News releases
SRA announces appointment of external adjudicators
4 December 2009
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has confirmed the appointments of a panel of 23 external adjudicators, who make decisions on regulatory matters.
Following a first round of appointments, a second round was carried out with a view to improving the diversity profile and collective expertise in equality and diversity. This included using a specialist recruiter and targeted adverts to reach as diverse a pool of applicants as possible.
The new panel is listed below. Adjudicators make decisions such as whether to reprimand a solicitor or refer them to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal, whether to intervene (close down) a firm, and decisions on entry to the Roll of Solicitors by students and foreign lawyers. For complex cases a panel of three will make a decision.
The new panel is made up of 13 men and 10 women. Eleven are lay members and 12 lawyers, and six of the panel are from black and minority ethnic backgrounds.
SRA Chair Peter Williamson said: "The SRA is committed to being a fair employer which recruits, develops and maintains a diverse workforce. We attracted an extremely high-quality pool of applicants for these roles and the panel members appointed have a wealth of experience and expertise to contribute."
Lord Ouseley, who carried out an independent review in 2008 and is monitoring the SRA's progress against its equality and diversity strategy, said:
"The SRA has demonstrated its commitment to equality, inclusion and fair treatment by the way it is now pursuing open and accountable practices and processes in all its activities. This is exemplified in the way it has recruited its additional adjudicators by ensuring that it attracts applicants from all backgrounds, and considers them using objective measurable criteria to ensure that the best qualified and experienced candidates are appointed."
Panel members
Dozie Azubike
Dozie Azubike is a member of the conduct committees of the General Optical Council, the General Social Care Council and the Chartered Institute of Insurers. He is also a lay magistrate and a part-time health and safety inspector.
Carmel Bamford
Carmel Bamford is a solicitor. She is currently undertaking an MA in Islamic and Middle Eastern Law at the School of Oriental and African Studies. Carmel was previously a sole practitioner, the director of Operations and Compliance for a Singapore joint venture company, and the legal director for a property development company.
Nicola Bircher
Nicola Bircher has been in private practice for nine years. She was previously a partner and head of the Family Department. She was appointed a fee-paid immigration judge in 2001 to date, and was appointed a fee paid judge in 2001 to date dealing with incapacity benefits. Nicola was appointed a lay member of the Fitness to Practise Panel of the Nursing and Midwifery Council in 2009.
Libhin Bromley
Libhin Bromley is a member of the Qualifications Committee of the Bar Standards Board and a member of the Family Health Services Appeal Authority. She is also a magistrate and a member of the West Mercia Probation Trust.
John Clarke
John Clarke is a former senior Royal Navy officer who has been the chief executive of both a Government Agency and a Trade Association. He is also a qualified commercial and community mediator.
Dominic Hank Cole
Dominic Hank Cole is the head of Investigation, Wales and West, Serious Organised Crime Agency. He was previously a customs and naval officer.
Richard Davies
Richard Davies is a former board director of the Welsh Assembly Government. Previously held roles include head of the departments for Training and Education, and Public Services and Performance. He was a visiting professor at the University of Glamorgan and a non-executive director (Risk and Audit) – Her Majesty's Court Service, Wales. He is also a non executive of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors Membership Committee and an honorary member of the British Council.
Surendra Deo
Surendra Deo's background is in general medical practice and forensic medicine. His work is mainly divided between professional regulation, as a case examiner with the General Medical Council, and postgraduate training and education, as associate director for the London Deanery. He is also a member of the panel of clinical performance assessors of the National Clinical Advisory Service where he sits on the equalities and diversity forum.
Bal Dhaliwal
Bal Dhaliwal is a first-tier tax judge for the Finance and Tax Tribunal, City of Westminster and independent peer reviewer for the Legal Services Commission. Bal is in private practice on her own account and has also been appointed as a recorder for the Crown Court.
Graham Donald
Graham Donald is the deputy chair of the General Chiropractic Council Investigating Committee, and a retired senior civil servant. He was formerly the deputy clerk of the Privy Council and a lay member of the Bar Standards Board Complaints Committee.
