The Attorney General is seeking to appoint new members to one of his panels of junior counsel, the London C panel, to undertake civil and EU work for government departments.

London C Panel

The next London C Panel competition will open on Tuesday 25 September 2018. Membership of the London panels is open to both barristers and solicitors with the appropriate qualifications.

Members of the London C Panel will be expected to have at least two years’ experience in actual practice by 31 October 2018 (starting from end of 2nd six months’ pupillage for barristers, date of commencement of advocacy for solicitors). Appointments will be for five years.

There is a wide variety of expertise required, not just in public law, to meet the needs of Government across the civil courts and tribunals.

Seminar for Potential Candidates

A seminar will be held on Wednesday 12 September for anyone considering applying this autumn. Event details for this seminar are:

This is an event aimed at those thinking about applying to join the Attorney General’s London C Panel of Civil Counsel. The competition to make appointments to the London C Panel will open on Tuesday 25 September 2018 and will close at midday on Wednesday 31 October 2018.

The Law Officers maintain three London panels of Junior Counsel (A, B and C) to undertake civil and EU work for all government departments. There is a wide variety of expertise required, not just in Public Law, to meet the needs of Government across the civil courts and tribunals. These can range from employment or personal injury to procurement or intellectual property.

Information will be provided about the work of all the panels, and the appointments and application process.

Speakers include: a representative from the Bar Council; and senior Government Lawyers will speak in depth about the application process.

An existing member of London C Panel Counsel will speak about their own experiences of panel work, in particular the types of cases they have undertaken during their time on the Panel and their experience of the application process.

The aim of this event is to demystify the application process and to encourage as many of those who have the qualifications to apply to do so.

To reserve a place, please email PanelCounsel@governmentlegal.gov.uk by Friday 7 September 2018.
Refreshments follow the meeting with an opportunity to ask questions of the speakers and senior Government Lawyers.

Information about seminar for potential candidates
(PDF, 202KB, 1 page)

The SS Mendi sank off the Isle of Wight in 1917 while carrying more than 800 men of the South African native labour corps to support the war effort on the Western Front.

It was the worst maritime disaster in South Africa’s history, and the Mendi bell – which has become a symbol of the country’s First World War remembrance – was found and restored last year after being originally salvaged from the shipwreck in the 1980s.

The Mendi bell was given to BBC reporter Steve Humphrey in 2017 in a plastic bag at Swanage Pier, Dorset, after an anonymous phone call.

He in turn gave it to the Maritime & Coastguard Agency’s receiver of wreck, Alison Kentuck, who then had to determine legal ownership of the bell and make the decision about a permanent home for the bell.
For a year it has been on display in the Sea City museum in Southampton while ownership research was undertaken and a permanent home was found.

Alison said: ‘In these cases I have to consider the merits of each application to have the bell. But in the end, because this bell is such a poignant part of South Africa’s history, it seemed only right to return it.

‘607 black troops from the South African native labour corps who set sail from Cape Town just over a century ago, like so many others, never returned home to their families.

‘It’s good to know that the Mendi bell is back in South Africa where it will be able to provide a focal point of remembrance for the people of South Africa and in particular the families of those who died.’

The SS Mendi sank on 21 February 1917 and 646 men drowned.

On 28 August the bell was presented to the President of South Africa by the Prime Minister Theresa May at a ceremony in Cape Town.

The government has set a new ambition for the UK to be the largest G7 investor in Africa by 2022, the Prime Minister has announced as part of a visit to promote economic ties with the continent.

The ambition was announced alongside a range of measures to boost trade between the UK and Africa and encourage UK investment in the region, including the creation of a new Africa Investors Board.

The Prime Minister will use her visit to South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria to set the stage for an Africa Investment Summit to be held in the UK in 2019. The major summit will bring together UK and African governments, alongside major international investors to grow awareness of opportunities on the continent and ensure progress toward the 2022 ambition.

The visit also saw the government commit to working more closely with African nations and to increase in its presence across the continent – bringing in trade experts, investment specialists, health and family planning policymakers and cutting-edge climate researchers so we can work together to deliver on our shared interests and find solutions to the world’s biggest challenges.

Leading a business delegation as part of the Prime Minister’s visit, Trade Minister George Hollingbery said:

The British business delegation here in Africa is telling me first-hand that there is a massive appetite from our companies to invest in Africa.

The opportunities for the UK in Africa, with its young and dynamic population – set to make up a quarter of the world’s consumers by 2050 – are clear.

The UK wants to deepen and strengthen our partnerships with countries across Africa to ensure that our mutually-beneficial relations continue to go from strength to strength.

British investors are already amongst Africa’s most prolific. They are known and respected for the quality of their investments, the innovation they bring and their strong commitment to their local workforces. This week’s visit will ensure trade between the UK and African nations, which already worth more than £31 billion, continues to grow.