Magistrates’ court: Barrister was appearing for the Probation Service
A barrister who made inappropriate comments to probation staff in a case where he was instructed by the Probation Service has been reprimanded.
A Bar disciplinary tribunal found three charges proved against Timothy Mark Compton, who was called in 1984 but is currently not practising. He is believed to have retired.
Beyond the fact that Mr Compton was instructed to appear on behalf of the Probation Service on 31 January 2023, the background of the matter has not yet been made clear – the tribunal’s decision is currently open to appeal and the full decision and reasons for it not yet published.
According to the Bar Standards Board, the tribunal found that Mr Compton behaved in a way which was likely to diminish public trust by saying to ‘Person A’, a female member of probation staff, using words to the effect of “But darling you are so decorative” and/or “You are looking at me like I am a fucking dirty pig”.
He was also found to have made other comments to probation staff while in a conference room preparing for the hearing, one of which was: “You work for probation, you should always have your fucking statement, what are you thinking not bringing it with you, it’s fucking simple.”
He said as well that “Probation need to bring their fucking statements” and “You need to have access to your fucking laptops and fucking contact logs”.
The tribunal decided that Mr Compton again diminished public trust and also failed to provide a competent standard of work and service to his client.
He was reprimanded and ordered to pay the Bar Standards Board costs of £2,841.