Kate Douglas
Kate Douglas was appointed as a lay adjudicator in September 2008 for Justice of the Peace. She is a lay member of the Disciplinary Committee of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and a mediator at the London SEN Mediation Service. Kate was previously an academic mathematician and chair of a mental health charity.
Fiona Freedland
Fiona Freedland is a qualified solicitor who until recently was legal director of a national medico-legal charity. In April, Fiona returned to work in private medical law practice. She now sits on the Consumer Forum of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Clinical Standards Committee, Fitness to Practise Panel of the Nursing Midwifery Council, and on the Consumer Forum of The Bar Standards Board.
Raj Joshi
Raj Joshi is a barrister in private practice. He is a former director of Legfrom al Practice and Quality Assurance at the Crown Prosecution Service. Raj is a former chair of the Society of Black Lawyers and is currently vice chair. He is a member of the College of Law Advisory Board and a member of National Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders National Race Issues Advisory Committee.
Joanna Marshall
Joanna Marshall is a consultant working in health, social care, regeneration and education in the statutory and voluntary sectors. She provides training, facilitation, business planning, capacity building, strategic leadership and evaluation services to a range of clients. She was previously employed in charities and local government.
Alexandra Marks
Alexandra Marks qualified as a solicitor in 1983. She has worked at Linklaters since 1984, as a partner since 1990. She is a recorder (Civil and Crime) on the South Eastern Circuit, chair of Chartered Institute of Management Accountant Disciplinary Committee, general editor of ‘Cordery on Solicitors' and a Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution Accredited Mediator.
Graham Owen
Graham Owen has previously worked as a non executive director in the National Health Service and a lay council member for several health regulators. He has served on related fitness to practise panels and has been a business mentor for the Prince's Trust, and a school governor.
David Phillips
David Phillips has been a solicitor for over 30 years with experience of practice both in the UK and abroad. He has advised in people in police cells, board rooms and international meetings. He also sits as deputy district judge.
Margaret Sentamu
Margaret Sentamu has worked as an independent diversity and recruitment consultant. She was previously head of Diversity and Principal Consultant at Odgers and Berndtson, and a board member of Traidcraft PLC.
Anne Seifert
Anne Seifert was in practice as a barrister for many years. Anne has previously been an immigration judge, a legal chairman in the Residential Property Tribunal Service, and a deputy chairman in the Agricultural Land Tribunals. She has also been a member of the Conduct Committee of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and chairman of the Discipline and Appeals Committee of the Council for Licensed Conveyancers.
Jetinder Shergill
Jetinder Shergill qualified as a barrister with the Government Legal Service spending the first six months at 6 King's Bench Walk and qualifying at the Home Office. He has been advising the Scottish Government for the last three years and returns to advise the UK Government in 2010. Previously, he was an adjudicator at the Financial Ombudsman Service and taught public law as a visiting lecturer at King's College London. He was called to the bar by Lincoln's Inn in October 2004.
Dominic Spenser-Underhill
Dominic Spenser-Underhill is a solicitor advocate in private practice and a visiting lecturer at Queen Mary, University of London. He is also an arbitrator and legal assessor to two professional disciplinary tribunals.
John Weeden
John Weeden is a solicitor who since 2002 has been a commissioner at the Criminal Cases Review Commission. After private practice in Brighton he served for 28 years in the RAF Legal Branch, ending his service career as the director of RAF Legal Services and the RAF Prosecuting Authority in the rank of air vice-marshal.
Julian Weinberg
Julian Weinberg was admitted as a solicitor in 1985. He is a self-employed consultant and previously a partner in private practice, practising in the field of criminal law. Julian is a solicitor advocate (Higher Courts Criminal), a member of the Legal Services Commission Area Costs Committee, a lay member of the Fitness to Practise Panel of the Nursing and Midwifery Council, a Trustee of the Howard League for Penal Reform, and chair of a Local Education Authority Education Appeal Panel.
Notes to editors
The external adjudicators work between 6-12 days a year each for the SRA.