Bar Council, Law Society and others warn "irresponsible and dangerous" attacks "erode the very foundations of justice"
The UK's legal professional bodies representing over 250,000 lawyers have today issued a strongly worded statement expressing grave concern over increasing hostility towards lawyers and judges, warning that it threatens not only individual safety but the very principles of justice and democracy.
Image credit: UK GovernmentThe statement was issued by the Bar Council of England and Wales, the Law Society of England and Wales, the Law Society of Scotland, the Faculty of Advocates, the Bar of Northern Ireland and the Law Society of Northern Ireland.
The statement comes after the Shadow Secretary of State for Justice, Robert Jenrick, recently denounced what he called 'activist' immigration judges in his speech to the Conservative Party conference and on social media.
In his speech to the Conservative conference last week, Jenrick stated: "I've uncovered dozens of judges with ties to open-borders charities, who take to social media to broadcast their open-border views, who've spent their careers fighting to keep illegal migrants in this country." He continued by saying that judges who "blur the line between adjudication and activism can have no place in our justice system."
Jenrick said on X last week that "[m]ore than 30 sitting immigration judges have former links to the very activist groups that have ground our court system to a halt," noting they had supported and volunteered for organisations and charities such as Bail for Immigration Detainees, which works to end immigration detention.
The Shadow Justice Minister said the examples he had found were not isolated examples but "point to a judiciary where activism and adjudication seem to go together." More generally, he also said in his conference speech that British people "face the prospect of two-tier justice under two-tier Keir."
Today's statement by the UK's legal professional bodies warns that politically motivated attacks on lawyers and judges are irresponsible and dangerous, and have led to violence and death threats.
Mark Evans, President of the Law Society of England and Wales, added: "Nobody should be put at risk for doing their job, least of all when that job is to uphold the law. Attacks on the legal profession undermine the rule of law and can have real-life consequences. In recent years, negative language used about legal professionals has seen waves of online hate and death threats causing many lawyers to seek police protection."
The bodies' full statement follows below:
The Bar Council of England and Wales, the Law Society of England and Wales, the Law Society of Scotland, the Faculty of Advocates, the Bar of Northern Ireland and the Law Society of Northern Ireland representing 250,000 lawyers have come together to express grave concern about the climate of increasing hostility towards lawyers and judges.
Legal professionals have been vilified and targeted simply for doing their job. The judiciary is independent from parliament and politicians, and lawyers represent their clients without fear or favour. Politicians have a responsibility to respect the role of judges in upholding the rule of law and interpreting legislation that has been agreed by parliament. Unlike politicians, members of the judiciary are expected to be strictly impartial when considering how the law should be applied. Lawyers must abide by their professional ethics code and ensure that people facing life changing legal problems get a fair hearing.
Politically motivated attacks on the legal profession are irresponsible and dangerous. They weaken public trust and confidence in the rule of law and erode the very foundations of justice that underpin fairness and democracy.
Barristers, solicitors and judges have been subjected to violence, death threats and rape threats. Some have faced threats to their family members. We have repeatedly seen law firms and offices be set upon by protestors. We are deeply disturbed by this rising tide of intimidation targeting those who serve our justice system and uphold democratic principles.
Lawyers should never suffer adverse consequences because they are identified with their clients or their clients' causes. Lawyers are not their clients. Those who are unpopular or despised are still entitled to access the courts just as much as anyone else. Nobody is above the law, including politicians. Nobody is beneath the law's protections.