcomes earned. Log in to read . . . - Dechert Raids McDermott With 20‑Partner Team as It Re‑Enters Chicago and Targets Texas
Dechert has fired the opening shot of 2026’s lateral wars, lifting a 20‑plus partner team – including a top‑ranked complex litigation and accounting defense squad – from McDermott and using it as the launchpad for new offices in Chicago, Dallas and a disputes outpost in Houston. Dechert has brought in more than 20 lateral partners across litigation, corporate and securities, IP and employment from McDermott Will & Schulte, anchored by a preeminent U.S. complex litigation practice and a Chambers Band 1 accounting defense team. The group is led by Chicago trial and strategy heavyweight law star Mike Poulos, formerly partner in charge of global strategy and an executive committee member at McDermott, who becomes Dechert’s vice chair and global head of strategy. Log in to continue reading . . . - How Lobbying Turned Into Big Business for Top Law Firms in 2025
Lobbying Law Leaders John Bowie, LawFuel publisher Big Law’s lobbying arms just posted their richest year on record,… Read more: How Lobbying Turned Into Big Business for Top Law Firms in 2025
