Judge Bart-Stewart

Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr was also present and the event began with a welcome from Lord Leggatt. He told the audience that the profession was acutely aware of the underrepresentation of black lawyers in the judiciary, and in the legal profession as a whole.

Practical representation was improving for many demographics said Lord Leggatt, but not for black lawyers. Referring directly to Baroness Doreen Lawrence who was also present, Lord Leggatt said that the Supreme Court was working in its own sphere of influence to change this, by for example supporting the Stephen Lawrence Scholars, who came to the court every year, and the Black Talent Charter, to which the court is a signatory.

Judge Cordella Bart-Stewart OBE followed Lord Leggatt’s introduction by addressing the issues that have led to the association being formed. Judge Bart-Stewart was admitted to the Roll in 1987 then proceeded to set up her own high street practice, while also being a fee-paid immigration and asylum judge for 25 years. Despite the progress she had made in her own career, Judge Bart-Stewart said it was disappointing that an association for black judges was needed in 2025.

Black judges make up just one per cent of the judiciary in the UK. Only 1.3 per cent of court judges are recorded as of Black ethnicity and 1.7 per cent of tribunal judges.

Judge Bart-Stewart said that as a four-year-old immigrant, with a mother working as a cleaner and child carer and a father as a factory worker, “no one in our community expected or encouraged me to be a lawyer. It was considered totally out of reach. The young Cordella would never have imagined this evening, speaking in this venue.”

She ended by saying: “This moment is not just for us. It is for the young law student wondering if there’s a future for them in the highest courts. It is for the communities who deserve to see justice done, and to see themselves reflected in those who deliver it at every level.

“Many of you who responded have said that this is long overdue. We hope this is a foundation of change for those who will come after, and I hope you will all be proud to be part of it and contribute to its success.”