The winners of the second annual Bar Council Employed Barristers' Awards have been announced following a black-tie awards dinner at the Imperial War Museum in London on Friday 29 June.
Barristers from a range of sectors, including government, the CPS, business, and the armed forces, turned up to find out who the judges had selected to win from over 50 nominations across seven categories.
The winners were:
Employed barrister of the year - Katherine Willerton, Government Legal Department
Young employed barrister of the year - Catherine Yardley, Crown Prosecution Service
Outstanding achievement by a public service barrister - Aoife Drudy, Government Legal Department
Outstanding achievement by a barrister in a corporate organisation or solicitors firm - Grant Warnsby, BP plc
Employed advocate of the year - Alistair Grainger, Reeds Solicitors/Reeds Chambers
Outstanding performance by an HM forces barrister - Commander Ian Park, Royal Navy
Exceptional Contribution to the Employed Bar - Ros Wright CB QC.
Chair of the Bar, Andrew Walker QC, said: "The winners and the shortlisted nominees, as well as the 160 employed barristers at the awards, attest to the exceptional quality of those working at the employed Bar.
"The breadth of these awards also shows just how successfully barristers have been able to deploy their skills in employed practice, while remaining true to the ethos of excellence, ethics and independence that mark out the Bar and underpin its role in supporting the rule of law, both in England and Wales and internationally. At the heart of what we do, we remain one Bar.
"Too much of the talent at the employed Bar, and the contribution employed barristers make, goes unsung. Adding to the work that the Bar Council does to support and promote the employed Bar, these awards are helping to change that, as well as to highlight the career opportunities on offer at the employed Bar."
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