New Bar Council Chair Sarah Ramsey BL

The Bar Council’s new Chair Sarah Ramsey BL delivered her inaugural speech on Friday 26th October to leaders from the legal and justice sector, including members of the judiciary, representatives of Bars from across the UK and RoI, the Law Society and solicitor associations and senior officials from the Department of Justice.

The speech covered a range of topics, including the vital role of the independent referral Bar as a cornerstone in any functioning democracy and the danger that this is “often either not sufficiently understood or an inconvenient truth”. The Chair’s speech referenced the importance of the work of a strong, independent and vibrant legal profession in supporting the rule of law and access to justice in Northern Ireland. She also reflected that the Bar is committed to these core values and the need to “ensure that they do not get muted or diluted in the face of ill-conceived or short-term policy initiatives”. To this end, the Bar recently marked European Lawyers’ Day 2018 by launching a new resource titled “The Bar of Northern Ireland: Leaders in Legal Excellence” which is aimed at articulating these principles to a wider audience, including public representatives and policy makers.

Chair Sarah Ramsey also went on to highlight Pro Bono week and the commitment of colleagues at the Bar in providing over 500 hours of service without charge in the last year, including successes in the family and chancery courts, whilst also resolutely defending the need for a properly funded system of public legal representation. Another key priority area outlined in the Chair’s speech was the need for the Bar to be highly attentive to and supportive of the network of solicitors across Northern Ireland with whom members work very closely on a daily basis.

Finally, Sarah Ramsey spoke of a personal priority for her term of office as Bar Council Chair around promoting gender equality within the profession. She reflected on progress made in the 25 years from her own year of call in 1993 when there was just one female QC, to today’s figures which show that there are now 16 female QCs. However, this still accounts for only 17% of a total of 90 silks and this statistic shows a need “for women to act as role models for the generations to come and seize opportunities to follow career paths that have traditionally been trod by men”.

Click to read “The Bar of Northern Ireland: Leaders in Legal Excellence” or download a copy. Contact media@barlibrary.com for more information.