- Defendant
-
Syed Ali
(Middle Temple)
- Type of hearing
- 5 Person Disciplinary Tribunal
- Panel members
-
- His Honour Alan Greenwood (Chair)
- Mr Stephen Harpum
- Mr John Vaughan
- Ms Lyndsey de Mestre QC
- Miss Sadia Zouq
- Finding and sentence
- Disbarred / Reprimanded / Suspended for 12 Months to run concurrently. The BSB not to provide a Practising Certificate if applied for during this period. Costs of £1,560.00 to be paid to the BSB. Time to pay to be negotiated with the BSB.
- Status
- Appeal dismissed
- Dates
- Tuesday 30 November - Wednesday 1 December 2021 and Friday 7 January 2022
Findings and sanctions of past hearings
Details of published findings and sanctions imposed by Disciplinary Tribunals since BTAS started operations on 1 February 2013 are provided here. Please note that, in line with the BTAS Publication Policy, findings will be removed from the website after 2 years, unless the finding of the Disciplinary Tribunal involves a suspension or disbarment. In these cases, the finding will be posted on the BTAS website indefinitely.
Details of findings and sanctions are published in accordance with the BTAS Publication Policy: Disciplinary Tribunals and other adjudication hearings.
In exceptional circumstances, a tribunal can require the Bar Standards Board to suspend the defendant’s practising certificate from a date determined by the tribunal and which can take immediate effect (rE227 and rE228 of the Bar Standards Board Handbook). In all other instances, the sanction described in the finding sheets attached will only come into effect after the time for appeal has expired. The date is further determined either by a decision of the Treasurer of the defendant’s Inn or the disposal of the appeal should one be made. For specific detail, please refer to the Enforcement Regulations at rE239 and rE241.
Appeals against relevant decisions of Bar Disciplinary Tribunals made before 7 January 2014 were heard by the Visitors to the Inns of Court. Since that date appeals fall under the jurisdiction of the High Court (rE236). The outcome of Visitors’ Hearings (appeals) and appeals to the High Court are also listed on this section of the website.
Using the facility below you may search by: name of barrister; date; type of hearing; sentence and section of the code.
Each set of findings is accorded a status on the following basis:
Open to Appeal: The case is within the period that a barrister can appeal the finding but no appeal has been submitted.
Appeal Pending – Sanction Stayed / Appeal Pending: The barrister has submitted an appeal, which is yet to be heard and the sanction will not be implemented until after the outcome of the appeal is known. This will be the case unless the Disciplinary Tribunal has ordered that the sanction should take effect immediately.
Final – The finding has been pronounced either after the appeal period has expired or following the result of an appeal.
New findings are posted within seven days of a decision, although it can take up to 24 hours for the finding to appear on the website following its posting (or for a finding to not show on the website following its removal).
Details of all publishable findings and sanctionss imposed by Disciplinary Tribunals from 2002 to the present date can also be found on the Bar Standards Board website by clicking here.
An alternative means of dealing with professional misconduct complaints is provided by the Determination by Consent (‘DBC’) procedure. This process is where the Professional Conduct Committee exercises its power to determine the outcome of a disciplinary case with the barrister’s consent. It is designed to provide a more speedy resolution of straightforward cases without the need for a formal Disciplinary Tribunal hearing. Further information on the procedure can be accessed here.
Details of the practising status of any barrister can be found on the Bar Standards Board website, click here for further information.
- Defendant
-
Sanjay Visvanathan
(Middle Temple)
- Type of hearing
- 3 Person Tribunal
- Panel members
- Finding and sentence
-
Reprimanded. Mr Visvanathan provided an undertaking not to apply for a Practising Certificate to practise at the Bar of England and Wales for 12 months from the date of the expiry of the appeal period. Costs of £500 to be paid to the Bar Standards Board in 2 instalments. £250 to be paid within 28 days of the hearing and £250 to be paid within 6 months of the hearing [plus VAT if appropriate]. The Tribunal recommend to the BSB that the BSB refer this matter to the appropriate Malaysian legal regulator.
