Our Blogs

What drives ethical failure? Unreliable gods and their fearless logics

Published on 31 October 2024

The first of three Hamlyn lectures discusses lawyers ethics after the Post Office and other cases.

Foat in Blunderland

Published on 23 October 2024

Ben Foat talks about leading from the front and what it takes to make a GC.

Not waiving but drowning

Published on 22 October 2024

Ben Foat’s witness statement

A Failure of Governance…

Published on 21 October 2024

An IoD Policy paper offers its insights for directors and policymakers from phase 6 of the Inquiry

How lawyers say sorry

Published on 21 October 2024

We have put together a video of quotes from the Inquiry.

Is Professional Ethics a joke?

Published on 21 October 2024

Three brief stories of ascending seriousness on the theme of jokes.

The Hamlyn Lectures 2024 | Frail Professionalism, Lawyers Ethics after the Post Office and other cases

Published on 15 August 2024

These lectures will argue it is time to change the way lawyers think and behave, and how courts, clients, and regulators set their expectations. You can now book tickets for Exeter, Leeds, or London.

Exoneration scheme

Published on 30 July 2024

Details of the scheme…

One minute to midnight…

Published on 24 July 2024

Tom Cooper’s evidence to the Inquiry provides his perspective on lawyering for the Post Office during the Bates litigation and in its aftermath.

This is Normal IV: divisions of (ir)responsibility?

Published on 18 July 2024

A final post on Andy Parsons’ evidence to the Inquiry

Normal III: Good faith negotiation

Published on 17 July 2024

A very quick look at what we heard about the mediation scheme

The normal silencing and softening of litigation?

Published on 16 July 2024

Post two in this mini-series.

Litigation? This is normal

Published on 15 July 2024

Unless things change, Andy Parsons was the last really important lawyer witness before the Inquiry. There was a bit of a sense of anticipation and not just from nerdy old me. The first of three posts.

As the bit on the lawyers comes to an end…

Published on 8 July 2024

… a quick message on posts in the future and one message for the future.

The Secrets Peril

Published on 21 June 2024

Locking information away as privileged is a temptation to mislead. Is that what happened here? The Gareth Jenkins question puts yet another lawyer under pressure.

Putting privilege at the centre of things

Published on 20 June 2024

A second post on Anthony de Garr Robinson KC’s evidence. Someone want to put the Swift review in a box. We don’t really know yet who that was, but Mr Robinson is asked to help. What happens?

Remote truth

Published on 17 June 2024

How can lawyers deal with cases where clients and their witnesses repeatedly mislead? The first post on Anthony De Garr Robinson’s evidence to the Post Office Inquiry

Neither gods, nor unreliable gods

Published on 12 June 2024

What did we learn about recusal apart beyond Lord Grabiner’s inability to spell bollox (sic) properly?

Judging criminal justice

Published on 11 June 2024

A timely intervention on the judiciary

Conspiratorial Logics

Published on 10 June 2024

Not all conspiracies are cock ups, corporate attitudes to bad news can drive disasters. Is that what happened here?

The Post Office Scandal & Lawyers: An Extraordinary Orthodoxy

Published on 1 June 2024

Strathclyde Public Lecture May 2024

The Scottish questions

Published on 30 May 2024

I had the pleasure of addressing a Scottish audience last night. This is how I ended my talk

Clarke II: the mistaken hero?

Published on 19 May 2024

The second part of my analysis of all the other mistakes made by the man who stopped Post Office prosecuting

Clarke I: His first coincidental error

Published on 18 May 2024

What did we learn from Simon Clarke’s evidence? Post I

What lies underneath?

Published on 14 May 2024

Some words from you and a final comment from me on the Altman evidence and what it might show us.

The Lacuna

Published on 13 May 2024

Beyond the blind spot, where does peering into Mr Altman’s shallow dive and other advices take us?

Gareth Jenkins and the Incurious Prosecutor?

Published on 12 May 2024

What a mistake to make

How Brian Altman KC saw his role

Published on 11 May 2024

Part two of the series on Mr Altman’s evidence to the Inquiry

Are we human, or are we dancer?

Published on 10 May 2024

In a series of posts, I am going to consider the Inquiry evidence session with Brian Altman KC. The question, what drives professional error?

Head of Criminal

Published on 7 May 2024

As John McEnroe used to say, You cannot be serious.

Fundamentally… proper disclosure?

Published on 6 May 2024

The third post, based on excerpts from Martin Smith’s evidence, takes us to what was influencing disclosure advice. Julian Blake is joined by Sir Wyn Williams…

Fundamentally…. under the radar?

Published on 5 May 2024

The second post on Martin Smith’s evidence picks up a phrase that John Scott offered up in the heat of the crisis that led to Susan Crichton leaving the Post Office.

Fundamentally, what? Martin Smith and Competence

Published on 4 May 2024

A series of posts on Martin Smith’s evidence to the Inquiry. First up, some passages about competence and his attitude to it.

Crisis. Blandness. Silence

Published on 2 May 2024

A second post on Susan Crichton and her evidence to the Inquiry, looking at the less positive side of the evidence.

As good as it gets? Susan Crichton and professional integrity

Published on 1 May 2024

The first of a couple of blogs on an absolutely fascinating day and a half of evidence with Susan Crichton, former General Counsel of the Post Office

Towards the heart of it

Published on 30 April 2024

This week and next, evidence before the Inquiry takes us right into the critical work of Cartwright King sift and its ‘assurance’ by Brian Altman KC.

Putting what first?

Published on 24 April 2024

Susan Crichton started giving her evidence today, but Paula Vennell’s voice also came through loudly.

