How to impersonate a judge: Tales from the Wagatha Christie rehearsal room
As the “Wagatha Christie” stage show prepares for its UK tour, The Lawyer speaks to the barrister-turned-actress playing Mrs Justice Steyn.
The big interview
Brought to you by 
The Gibson Dunn QC who helped rescue Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe from Iran
When Gibson Dunn & Crutcher’s Penny Madden QC met with government officials late last year to discuss then Iran captive Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, she detected an unfamiliar sense of optimism. “It felt like there was some scope for optimism but that it was very measured. And because there were so many false starts in the past, […]
Election 2017: Meet the barrister standing for the Women’s Equality Party
Harini Iyengar is a barrister at 11KWB, specialising in employment, discrimination and equality, education, partnership, data protection and procurement law. She is the Women’s Equality Party’s candidate for Vauxhall in the upcoming general election.
6
“I was the first in my family to go to uni – now I’m Secret Escapes’ top lawyer”
Christine Cordon has had a varied and unusual career. The first in her family to go to uni, she didn’t do a training contract but was an associate at Ashurst and has worked in America and in-house at the big banks. Now she’s the top lawyer at the holiday start-up Secret Escapes.
The big interview: Shami Chakrabarti
Shami Chakrabarti says she was surprised that the January 13 announcement of her imminent departure from civil rights charity Liberty attracted so much attention. Sandwiched between the deaths of singer David Bowie and actor Alan Rickman, the news made the front page of several national newspapers, notably left-leaning duo The Guardian and The Independent. Chakrabarti, […]
2
The big interview: Imran Khan
“What’s so interesting about me?” asks one of the most highly regarded human rights lawyers in the country. “I’m just doing my job.”
Meet the Hogan Lovells NQ who’s standing for Parliament
Fraser Galloway has just qualified at Hogan Lovells, but he’s currently campaigning to be elected as MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire South. Lawyer 2B quizzed him about what it’s like… Tell us a little bit about your background and what made you want to stand for election? I have always had an interest in debating […]
Jasleen Kaur’s journey from Afghan refugee to Nabarro trainee
“I don’t want this to be a sob story,” says Nabarro paralegal and future trainee Jasleen Kaur. “I want to encourage other people, who might not feel like they can do it, or have been in a similar situation to mine.”
Angus McBride: defending champion
“We are all flawed”, replies Angus McBride when asked whether he passes moral judgement on his clients. He is quick to point out that his observation does not pertain to the newly-reinstated News UK chief Rebekah Brooks, whom he is fresh from defending from claims of phone hacking in ‘the trial of the century’. Instead, […]
Do right and fear no one: Leslie Thomas QC
The Duggan family’s barrister, Leslie Thomas QC, is used to unpopular causes, having built his career on actions against the police, usually representing the families of those who have died in custody.
Freedom fighter: The Guardian’s Gill Phillips
Since Gill Phillips joined The Guardian, press freedom has been rocked by phone-hacking, WikiLeaks and Snowden. But at least she’s not in the City poring over the minutiae of commercial documents “I have always been a Guardian reader,” says Gill Phillips. “When I started at Clifford Chance, I would come up in the lift in […]
From hotel concierge to managing partner: Solomon’s justice
Solomon Wifa is the youngest-ever managing partner of O’Melveny & Myers’ London office. The story of his success has the trappings of a Hollywood blockbuster
Michael Mansfield QC: A radical at the bar
There are few more high profile barristers than Michael Mansfield QC, Lawyer 2B met up with him to talk legal aid cuts, student exploitation and his anger at injustice.
From nurse to Freshfields corporate partner: Jennifer Bethlehem
When Kenya-born Jennifer Bethlehem was in her last year at her South African boarding school her father developed a terminal brain tumour. Her intentions to enrol on a BA with a view to pursuing a legal career suddenly changed. Bethlehem says: “When my father died I knew my mother had three children to put through education so […]
End goal: Eniola Aluko on juggling a legal career and life as an international footballer
Assisting on Frankie Boyle’s libel case against the Daily Mirror was not a bad start to the job for England footballer and Lee & Thompson trainee Eniola Aluko. Especially if that job is with entertainment lawyers Lee & Thompson, the go-to firm for Stephen Fry, Queen, and David Beckham. Eniola Aluko had a busy summer, competing in the […]
2
Keir Starmer QC: a radical lawyer gets tough
When human rights barrister Keir Starmer QC became director of public prosecutions (DPP) in 2008, he came up against a barrage of criticism that suggested he would not be able to step up to the plate as head of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
The big interview: Baroness Scotland
From an East End working class background to the highest legal post in the land, Baroness Scotland talks to Corinne McPartland about her epic journey.
Salayha Hussain-Din: the trainee who negotiated with the Taliban
As a trainee in-house lawyer at Northern & Shell, Salayha Hussain-Din got a little more than she bargained for when she was sent to negotiate with the Taliban for the release of reporter Yvonne Ridley. Jennifer Currie discovers being a trainee can sometimes involve more than just photocopying