The document is an issue of "The Barrister" magazine dated Easter Term 2018. It contains the following articles: 1) An interview with Dominic Grieve QC MP about his role as an unlikely rebel leader against Brexit. 2) An article on handling video evidence with care in legal proceedings. 3) Tips for sharpening presentation skills, including engaging audiences, appearing enthusiastic, varying delivery, relating to audiences, posture, and non-verbal communication. 4) A message from Baroness Blackstone upon becoming the new Chair of the Bar Standards Board.

1. 01the barrister Easter Term 2018
the barrister
#76
ESSENTIAL READING FOR BARRISTERS
10th April -25th May 2018
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EASTER Term Issue www.barristermagazine.com ISSN 1468-926X
Features
10 Mutiny on the BREXIT
A most unlikely rebel leader
An Interview with Dominic Grieve
QC MP
By Phillip Taylor MBE, Reviews
Editor of ‘the barrister’ and Head of
Richmond Green Chambers
20 Video Evidence: Handle
with Care
By David Spreadborough, Amped
Software
22How to sharpen your
presentation skills
By Douglas McPherson, Director,
Size 10½ Boots and author of
The Visible Lawyer and Package,
Position, Profit
29 New Silks - A pension
annual allowance window of
opportunity?
By Andrew McErlean, Chartered
Financial Planner, Saunderson
House
News
5 A new digital service is allowing
people to submit appeals over
their tax bill entirely online.
6 Government commitment to fixed
recoverable costs welcomed
Publishing Director: Derek Payne
0203 5070 249
email: info@barristermagazine.com
Publishers: media management
corporation ltd
Design and Production: Jeremy Salmon
email: info@wedesign.media
A message from BSB Chair,
Baroness Blackstone
It is a great honour and privilege to take
over from Sir Andrew Burns as the lay
Chair of the Bar Standards Board. I am
very much looking forward to deepening
my understanding of the work of the Bar
and to writing in The Barrister to keep you
informed about our work.
I started at the BSB in January and I
am taking a close interest in the current
regulatory issues being considered by the
BSB. These include taking into account
the views obtained from our two recent
consultations on Future Bar Training and
on transparency standards at the Bar in
response to the recommendations of the
Competition and Markets Authority. We
are very grateful to all those who took
part in those consultations and we remain
committed to working closely with you as
we take these issues forward.
In February, we published the latest
version of the BSB Handbook. The new
version, which
is available to
read on our
website (http://
bit.ly/2FStU2A),
introduces new
Authorisation
to Practise
requirements,
streamlines the
public and
licensed access
rules, and
introduces new
obligations for
barristers and BSB
regulated entities to
comply with the new
Anti-Money Laundering regulations.
These are important and necessary
changes. They introduce four new
reporting requirements whenever
Addressing
the challenges
of financial
management in
chambers
No one welcomes having to pay their
rent, but it’s a fact of life for a member of
chambers. For many, the role of Treasurer
or being the manager tasked with financial
management of a set means being faced
with an unpleasant challenge. There is
a potential conflict of interest between a
chambers and its members when it comes
to setting and collecting rent. Can this
be addressed and what are the financial
controls that should be in place to ensure
that members can see their money is spent
effectively?
From fee note to receipt of funds, to rent
invoice, to payment of chambers’ costs,
the financial management of a set should
be a straightforward task. One of the key
benefits of working within a chambers is
that it allows members to spread the costs
of clerking, premises and administration
between them, so there should be a clear
cost advantage. Yet many sets have faced
problems over the years and some sadly
have failed completely.
A simple challenge is that each member’s
individual practice is a business in its
own right and the chambers must be
able to demonstrate value for the money
being charged. Another issue will always
be getting agreement to significant
expenditure, as each member will have
their own view as to what the priorities
should be.
A previous article considered the
important factors in delivering change
in chambers. One of the critical points
highlighted was the necessity of good
quality communication. Building confidence
in the financial management of a
set relies just as strongly on good
communication. This ranges from
p.8
p.8
Baroness Blackstone
Chair, Bar Standards
Board

2. 22 the barrister Easter Term 2018
How to sharpen your
presentation skills
By Douglas McPherson, Director, Size 10½ Boots
and author of The Visible Lawyer and Package,
Position, Profit
The only problem is, presenting well,
requires a very different set of skills to
advocacy.