Fireworks from Flat Earth

Published on 22 April 2024

With two ex GCs giving evidence this week, last week we got an insight into the black box of how PO ran its legal work from conduit-in-chief, Rodric Williams

Pravda

Published on 20 April 2024

The Post office keep saying they are focused on helping the Post Office Horizon Inquiry get to the truth. Two days of evidence on that dropped into view this week…

Here you come again

Published on 19 April 2024

A non-urgent plan to suppress evidence appears to drop into the Inquiry inbox.

Breaking silence…

Published on 11 April 2024

More key revelations from the Inquiry and some unanswered questions. This time from a former criminal Court of Appeal judge

“It should be buried at any cost this court case”

Published on 10 April 2024

Phase 5 and 6 started yesterday. The first of many revelations to catch my eye…

Anatomy of a “cover-up”? II

Published on 5 April 2024

Anatomy of a “Cover-Up”?

Published on 4 April 2024

Covert Post Office Tapes tell us about one beginning for what is colloquially known as the cover-up stage. What role did lawyers play in this? Is cover-up a legitimate legal strategy?

Postmasters punished by an adversarial legal culture

Published on 27 March 2024

What does the PO Scandal tell us about the design and culture of our legal system?

The First Flat Earther vs Lee Castleton

Published on 15 March 2024

We take a deep dive into the strategy behind the case that ruined Lee Castleton and its implications. Is a court system that posits an overriding principle of justice too quick to submit to tactics?

The case for the prosecution

Published on 2 March 2024

What does a ‘profoundly sorry’ PO do to round off Phase 4? Often, it blames others and it roundly hacks off the Inquiry Chair.

Are ethics problems continuing

Published on 10 February 2024

At the end of a speech today on general ethics lessons from PO Scandal I made two new points worth a wider airing…

The Scottish Question

Published on 7 February 2024

Important submissions about Scotland made at the end of Phase 4 of the Post Office Inquiry

With respect

Published on 3 February 2024

There are two interesting omissions from the Post Office Inquiry’s latest list of witnesses: Lord Neuberger and Sir Jonathan Swift

Without prejudice and also integrity?

Published on 1 February 2024

The Chairman of the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board (HCAB, on which Richard Moorhead sits) had cause to write to the Post Office CEO

The Law Society and the Post Office

Published on 26 January 2024

Clamouring about the Law Society’s embarrassment on the Post Office growing

Shutting Down

Published on 26 January 2024

Former GC accused of helping PO CEO shut down MPs and Alan Bates

Sorry from the Professional Imaginarium

Published on 23 January 2024

What do we learn from the ways lawyers are saying sorry in the Post Office case?

The mealy-mouthed mothers of injustice

Published on 23 January 2024

How corporate codes and lawyers’ ethics can interact. An example…

Bad briefs, NDAs, and moral panic

Published on 16 January 2024

A couple of points about the Business Committee Meeting

The story of Noel Thomas’s jumper

Published on 14 January 2024

What is it about the connection made by the Sub-Post-Masters and -Mistresses?

How soon is now… a quick post on what’s wrong with the Post Office Appeal cases

Published on 12 January 2024

Where were the lawyers? 23 questions…

Published on 6 January 2024

A quick list of the main questions for lawyers before the PO Inquiry

Hamlyn lectures 2024

Published on 4 January 2024

A chance to look at how the behaviours in the PO Scandal are part of a wider picture of problems with lawyers ethics…

Can ITV make the Post Office a story for 2024?

Published on 4 January 2024

You may have noticed an uptick in news stories about the Post Office Scandal as 2023 ended. Those stories may grow…

On report, 2023 proceedings draw to a close

Published on 21 December 2023

As the Post Office Inquiry has turned to the lawyers, and the year’s work ends, an intriguing document has emerged hinting at what’s to come….

Helping, with hubris

Published on 6 December 2023

Did Boris Johnson’s lawyer help exonerate dozens of sub-postmasters who had been wrongfully convicted?

The sorry tale of Warwick Tatford

Published on 23 November 2023

A key question for the Post Office Inquiry is the fairness of private prosecutions conducted by the Post Office and the independent Bar on its behalf. Hear why one lawyer had to apologise twice.

Partial facts: Lee Castleton’s case I

Published on 20 October 2023

Partial facts: Lee Castleton’s case I

Post Office Scandal victims suffering from PTSD and depression, study shows

Published on 13 September 2023

“Alarmingly high” numbers of Post Office Scandal victims suffer depression and PTSD symptoms, a new study shows.

Understanding the impact of false accusations

Published on 5 July 2023

Tracy Felstead’s evidence sets out the impact on her of being fired, investigated, prosecuted, and then having her conviction quashed. To understand the impact of PO on the victims’ lives, click on…

A sub-postmaster’s journey

Published on 3 July 2023

Tim Brentnall’s story.

On the Horizon

Published on 30 June 2023

A new video to overview the forthcoming Horizon Inquiry’s engagement with lawyering.

A quick catch up on Lord Neuberger posts elsewhere

Published on 29 June 2023

For substack readers who are not subscribed to lawyerwatch, the following may be of interest…

Context: Culture and Remuneration

Published on 23 June 2023

John Sutherland joins Darlington Building Society as a Non-Executive Director with a distinguished background in the regulatory and wider financial services sectors.

Uncertain materials

Published on 20 June 2023

Bonusgate? Just imagine my surprise at the latest developments…

HSF and Post Office: a half-hearted clearout?

Published on 6 June 2023

HSF being stood down on Inquiry work raises a really important question for the Post Office and the Inquiry

Encore une fois, yet again?

Published on 18 May 2023

Another lawyer takes their turn in the spotlight