In preparation for celebrating International Womens Day 2026, Tana Adkin KC speaks in the Berlin Bar Journal about judicial bullying of women and how the JCIO can improve the complaints’ process following the Harman Review.
Judges are bullying and harassing barristers, many of them women and getting away with it, an Independent Review into Bullying, Harassment and Discrimination at the Bar of England & Wales has found.
Harriet Harman KC instructed by the Bar Council concluded:
“The problem is the culture of impunity for those at the top who commit misconduct. Those who are subjected to it feel unable to complain. All the jeopardy is on them. Those in powerful positions … in the judiciary who choose to engage in bullying, harassment or sexual harassment can be pretty confident that nothing will be done about it. And that is what must change. The jeopardy must change from the victim to the perpetrator.”
She considered the judiciary hadn’t accepted that some judges bullied barristers in their courts. She had received “abundant, disturbing and compelling accounts of judicial bullying”, the number and character of which, from different courts and areas could not all be misunderstandings. Often no formal complaints were made “for fear of repercussions” and Harman was concerned about “misogynistic bullying which has a harassment element in relation to women.”
Bullying Behaviour
Judicial conduct that produces intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive conditions for barristers amounts to harassment and if related to a barrister’s sex is also discrimination.
The Bar Council conducted a survey published in October 2024. Of 1233 barristers who saw or experienced bullying and/or harassment the most frequent perpetrators were ‘a member of the judiciary’ (53%). The Bar Council reported to Harman roughly half its records from its “Talk to Spot” anonymous reporting system concerned judicial behaviour that included “misuse of power, unnecessary tone and abuse, rudeness, overbearing behaviour, berating and being shouted at and inappropriate language”.
Female barristers complained to Harman of judges at one court centre having a bullying culture with behaviour so rude and unprofessional court staff were concerned. A tribunal judge with a reputation for bullying junior female barristers ignored a female barrister speaking only to her male counterpart.
Bar Council reports included a judge:
- humiliating a senior female barrister,
- shouting at a junior female barrister,
- treating a female senior junior so badly other Counsel felt it affected the fairness of the trial and
- patronising a female senior junior when unwell asking if she wanted “a cuddle”.
A Culture of Silence
When asked why she would not formally complain, a female junior said “I would have to identify myself. I want to be a KC and a Judge one day. … it feels useless…. I would never report without confidentiality and anonymity …”
A complaint to the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office (“JCIO”) must be within 3 months, cannot relate to decision-making, is not anonymous and is passed to the judge for comment.
Harman found one female barrister’s complaint to the JCIO (a Judge told her to “sit down”, shouted at her and spoke to her in a patronising way) was dismissed because remarks were not timed and were part of “case management”.
Of 2394 complaints received by the JCIO in 2023-24 only 58 were upheld. 24 categorized as “inappropriate behaviour” included bullying of a female Judge, a Judge being rude and impatient with a female litigant and a Lord Justice bullying a barrister.
Although a new regime was introduced in October 2023 the JCIO do not collect data on the status of complainants, it is therefore impossible to know how many are barristers or are female.
Recent complaints
While we await the JCIO 2024-25 report disciplinary statements online reveal 18 upheld complaints in 2024 of “bullying and/or harassment” type behaviour, the vast majority being male judgeswith 6 being senior.
In 2025 7 of 17 similar upheld complaints involved female judges and not a single complaint of bullying and/or harassment was upheld against a senior male Judge.
Misconduct was mostly punished with formal “Advice”. In three instances, judges sanctioned previously for misconduct received a “Warning”. The High Court Judge in 2024 who abused his position trying to have a romantic relationship with an unwilling junior female staff member was “Reprimanded”.
The data clearly shows that female barristers’ reports of bullying are either not being reported or not being dealt with.
Harman’s recommendations and the response
Harman proposed the judiciary use “Talk to Spot” for anonymous reporting, court monitoring, remove the time limit and obtain audio recordings for professional court users.
She recommended sanction decisions include an independent person to tackle the perception of judges marking their own homework too generously.
The Lady Chief Justice responded that the judiciary would review routes to complain and work to challenge unacceptable behaviour. She said “We need to give those who experience bullying, harassment or discrimination the confidence to speak up knowing that something will be done and that their own career will not suffer.”
Conclusion
The JCIO process is not fit for purpose if women barristers won’t use it to report bullying, harassment or discrimination. Despite the courts in England & Wales having vast experience in supporting complainants who report all kinds of abuse, they have yet to put their own house in order. Harman’s recommendations echo tools we know support complainants, using technology for recording, anonymity, no time limit and collection of independent complaints that support each other. These tools, including “Talk to Spot”, are within reach and I would like to see them set up this year to shift the jeopardy onto those responsible for unacceptable behaviour. Good judges have nothing to fear from a complaints system that actively supports complainants.
Tana Adkin KC, Barrister
Former Head of The Criminal Bar Association of England & Wales, Member of the Battonieres du monde, Deputy Head of 15NBS Chambers, London.
