Motherhood, Attwood and a barrister’s journey

After 20 years of practising criminal law, initially as a Higher Court Advocate and predominantly as Defence Counsel in Crown Courts in the East Midlands, Sarah Cornish is now a family barrister at the pioneering and inclusive 2 New Street Chambers, Leicester. The firm, is now in its 100th year, and has been employing award-winning female barristers since taking on trailblazing Yetta Frazer – the first female barrister to practise in Leicester.

Sarah didn’t take the traditional pathway to the bar – law degree, bar finals and pupillage. She first completed a degree in English Literature and Language, before returning to university as a Post Graduate to study law, being called to the Bar aged 34.

Sarah explains her change in direction post-divorce as she settled back in Leicester with two young children under the age of six: “As with all life-changing moments, there was a period to reassess and re-evaluate. I had always had a keen sense of justice and fairness, and decided to retrain as a barrister.”

Not a straightforward move, some might say – especially when you consider the pressures of family life and the juggling of study, work and motherhood.

However, rather than having held her back, Sarah’s life experiences have proved to be a positive asset when dealing with her clients. They are drawn from all walks of life, something she is keen to highlight to others: “I went to a comprehensive school and was the first in my family to go to university. None of the above, however, is a barrier to success if you really want to succeed. Work extremely hard, develop a thick skin and keep going.”

Keep going she did. Having been exposed to gender politics in the mid ’80s through reading literature by Margaret Attwood – who Sarah describes as ‘hugely influential’ – her drive, hard work and self-belief, irrespective of gender, background or position in life, led her to complete a PGDL at De Montfort University before completing her Bar Finals at Nottingham Bar School.

Sarah was called to the Bar at Grays Inn in July 2001.“When I first practised it was the first year that more female barristers had been called at Grays Inn than male. Female barristers were still very much in the minority at the Crown Court. This is changing. It’s not uncommon that a court is entirely made up of women – from the judge to the advocates and the essential court staff.”

There are challenges, though, as Sarah shares: “Life at the bar is incredibly rewarding, but does not sit easily

with the demands of a young family. Hours are long and hearings can be moved at the last minute or run over, which can prove difficult with childcare.

“The experiences I had, when I started my legal journey, however, have been the building blocks to my career. They have played a key part in enabling me to help those who have instructed me at a time when they may be feeling at their most vulnerable.

“Being a member of a Chambers that has been a trailblazer for women in the law, and at the cornerstone of Leicester’s legal community for 100 years, continues to be a privilege.”