PRO-ISRAEL barristers have been reported to the legal standards watchdog for alleged “intimidation” of anti-genocide activists.
Baron David Pannick KC, Baron Anthony Grabiner KC and Stephen Hockman KC were referred to the Bar Standards Board (BSB) over what is described as a “pattern” of legal threats by UK Lawyers for Israel made against pro-Palestine groups, Novara Media reports.
The European Legal Support Centre (ELSC) and the Public Interest Law Centre (PILC) said in their complaint that UK Lawyers for Israel made repeated reference to the three top briefs’ legal bona fides, which may have “amplified the authority and perceived seriousness of legal threats and allegations”.
It was also argued, in the complaint sent on May 20, that UK Lawyers for Israel has targeted “lawful advocacy, cultural work, education and public expression relating to Palestine”.
The complaint said that the effect of this meant intimidating small groups, often without legal expertise.
Pannick, who advised former prime minister Boris Johnson over the Partygate scandal, and Grabiner, a former master of Clare College, Cambridge, are members of the House of Lords.
UK Lawyers for Israel describes itself as a group of legal professionals who “support Israel using their legal skills” and aim to “to support Israel, Israeli organisations, Israelis, and/or supporters of Israel against BDS and other attempts to undermine, attack or delegitimise them”.
The PILC told Novara Media that UK Lawyers for Israel’s work is “a prime example of lawfare”, while an ELSC spokesperson said the complaint “points to a pattern of legal intimidation through the use of senior legal status in correspondence targeting individuals and organisations engaged in Palestine advocacy”.
The group previously successfully lobbied an NHS trust to ban staff from wearing symbols of support for Palestine. Chelsea and Westminster hospital in London last year took down artwork on its walls by Palestinian children after UK Lawyers for Israel complained that it made Jewish patients feel “vulnerable, harassed and victimised”.
The ELSC and PILC have asked the regulator to determine whether the three barristers’ use of professional status breaches the BSB’s code of conduct. This includes duties of integrity and independence, and the requirement to maintain public confidence in the profession.
A BSB spokesperson said: "The Bar Standards Board does not comment as to whether or not it has received any information about potential misconduct by a barrister regardless of how any information comes to our attention. Such matters are dealt with in accordance with the procedures set out in detail on our website.
"These procedures are usually conducted confidentially unless they result in a listing for a Disciplinary Tribunal hearing. Such listings are published on the Bar Tribunals & Adjudication Service website and hearings are held in public.”
Pannick, Grabiner and Hockman were approached for comment.
