Law students hear from former President of the Supreme Court

One of Britain’s most senior judges has visited Teesside University to tell students about her extraordinary life and career.

Baroness Hale of Richmond served as President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom from 2017 to 2020 where she presided over some of the most important constitutional cases to come before the court.

Earlier this month, she visited Teesside University’s Middlesbrough campus to speak to students, staff and partners in the University’s School of Social Sciences, Humanities & Law.

Lady Hale, who grew up in Redcar and near Richmond, North Yorkshire, described how she was one the very few women to go to Cambridge in the early 1960s.

At a time when little over 2% of practicing lawyers were female, she opted to study a law degree and graduated at the top of her class.

She went on to pursue a career in academia, while also working part-time as barrister, before being appointed to the judiciary.

As President of the Supreme Court from 2017 to 2020, she was the most senior judge in the country.

During her visit to Teesside University, she talked to the students about the varied cases to come before her in this role and the rationale that led to her decisions, most notably when she, along with all other 11 Justices of the Supreme Court, declared Boris Johnson’s prorogation of Parliament unlawful in 2019.

Lady Hale urged students to discover what areas of law they loved and were inspired by and to make the most of any opportunities that they found interesting and wanted to pursue.

Emma Harbron, Senior Lecturer in Legal Practice (Law, Policing and Investigation) at Teesside University, said: 'We were delighted to welcome Lady Hale to Teesside University for what was an incredibly inspiring and informative talk.

'Everybody who heard her talk could not fail to have been impressed by the determination and indefatigability she has shown throughout her career.

'For our students, the ability to hear from and ask questions of somebody of Lady Hale’s magnitude is something that will remain with them for the rest of their careers.

'As a University which recognises the transformative impact of education and is dedicated to ensuring that people from all walks of life can fulfil their potential, it was particularly gratifying to hear Lady Hale talk about how she has consistently challenged expectations throughout her career and her work to make the legal profession more diverse.'

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