- Status
- Final
- Date
- Monday 6 December 2021
- Defendant
-
Timothy Becker
(Middle Temple)
- Type of hearing
- 5 Person Disciplinary Tribunal
- Panel members
-
- His Honour Alan Greenwood (Chair)
- Ms Lakshmi Ramakrishnan
- Mr Paul Robb
- Mr John Foy QC
- Mr Thomas Williams
- Status
- Adjourned - Part Heard
- Dates
- Monday 22 - Tuesday 23 November 2021
- Defendant
-
Caroline Langley
(Lincoln's Inn)
- Type of hearing
- 5 Person Disciplinary Tribunal
- Panel members
-
- His Honour James Meston QC (Chair)
- Mr Andrew Ward
- Mr John Vaughan
- Ms Hayley Firman
- Ms Siobhan Heron
- Finding and sentence
- Reprimanded. Fined £750.00. Contribution towards costs of £500.00 to be paid to the BSB. Both fine and costs to be paid within 28 days.
- Status
- Final
- Dates
- Monday 15 - Tuesday 16 November 2021
- Defendant
-
Victor Adiamah
(Lincoln's Inn)
- Type of hearing
- 5 Person Disciplinary Tribunal
- Panel members
-
- His Honour Alan Greenwood (Chair)
- Mr John Walsh
- Ms Lakshmi Ramakrishnan
- Miss Sadia Zouq
- Mr Thomas Williams
- Finding and sentence
- Suspended for 9 and 3 Months to run concurrent. BSB not to issue a Practising Certificate if applied for during this period. Costs of £2,000 to be paid to the BSB within 6 months.
- Status
- Final
- Dates
- Monday 19 - Tuesday 20 April, Friday 9 July, Friday 17 September and Wednesday 27 October 2021
- This Hearing is taking place 'Virtually' due to CV.
- Defendant
-
Kevin Farquharson
(Middle Temple)
- Type of hearing
- 5 Person Disciplinary Tribunal
- Panel members
-
- His Honour Witold Pawlak (Chair)
- Ms Janine Green
- Mrs Kathryn King
- Ms Siobhan Heron
- Mr Thomas Williams
- Finding and sentence
- Suspended 2 Years and 6 months. Costs of £2,100.00 to be paid to the Bar Standards Board within 28 days.
- Status
- Appeal upheld in part
- Date
- Thursday 21 October 2021
- Defendant
-
Glen Koh
(Middle Temple)
- Type of hearing
- 5 Person Disciplinary Tribunal
- Panel members
-
- His Honour James Meston QC (Chair)
- Ms Sarah Baalham
- Ms Lakshmi Ramakrishnan
- Ms Siobhan Heron
- Mr Thomas Williams
- Finding and sentence
- Reprimanded. Suspended for 6 months [BSB not to issue a Practising Certificate if applied for during this period]. Costs of £3000.00 to be paid to the BSB within 28 days.
- Status
- Final
- Date
- Wednesday 20 October 2021
- The Hearing is starting at 09.00 hrs.
- Defendant
-
Sibel Gumus
(Lincoln's Inn)
- Type of hearing
- 3 Person Tribunal
- Panel members
- Finding and sentence
- Reprimand. Fined £2,000. Costs of £3,240 to be paid to the BSB.
- Status
- Open to appeal
- Dates
- Wednesday 13 May, Wednesday 11 November 2020, Thursday 7 January, Monday 28 June, Thursday 12 August and Wednesday 29 September 2021
- Defendant
-
Sky Bibi
(Inner Temple)
- Type of hearing
- 5 Person Disciplinary Tribunal
- Panel members
-
- His Honour Alan Greenwood (Chair)
- Mr John Vaughan
- Mr Paul Robb
- Ms Hayley Firman
- Miss Isabelle Watson
- Finding and sentence
- Disbarred. 12 Months Suspension. BSB to withdraw current Practising Certificate and not issue a new one.
- Status
- Appeal pending
- Dates
- Tuesday 1 - Thursday 3 June and Thursday 23 - Friday 24 September 2021
- This Hearing is taking place 'Virtually' due to CV.
- Defendant
-
Duncan Maxwell-Stewart
(Gray's Inn)
- Type of hearing
- 3 Person Tribunal
- Panel members
-
- His Honour Judge Carroll (Chair)
- Ms Tracy Stephenson
- Ms Siobhan Heron
- Finding and sentence
- Suspended for 12 Months. Contribution to Costs to BSB of £600.
- Status
- Final
- Dates
- Thursday 2 and Friday 10 September 2021
- The hearing on the 10 September is starting at 4pm.