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The Bar Council

The Bar Council represents barristers in England and Wales.

It promotes the Bar's high quality specialist advocacy and advisory services, fair access to justice for all, the highest standards of ethics, equality and diversity across the profession, and the development of business opportunities for barristers at home and abroad.

02/09/2026

Thinking about becoming a barrister?

Come along to this year's Pupillage Fair on Saturday 17 October to meet barristers and get career and CV advice.

Want to know more about the family law Bar? Interested in criminal law? Want to be an employed barrister? Hear about all that and more at our 'Life at the Bar' webinars, held from Monday 12 to Thursday 15 October.

Secure your ticket via the link in the comments.

17/08/2026

What does a typical working day look like?

"No two days are the same, which is one of the aspects I enjoy most."

Employed barrister Aimee Stokes is a Senior Associate at Mills & Reeve, specialising in regulatory and criminal enforcement.

Alongside her work, she is a member of Bar Council and the Young Barristers' Committee and has also received the Pegasus Scholarship to the United States. She will visit Washington DC, New Hampshire and California in October.

Aimee said: "In terms of my day to day work, I am particularly proud to be involved in a number of high profile matters, some of which may go on to shape the legal landscape in this area. Alongside those larger cases, however, it is often the smaller matters that feel just as significant, if not more so.

"Whether it is securing a substantial reduction in a financial penalty or making representations that result in no further action being taken, it is immensely rewarding to achieve outcomes that make a tangible difference to clients.

You can read more of her thoughts in our latest career spotlight blog. ⬇️

Photo 1: Aimee's Call to the Bar ceremony in July 2018.

Photo 2 and 3: Giving a talk to students from Heidelberg University about her journey to becoming a barrister at the Bar Council offices last summer.

Photo 4: Aimee's first visit to the House of Commons as part of the CPS Homicide Team to discuss support for bereaved families.

Photo 5: Attending the Bar Council’s Justice Needs Juries event in Parliament.

04/08/2026

Our Chair Kirsty Brimelow KC was delighted to meet with His Excellency Hiroshi Suzuki and his legal attaché Kensuke Kawate this afternoon.

The conversation focused on preparations for our upcoming inaugural visit to Japan, opportunities to develop commercial and arbitration work, and sharing of expertise.

The Japan visit, later this month, will focus on promoting England and Wales as a legal jurisdiction and building connections across the country's legal sector.

And of course no meeting with Japan's Ambassador to the UK would be complete without an appearance from his marmalade sandwich connoisseur.

Picture 1: Kirsty Brimelow KC, Paddington and HE Hiroshi Suzuki
Picture 2: Kensuke Kawate (Legal Attaché at the Embassy of Japan), Hannan Abdi (Policy Analyst at the Bar Council), Kirsty Brimelow KC, HE Hiroshi Suzuki and Piran Dhillon-Starkings (Adviser to the Chair of the Bar Council)
Picture 3: Kirsty Brimelow KC, Paddington and HE Hiroshi Suzuki

03/08/2026

A possible reversal to the government's proposal to limit the right to jury trials made headlines this weekend.

When he took over as Prime Minister, our Chair Kirsty Brimelow KC wrote to Andy Burnham to urge "him to back away from the jury reduction course of the previous administration."

On Friday he said he had 'concerns' about reducing the number of jury trials.

Kirsty, as quoted in BBC news, said we "stand ready to work constructively with the Prime Minister and his government to reduce the waiting for those in the criminal justice system". ⬇️

01/08/2026

"My parents left school and started work at 15. I know well the socio-economic barriers to a career at the Bar and my focus remains on social mobility."

Kirsty Brimelow KC recently visited her old primary school in Whittle-Le-Woods in Lancashire to support the delivery of our ‘Speak for Success’ oracy lessons.

The programme is a set of free resources for teachers to help empower young pupils to build confidence, develop their oracy skills and prepare them to excel in any career path.

Kirsty said: “I was really impressed with how engaged the children were with the Speak for Success lessons.

“I’m calling upon all barristers to share Speak for Success resources with local state primary schools, to help bring this wonderful career to life and to inspire our future generations of barristers. The Bar should be accessible to all."

You can find more information about the resources and how to share with your local school via the link in the comments.

31/07/2026

BREAKING: Prime Minister Andy Burnham has indicated to the press today that he may scrap controversial plans to reduce access to jury trials.

Speaking at an event in Sheffield today, the new Prime Minister said he wants to “look in detail” at the proposals - but that his instincts are “not to reduce access to jury trial”.

Our Chair Kirsty Brimelow KC has responded to the news ⬇️

16/07/2026

Our new report demonstrates the "endemic" delays at court caused by the late delivery of prisoners.

Instead of focusing on juries, which do not cause delays, we are calling on the government to urgently reform the prison delivery system that is a significant contributor to inefficiency.

Thank you to all of the barristers who have made reports so far. This work is ongoing so please continue to report each time you experience a delay to us.

Read the report⤵️

15/07/2026

Congratulations to all the nominees shortlisted for our Employed Bar Awards 2026!

The 6 awards, ranging from Legal Team of the Year to Employed Barrister of the Year in the Public Sector, recognise the outstanding contribution made by employed barristers to the work of their organisations and the law.

Take a look at the shortlist and be sure to join us on Thursday 5 November to celebrate the winners ⬇️

Thank you to everyone who nominated.

14/07/2026

Will limiting the right to a jury trial reduce the 80,000 high Crown Court backlog?

Our Chair Kirsty Brimelow KC, speaking to Claire Foges on LBC, explains why it won't - and what will instead.

This comes as the incoming Prime Minister Andy Burnham is set to scrap proposals to reduce the right to jury trial.

Listen to the full interview by following the link. ⬇️

11/07/2026

Writing in The Guardian, Chair of the Bar Council Kirsty Brimelow KC explains why we're making the case for the minimum age of criminal responsibility in England and Wales to be increased from 10 to 14.

She argues "Society should have moved on since the 1800s, when Charles Dickens railed against the storm cloud of unfairness that gathered over children. However, Dickens’s anger at the law and society, and the harsh treatment of children, remains familiar today. England and Wales are outliers in bringing the criminal justice system to bear on young children who cause harm."

Read Kirsty's article in The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/jul/11/jailing-children-dickensian-delusion-england-wales

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Website

http://www.barcouncil.org.uk/

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