STAND UP THE VINTAGE OF 1976
On Saturday 13th June 2026, Circuit celebrated 150 years in Middle Temple Hall. What a night it was. An enigmatic location with an electric atmosphere and the spirit of Circuit was truly alive. Members of Circuit were the beating heart of this evening. It was a privilege to stand up and open the nights proceedings.
I would like to thank all of those who organised the evening and who put a great deal of time and personal effort into making it a success. As the new leader, I thank an old leader, Richard Wright KC who was the mastermind behind proceedings for all of his hard work and vision towards the evening.
A special thank you must go to Jessica Heggie, Matt Harding and Katherine White for all their efforts also.
To mark such an auspicious event, previous Circuit Leaders have donated a wonderful new piece of silver. It is to be the Leader’s cup and dates from 1836 so, finally, the Edwardian Gentleman Nutcracker who has stood tall and proud for so long, has a new companion.
It has been kindly donated by the previous Leader’s of Circuit, many of who attended the dinner: Malcolm Swift KC, Stuart Brown KC, HH Peter Collier, Nigel Sangster KC, Alistair Macdonald KC, HH Simon Bourne-Arton KC, John Elvidge KC, Richard Wright KC, Jason Pitter KC and myself. On behalf of Circuit, thank for your kind donation.
It was simply wonderful to see old and new, all gathered together to celebrate this iconic evening.
Congratulations to all of those who joined Circuit, and who chose to state their pretensions at Grand Court. Further, we had with us the “Vintage of 1976”. Members who attended the 100 years celebration of Circuit, way back in 1976, one of the longest and hottest summers on record. A memorable year and it was a very special and memorable moment for us when they all stood and turned to Grand Court. I thank the following individuals for all their years of service to Circuit:
HH Robert Taylor, Sir James Goss, Malcolm Swift KC, HH Stephen Ashurst, HH Peter Armstrong, HH Deborah Sherwin, HH David Wood, HH Anthony Briggs, HH Peter Collier and Ben Nolan KC.
They are the voices of history and embody the lifetime of camaraderie that this Circuit is so well known for.
THE LADY CHIEF JUSTICE: A ROLE MODEL
I mention these names against the backdrop of having with us, what was a simply amazing and truly honoured guest list from the High Court, not least of which was the attendance of the Lady Chief Justice. In short, my dear Circuiteers, we had the giants of the Judiciary present.
Such an honour for us to have the Lady Chief Justice attend, to take time from her busy diary and be part of this incredible celebration. It required a double take when I looked from where I was sitting to see so many senior Judicial posts filled now by women. It is a simple fact that the most amazing and influential Law makers in this country, appointed absolutely on merit, are women. This surely must demonstrate that we collectively as a society and more in particular as a Circuit, have turned a corner, and are representative of the modern and inclusive approach that is now expected.
I pause at this juncture because if we reflect upon all of the work that is being done across Circuit, together with the changes we have recently made, we are the embodiment of change, we are leaders in this and we must continue in that direction of travel.
The red bag signed by the Lady Chief Justice, our junior, Jessica Heggie and myself raised £5,000 which in conjunction with the raffle raised an outstanding £10,075. The proceeds will be split between the Diversity Committee Scholarship Fund and local designated charities so thank you to our fabulous Charity Committee and all those involved - yet again another wonderful example of what we do on Circuit.
EVIDENCE LINK
The Lady Chief Justice is a Champion of Diversity, but let me be clear, she also gets the job done. There is no better example of this than when she gave evidence before the House of Lords Constitution Select Committee 10th June 2026. I am putting the link here for you to watch. Any aspiring advocate needs to see this.
The Lady Chief Justice’s evidence appearance can be viewed on Parliament TV.
Again, we thank her and all of the other senior Judiciary for attending.
FINAL THANKS AND REFLECTIONS
I draw to a close now in this message to the members of the North Eastern Circuit. It was a glittering evening and we will continue to go forwards together. All of you who travelled down to London were the most determined of individuals and those of you who could not attend, we missed you, but you were not forgotten. This was truly a celebration and a night to remember. So here is to the next 150 years – onwards and upwards.
Caroline Goodwin KC
Leader of the North Eastern Circuit