In our experience, the most common
reason why barristers fail to make the
most of their speaking slots is there is
a nervousness around experimenting
with different and, dare I say, more
modern ways to present themselves
and their material. As a result the talks
delivered tend to be fairly generic and
a bit predictable so fail to achieve the 2
main objectives of presenting:
1. To engage the audience
2. To leave the audience thinking
“that’s someone I want to work
with”
And before we go any further, let me
underline there is no coincidence that
‘showing just how deep into the detail
of the particular point of law you can
delve into’ isn’t on that list. That is
never the point of presenting.
The good news is as with all things
related to marketing and business
development, there is a process that
can be learned. Better still, as far
too many barristers still refuse to
acknowledge there is a need let alone a
way to improve their presentations, if
you take this advice you will instantly
stand out from the crowd. And if
you stand out, you will find new
contacts, new conversations and new
opportunities almost immediately.
The first thing you need to do is change
your mind-set.
As I said the aim is to leave a positive
impression. This means success
hinges on your ability to engage your
audience, not on your ability to provide
technical information. Although it
will undoubtedly take a while to pull
your content together, the truth is
your audience will forget most of the
information you share (irrespective of
how well it’s delivered) but they won’t
forget you.
To make sure their memory is a positive
one, here are a few things you can
work on:
1 Start strong
First impressions count for everything;
people will form a view in the first
30 seconds and rarely budge from
that position so make sure that if you
are going to over-rehearse, over-plan
or over-invest in any part of your
presentation, it has to be the opening.
2 Be enthusiastic
People are much more likely to believe
what you say if you look like you believe
what you are saying. Similarly people
are much more likely to listen if you
appear to be interested in the subject
rather than just getting through it
because you’ve been told to.
3 Vary your delivery
Think back to presentations you’ve sat
through. I am sure you will remember
the speakers who droned on in a
relentless monotone? And how did
that make you feel? Exactly! Work on
varying your intonation and try to use a
few pauses for dramatic effect because
it’ll keep your audience’s attention.
4 Look like your audience.
‘People buy from people they like’ is a
popular cliché but did you know there’s
more? The whole phrase is ‘people
buy from people they like and people
who are like them’. Make sure the
way you present yourself matches your
audience. If you’re talking to corporate
Whether you are asked
to speak at one of the
seminars your Chambers
is running, at an industry
event relevant to your
practice or at a training
session your clerks have
organised at the offices
of one of your most
important instructing
solicitors, if you’re going
to win work from your
efforts, you need to make
an instant impact.

3. 23the barrister Easter Term 2018
solicitors in the City, be super smart. If
you’re talking to a media or creative
audience, dress informally. And if
you’re in any doubt as to the culture
of the firm you’re talking to, ask your
clerks so you get it right.
5 Think about your posture.
Stand tall and put your shoulders back.
It will give you a natural authority and
instantly make you more credible to
your audience.
6 Remember your NVC.
Non-verbal communication is a key
component of presenting. Smile,
maintain eye-contact and try to use
your hands (in a controlled way) for
amplification.
While these are tips that will improve
the way you present, the true secret of
engaging an audience lies as much with
what you present as how you present.
The trap many falls into is rushing
into production without working out
what they want to cover. Before you
even consider opening PowerPoint,
make sure you know what you want to
achieve and what you want to happen
after your talk. Knowing this will make
it much easier for you to make sure
what you want to happen does happen.
When it comes to preparation, there are
3 steps:
1. Planning
2. Delivery
3. Follow Up
1. Preparation
I have no doubt that throughout
your career you have been spoon fed
preparation clichés about preparing
to fail and preparation preventing an
unspeakable standard of performance.
However, the truth is, the more time
you invest in the preparation of your
slides, the better the results you achieve
will be.
When it comes to planning the structure
of your talk have a good think about:
What you want people to do after your
talk
Your talk is never “just a profile
builder”; you want to make your
audience to do something specific
afterwards so there’s a better chance
their next brief comes your way.
Once you know what you want them to
do (and that could be to arrange further
training, to invite you for a coffee to
discuss a particular point of law or to
sign up for special report exploring the
topic’s you presented in more detail)
you must add – and apologies for the
marketing-ism – a clear call-to-action so
that they take that step.
If you only take one point from this
article, take this one. A call-to-action
will help you take things forward
naturally and that alone will improve
the results your talks generate.
