From Tuesday 30th August 2022 until Saturday 3rd September 2022 Fabian participated in the 2022 South Eastern Circuit Bar Mess Foundation Advanced International Advocacy Course at Keble College, Oxford
The aim of this course is to encourage and develop the highest standards of advocacy amongst practitioners in London and the South East. The course is the most demanding and intensive of any advocacy course in the UK.
very participant undertakes each piece of work – which includes written and oral advocacy. Each advocacy exercise is filmed.
Advocacy takes place in small break-up groups of around 6. There is immediate critique in the classroom followed by private one-on-one video critique. The purpose of the sessions during the week is to improve advocacy skills in all areas associated with a trial including expert witness handling. When making your application to attend the course, you must decide on either the Crime or Civil course with a Medical or Accountancy expert course – the expert day will be on the Thursday.
On the last day of the course (Saturday) a full trial takes place (also filmed) for criminal practitioners before a judge and jury, and for civil practitioners before a High Court Judge or Deputy. The jury's deliberations are filmed: each participant receives the film. Jurors also complete a confidential questionnaire on each advocate's performance.
Midway through the week a day and a half is devoted to working with experts in a trial setting. The experts will either be specialist Hospital Consultants (a medical negligence/manslaughter case) or accountants from one of the large accountancy firms. Voice and performance coaching is also available throughout the week from two experts in the field.
Whilst the work on this course is demanding and difficult, firm friendships are made in the context of a supportive collegiate environment. Participants will be living and working with some of the great advocates of this generation, whose intentions are to help each participant realise his or her true potential.
This course is internationally recognised as arguably the best and most intensive advocacy course in the world. In recent years, we have been fortunate enough to have participants from the War Crimes Tribunals in The Hague, and faculty and participants from the Scottish Bar, the Florida Bar, the South African Bar, and the Bars of Australia, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Hong Kong and Malaysia. We, and they, all gain immeasurably from this dimension.
The faculty consists of domestic and international senior juniors, silks and judges, all of whom have undergone teacher training including specific training for this course. The ratio of participant to teacher is approximately 2.5:1.
