England: Chaos as barristers strike back at Lord Chief Justice

In a letter to the judge, more than 70 of the most experienced criminal lawyers in England and Wales objected to his messages sent to Crown Court judges.

He had told them that striking barristers should be referred to regulators for possible misconduct charges if they refused to attend court.

In an open letter to The Times, lawyers told the judge that the “timing, contents and tone of the guidance is being read by many of us … as little more than a pressure tactic”.

His message, they said, put him in jeopardy of “being seen as doing the job of a partisan enforcer for a government whose degrading of the justice system has been draining it of the very professionals on which it relies”.

Professor Alan Bogg, of Bristol University, told The Times it would be potentially “unlawful” for regulators to seek sanctions against striking barristers as doing so could fall foul of human rights legislation.

A spokesman for Lord Burnett said the judiciary “must uphold the rule of law and ensure the timely and efficient administration of justice and fairness to all parties”.