The make-up of your audience
Before you can plan what you want
to say you need to know who will be
attending, how many will be attending,
and what approach (i.e. formal or
informal and interactive or academic)
they will expect. This insight affects
everything from the content you include
through to the way you structure and
present that content.
How well your audience will
understand your topic
Do you pitch your talk for beginners
or as a high level discussion as to the
possible future development/application
of your topic? Again this will inform
your content the way you deliver it.
Your venue
Make sure you know about the
projection facilities, whether you’ll need
to bring your own laptop on the day or
send slides in advance, how the room
will be laid out and, most importantly
what support you’ll have on the day.
Having all of this sorted before you
arrive will help put you more at ease.
How much of an introduction do you
need to give yourself?
Do you really have to share a detailed
professional biography at the start of
your talk? These intros can be dull so
should be avoided if possible (especially
if your audience already knows you
and Chambers). If you are speaking to
a new audience and need to introduce
yourself, keep your CV short and
relevant.
Now you have all of this information
to hand, you can start preparing your
structure and your slides.
When it comes to structuring your talk,
less is always more. First, work out the
3 key messages you want people to take
away from your talk (and keep to 3 as
peoples’ ability to retain information
from talks is very poor). You start
by telling the audience what those 3
points are, go through the 3 points then
conclude by reminding them what the 3
points were.
If this approach makes you nervous,
remember you can always provide
more detail after you speak by email,
in a hard-copy hand-out or – best of all
– in closing offer more information for
anyone who brings you their business
card.
With regards to your slides, remember
these are designed to hold your
audience’s attention, not to batter them
into ocular submission so:
• Never cover a slide in text. Instead
use a handful of words and a
memorable image that will make
the audience stop and think “what’s
that got to do with anything?” It
will better hold their attention.
• Bin the bullet points and use words
in boxes; they’re easier on the eye
and easier to remember.
• Wherever you can, use images,
schematics, charts and diagrams in
place of loads of words.
• Always keep your sentences short
and make your font big.
This may all seem a bit daunting
(particularly if you are used to
traditional text heavy slides) but
remember your slides are only a
backdrop; they aren’t a substitute for
you. If all you are doing is reading
your slides, you don’t need to be there!
Also, if all of the information is up on
the wall behind you, that’s where your
audience’s attention will be fixed. That
will prevent you from connecting with
them and maximising the likelihood
your efforts will turn into new work.
2. Delivery
If you’re anything like me, you’ll
already be exhausted by the time
you’ve done your prep and produced
your slides and notes. However, if your
delivery isn’t strong, the time you’ve
invested will be in vain.
While rehearsing is something else to
fit into your busy schedule, it is vital.
Rehearsal removes any glitches and
the umms and aahs and will improve
how confidently you present on the day
and the more confident you appear,
the more credible your audience will
consider you to be.
Rehearsal will also make you much
more familiar with your content
which means you’ll be able to adhere
to another golden rule – never hold
your notes. Your primary objective is
to engage your audience and holding
notes hampers that for 2 reasons:
• If you are a little nervous, you will
shake your documents and this
will unsettle your audience or even
suggest to them you are not 100%
sure of what you are saying.
• Looking at your notes will stop you
from making eye-contact with your
audience; you need that eye contact
if you’re going to build any sort of
connection.
On the subject of barriers, the other
one to lose is the lectern. Standing
at a lectern separates you from your
audience and again makes it harder
for you to engage people. Have the
confidence to step forward and speak to
your audience rather than at them.
With regards to your physical delivery
we have already looked at things like
enthusiasm, intonation and posture
earlier in the article. However, as
holding your audience’s attention is
absolutely pivotal to your success, here
are a few other things you can try:
• Experiment with adding other
media like video
• Have breaks and break-outs
• Involve the audience via questions
and exercises
• Tell stories.

4. 24 the barrister Easter Term 2018
Stories add a lot to a presentation.
They aren’t just more interesting and
more contextual; they also allow you
show your personality. This is crucial
because a personal connection will
make people more likely to want to
continue your conversation after your
talk.
And, because when you tell stories you
are just retelling something you know
well, you can recall the detail without
having to look at the screen behind you.
Again this makes it much easier for you
to strengthen your connection with your
audience.
