Christmas party: Barrister put his hand under woman’s skirt
A male barrister who harassed a woman at his chambers’ Christmas party both physically and verbally has been suspended from practice for three months.
Henry Charles William King, who was called in 2018, admitted the two charges against him arising from the party in December 2023.
The Bar Tribunals and Adjudication Service has only released the headline findings at this stage, so the details and the reasons for its decision may not be known for some time.
Mr King was charged with behaving in a way which could undermine his integrity and/or diminish public trust and confidence by touching ‘Person A’ “under her skirt on the thigh/bottom and/or also on the breast, and the touching was unwanted and/or amounted to harassment”.
He also made comments to Person A that were “unwanted and/or amounted to harassment”.
A Bar Standards Board spokesman said: “Conduct of a sexualised nature has no place in the profession and the public should not expect this from members of the Bar.
“The decision to prevent Mr King from practising, even where the tribunal stated there was compelling mitigation, reflects the seriousness of his conduct.”
BTAS is very inconsistent in releasing the more detailed report on finding and sanction that follows the headline decision in disciplinary cases, with some from last summer still unpublished.
There have been several findings of sexual misconduct by male lawyers at Christmas parties in recent years.
Last December, an ex-partner at City giant Freshfields who groped a female associate after a team Christmas party was suspended for two years, while last March a junior solicitor who groped and propositioned a female colleague at his firm’s Christmas party was suspended for three months.
In 2022, a trainee solicitor who subjected two female colleagues to “harassing and abusive behaviour” at a Chrismas party was fined £2,000, while in 2021 a barrister was reprimanded and fined £6,000 for whispering suggestively to a younger female colleague and then smacking her on the bottom at a chambers’ Christmas party.
