Planning barrister ordered to take advice on withdrawing from cases

A barrister has been told by a disciplinary tribunal to take advice on when it is proper to withdraw from a case, after she refused to act in accordance with instructions from a local authority following a planning appeal.

The case involved Nadia Sharif of No 5 Chambers, a barrister since 1985.

A disciplinary hearing by the Bar Tribunals & Adjudication Service earlier this month heard that on 10 February 2014, having accepted instructions to appear on behalf of Wychavon District Council in resisting two planning appeals during a hearing lasting eight days which started on 28 January 2014, Sharif told the local authority that she refused to continue to act in accordance with her instructions.

Sharif also told Wychavon that she was not prepared to make closing submissions on the council’s behalf in accordance with the case that she was instructed to advance and was ceasing to act and returned her written instructions forthwith.

The Tribunal concluded that:

• Sharif had no proper grounds for her refusal to continue to act with her instructions and she had thereby acted in breach of Core Duty 2 of the Bar Standards Handbook;
• Sharif did not have any proper justification for not making closing submissions, for ceasing to act and returning the written instructions under rC25 or rC26 of the Handbook.

The Tribunal sentenced Sharif to attend on the chair of the Bar Standards Board professional conduct committee, Aidan Christie QC, “to be given advice with regard to withdrawal from a case”.

She was also ordered to pay costs of the Bar Standards Board’s witnesses in the sum of £902.58, within 28 days of the expiry of time for serving notice of appeal, or the determination of any appeal, whichever is the later.

Sharif was unavailable for comment.

Mark Smulian