Throughout the course of 2023, Briefed has collaborated closely with barristers and chambers throughout the United Kingdom. Our focus has been on delivering specialised legal compliance training and services, while actively contributing to the support and advancement of the legal industry.
In tandem with these efforts, we are pleased to present our Annual Insights Report for 2024 – a concise overview of the noteworthy developments and trends at the Bar over the past 12 months and predictions for 2024.
AI piques the Bar’s interest:
Likely the hottest topic at the Bar last year was the introduction of A.I. usage among legal professionals. The rapid development of Large Language Models (LLM), such as ChatGPT, became a global phenomenon over an extremely short period, which led to lots of questions and heightened concerns surrounding the technology’s ability to produce accurate, reliable answers – a function that is imperative in the work of a barrister.
Recognising the concern among chambers members and staff, Briefed held a series of webinars addressing the risks and opportunities that A.I. apps posed to the legal industry.
Discussions were intense, with over 500 barristers offering their insights and ideas in attempts to collectively understand an inevitable factor in their daily working lives.
Of course, there were many disagreements among conversation, however the majority believe that A.I. does in fact present a major opportunity to the Bar.
Wellbeing, Bullying & Harassment:
Having worked closely with many sets of chambers across the UK, we were able to gauge what the main concerns are at the Bar.
One theme that remained constant was that barristers and staff are burnt out for a number of reasons.
It has also become apparent that bullying and harassment among barristers and chambers staff is on the rise, after new research revealed that reports of experiencing or observing bullying or harassment increased significantly in 2023.
Technical Insights – Sanctions, AML, LOCS:23:
Major developments were made by the industry’s regulatory bodies in the past year, with a particular focus placed on sanctions and anti-money laundering (AML) compliance.
In hindsight of recent global events, which saw the number of sanctioned organisations dramatically increase, the Bar Standards Board have identified gaps in compliance with both sanctions and AML requirements in chambers.
Having closely collaborated with specialist barristers, Briefed now offers user-friendly training both UK sanctions compliance and AML.
Parallel to this, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is due to launch the brand-new LOCS:23 certification, the first recognised GDPR standard specifically for the legal sector.
The certification will support law firms and chambers in meeting their UK GDPR obligations.
Briefed have also been instrumental in securing funding for barristers to achieve the similar Cyber Essentials+ certification, with over 40 independent barristers in the midst of their journey to being Cyber Essentials certified.
Briefed evolution – Not just GDPR, Major Investment and Team Growth
Looking internally, 2023 was an integral year for the evolution of Briefed as a business. We took our vision beyond an initial focus on GDPR, diversifying our support for the Bar in multiple areas, such as EDI, Wellbeing and Pupillage Supervision.
We have also:
- Collaborated with industry professionals, trailblazers and initiatives
- Expanded our team and capabilities in providing support to the Bar
- Invested £250,000 in our platforms, products and workforce
- Began developments on our exclusive platform for the Bar
- Launched a podcast featuring leading experts and influential figures at the Bar
Our vision for 2024 remains unchanged – continue to actively contribute to the support and advancement of the profession in any way we can.
For more information on these topics, you can download the full report here.
Alternatively, if you have any questions or interests in any of these topics, please feel free to contact us via email at hello@getbriefed.com or call us on 028 9621 6345.
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