And lastly, always keep your hand-
outs back until after your talk, never
give them out before. If you provide
hand-outs before you speak people will
naturally start reading through them
rather than listen to you. Keeping them
back until after the talk also gives you
the first natural opportunity to...
3. Follow up
If you have kept your material back you
have your first follow up in the bag:
“I have a PDF that provides more detail
on all the points we’ve covered today. If
you’d like a copy please give me a copy
of your card before you leave and I’ll
email it over.”
I am willing to bet the majority of those
in attendance will leave you a card.
Once you have the card make sure
you send the material (not following
through on a promise will be
remembered) and always send it from
your account; it’s you that met them not
your clerks so if you outsource such a
simple task, it’ll be received negatively.
Then Linkedin with your new contacts.
Even if your diary precludes you from
any other form of follow up, the updates
and articles you share via LinkedIn will
help you stay visible.
If you have set your own objectives
during the planning stage, you will
know what you want to happen after
your talk. You will have included a
call-to-action to make sure that next
step happens whether that next step is
more training, exclusive written content
or some face-to-face time with you. I
do understand the follow up is going
to be the most ‘salesy’ (and, therefore,
most uncomfortable) part of the process
so here are a few tips to make it a little
easier:
• Suggest small, easy ‘baby
steps’ rather than forcing big
commitments; provide as many
options as possible and make all
your suggestions or instructions
clear.
• Make sure what you suggest isn’t
just the same run of the mill, tick
box offer that everyone makes but
is something that’ll actually deliver
value to your new contacts.
• Make sure all new names are
added to Chambers’ marketing
database so they continue
to receive a wider range of
communications (without you
having to do anything).
And always remember that for a
solicitor instructing counsel is largely
about timing.
It is massively unlikely your talk will
coincide exactly with their need for
your services. Your follow up has to
be based upon ongoing contact so you
stay on a potential instructing solicitors’
radar and then, when the time is right,
they think of you, not a competitor. One
presentation in isolation won’t do that.
A successful presentation is only the
first step in a campaign which is why
the follow up has to be considered an
essential part of your preparation, not
an optional add-on.
Douglas McPherson,
Director, Size 10½ Boots and author
of The Visible Lawyer and Package,
Position, Profit
29 Bridgford Road, West Bridgford,
Nottingham, NG2 6AU
5 Chancery Lane, London, EC4A 1BL
t: 077865 40191
e: douglas@tenandahalf.co.uk
w: www.tenandahalf.co.uk
Proportionality Update
“The proportionality rules now guide every detailed or summary
assessment of costs on the standard basis. It will no longer be
possible for successful parties to recover the absurd levels of costs
which previously caused disquiet.” So said Sir Rupert Jackson in
his 2016 book ‘’The Reform of Civil Litigation’ at paragraph 3-044.
By John Brown, Member of the Costs team at the Forum of Insurance
Lawyers and Director at Acumension
If only things were so straightforward.
Nearly 5 years on from the
introduction of the new proportionality
test, we are none the wiser as to its
proper application.
The black letter of the law provides at
CPR 44.3 (5):
Costs incurred are proportionate if
they bear a reasonable relationship to -
(a) the sums in issue in the
proceedings;
(b) the value of any non-monetary
relief in issue in the proceedings; (c)
the complexity of the litigation;
(d) any additional work generated
by the conduct of the paying party;
and
(e) any wider factors involved in the
proceedings, such as reputation or
public importance.”
There, in around 60 words is the
essence of the test, wrapped up in 5
factors.
Given what a profound difference
the new test was intended to make
one might reasonably ask why more
detailed guidance was not given. Sir
Rupert resisted a Practice Direction
on proportionality because he was
convinced that it would provoke
satellite litigation “...lawyers leave
no stone unturned when it comes to
arguing about costs” he opined in one
lecture.
His stance was supported by Lord
Neuberger MR who in the 15th
implementation lecture went so far
as to describe detailed guidance as
“positively dangerous.” Oddly, he
thought some satellite litigation was
necessary “while the courts work out
the Law.” Well, to date, the courts have
done no such thing.
What do we know?
At first instance, in BNM V MGN Ltd
the Senior Costs Judge dealing with
a £241,817 bill of costs, assessed
‘reasonable’ costs to be £167,389. He
then proceeded to slash that sum by
half, to arrive at what he considered to
be a ‘proportionate’ sum of £83,964.
In his book mentioned above, Sir