Barrister Cleared of Misconduct Calls for Bar Standards Board Resignation
Dr. Charlotte Proudman, cleared of misconduct, urges the Bar Standards Board’s head to step down after her social media posts faced scrutiny.
Charlotte Proudman, Bar Standards Board, London, Misconduct, Domestic Abuse, Women’s Rights
London: A barrister named Dr. Charlotte Proudman just got cleared of misconduct charges related to her tweets. She’s now calling for the head of the Bar Standards Board to resign. It’s been quite the ride for her.
Dr. Proudman, who focuses on family law, faced a tribunal for a Twitter thread where she criticized a judge’s ruling in a domestic abuse case. She felt the ruling reflected a “boys’ club” mentality. But guess what? All five charges against her were dropped!
In a chat with The Times, she said the board’s director-general, Mark Neale, should step down. She believes it’s time for a change at the top, not just with him but also with the chairwoman, Kathryn Stone.
She’s keen to work with the Bar Standards Board to tackle issues like misogyny and sexism in the legal field. But she feels that under the current leadership, that’s just not going to happen.
The charges claimed she didn’t act with integrity in her tweets, saying they misrepresented the judge’s findings. But the panel found her tweets were protected under freedom of expression laws. They didn’t think her comments seriously harmed the judiciary.
After the ruling, Dr. Proudman celebrated it as a win for women’s rights and free speech. She argued that everyone should be able to critique domestic abuse judgments, regardless of their profession.
She also pointed out that the Bar Standards Board spent a hefty amount—almost £40,000—on her case, which she called a misuse of funds. She feels it was a personal attack against her as a woman and a feminist.
Dr. Proudman is calling for real change within the board, saying they need to understand issues like gender and diversity better. She’s faced bullying and harassment herself and believes the board needs to own up to these problems.
She shared her experience of being insulted by male barristers online, which just adds to her frustration. Her tweets were about a case where her client felt coerced into a financial agreement by her husband, who’s a part-time judge. She’s not backing down from her stance on domestic abuse and wants to see real change.