PROTECT ADVOCACY - PETITION AND EVENT IN SUPPORT OF RAJIV MENON KC

The Haldane Society encourages members and supporters to sign the petition calling for the contempt proceedings against Rajiv Menon KC to be withdrawn.

The case raises important questions about the independence of the legal profession and the ability of defence advocates to represent their clients fearlessly.

Sign the petition:

https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/save-britain-s-juries

We also encourage members to attend this important online event:

Descent into Authoritarianism? Undermining the Role of Defence Lawyers: The Rajiv Menon KC Case

Wednesday 22 July 2026 - 5.30pm to 7.00pm - Online

Chaired by Pete Weatherby KC, the panel brings together leading lawyers and human rights campaigners, including John Hendy KC, Michael Mansfield KC, Gareth Peirce, Shami Chakrabarti, Helena Kennedy KC, and many others, to discuss the wider constitutional implications of the case.

Register here:

https://onepumpcourt.co.uk/seminars/descent-into-authoritarianism-undermining-the-role-of-defence-lawyers-the-rajiv-menon-kc-case/

Please sign, attend if you can, and share widely.

ELDH STATEMENT ON MIGRATION

Please view the linked statement of our affiliate organisation, European Association of Lawyers for Democracy and World Human Rights (ELDH) below. This has been drafted to mark the execution of the EU Pact on Migration, but also to assert ELDH's position on migration in the face of far-right/fascist policies and the erosion of the rule of law globally.

ELDH statement on migration — 17 June 2026

PDF available at:

PDF Link - ELDH on Migration — June 2026

Haldane Event, 26 May 2026: Why Juries Matter

UPDATE STATEMENT ON RAJIV MENON KC

The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers welcome the news that Rajiv Menon KC won his appeal against the decision to prosecute him for contempt of court. The Court of Appeal’s judgment on 12 May confirms that the trial judge’s decision to refer Rajiv directly to the High Court for contempt proceedings was unlawful as the Crown Court does not have the power to initiate contempt proceedings in that way. Accordingly, the High Court’s subsequent decision to progress the proceedings and set directions was also unlawful and the Court of Appeal have quashed the proceedings.

We note that the Court of Appeal has left open the possibility of the trial judge recommencing contempt proceedings by a different route. Contempt proceedings should never have been initiated in the first place. It amounted to a serious misuse of a draconian and punitive procedure which was entirely inappropriate in these circumstances. We hope that this will therefore be the end of the matter but will stand in solidarity with Rajiv should there be any further proceedings. We invite all those involved in the criminal justice system to do the same.

STATEMENT OF SOLIDARITY WITH RAJIV MENON KC

The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers stands in solidarity with Rajiv Menon KC regarding his prosecution for contempt of court. Rajiv represented the first defendant in the recent trials of six pro-Palestine activists arising from direct action taken at a facility in Filton, Bristol in August 2024. The facility is owned by Elbit Systems UK, a subsidiary of an Israeli arms company.

The trial judge referred Rajiv to the High Court to consider contempt of court proceedings against him following the closing speech he delivered to the jury at the end of the first trial. This is a shocking and unprecedented attack on a highly experienced, leading criminal defence barrister for doing his duty to fearlessly and passionately defend his client.

Media reporting regarding these proceedings has noted that there are no known previous instances of a barrister being prosecuted for contempt of court over a closing speech. Such an approach risks having a chilling effect on advocates in the future. Barristers’ independence is a fundamental principle of the justice system. They do not act on behalf of the court. Barristers must robustly and diligently defend their clients and present their clients’ cases and should not have to do so under fear of prosecution.

We are deeply concerned that these proceedings have arisen in the context of a protest trial, which in recent years have seen increasingly draconian restrictions imposed by judges regarding what defences can be advanced and what defendants and defence barristers are permitted to say to juries. The stark difference in approach compared to other criminal trials suggests a clear intention of ensuring guilty verdicts and fears in some quarters of the law that jurors may acquit protestors according to their conscience, as is their right. This is coupled with increasingly severe sentences for those who are found guilty. In that context, the proceedings against Rajiv represent a further attack on the right to protest and on those who exercise that right, and an attempt to further limit the protection afforded to protestors of being tried by a jury.

We invite all those involved in the criminal justice system, including the Criminal Bar Association and the Bar Council, to condemn this prosecution and call for it to be dropped, and to give their support to Rajiv.

HALDANE STATEMENT ON BANNING PALESTINE SOLIDARITY MARCHES

The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers notes with concern recent statements from politicians including the Prime Minister suggesting that Palestine solidarity marches may be stopped or banned. We are equally concerned that the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, Jonathan Hall KC, has called for a “moratorium” on such marches, and claimed that it is “impossible” for them not to “incubate” antisemitism.

We condemn recent antisemitic attacks around the country and extend our solidarity to the Jewish community. However, the response to such events is for communities to stand together against violence. What should not and cannot be allowed is a clampdown on the right to protest on unsupported and overbroad grounds. To suggest, as Mr Hall and others have done, that Palestine solidarity marches have anything to do with the attacks we have seen is both wrong and dangerous.

For more than two years, hundreds of thousands of people, including Jewish campaigning organisations and anti-racist activists, have turned out to express solidarity with the Palestinian people and to oppose genocide. The police already have a range of powers under existing legislation they can use, and which we have seen used, in order to deal with anyone suspected of offences. Any restriction on freedom of expression and assembly must be lawful, necessary and proportionate.

It is striking that, even as these threats are made, the Met has refused the Palestine Coalition’s preferred Nakba Day route on 16 May while clearing Central London for a far-right mobilisation called by Tommy Robinson on the same day. There is no justification for the threats to the right to protest we have seen in recent days.

The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers will support all appropriate legal challenges to any ban or sweeping restriction imposed on Palestine solidarity marches. We stand with all those exercising the fundamental rights to freedom of expression and assembly in solidarity with the Palestinian people.

Haldane Event, 28 April 2026: Who Controls the Future of Work

Who Controls the Future of Work: Can we have a progressive, pro-worker AI strategy?

AI is reshaping the workplace at speed. Governments, tech giants and management consultants are driving the agenda, while workers and unions are working to catch up.

The stakes are not just jobs. They are also pay, control, working conditions, and who benefits from the wealth technological change creates.

This event asks whether progressives can move beyond reacting to AI and start shaping it. How do we defend workers, democratise technological change, and build a genuinely pro-worker strategy for the future of work?

We are bringing together speakers from across the trade union movement and legal sector for a serious discussion about the narratives, organising, policy and legal frameworks needed to get there.

The evening will include speakers, a panel discussion, open conversation and a chance to connect with others working on these issues.

Pelican House, 144 Cambridge Heath Road, Bethnal Green London E1 5QJ, 28 April 2026, 7pm

Hybrid event: join in person or online.

Speakers:

Adam Cantwell-Corn, Tech Policy Lead, TUC

Kate Jones, AI Policy Officer, UNISON

Aparna Surendra, Algorithm Governance Lead, AWO

Chaired by Liam Welch, Co-chair, Haldane

Sign up via Eventbrite here:

Who Controls the Future of Work - Eventbrite

The event is free to attend and spaces are going fast, so please reserve a place in advance.

A Zoom link will be sent to registrants through Eventbrite ahead of the event.

HALDANE SPRING 2026 PROGRAMME

Haldane Society AGM: Tuesday 24 February 2026

The Annual General Meeting of the Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers will take place on Tuesday 24 February 2026 from 6:30pm, in person at Pelican House (Common Room), Bethnal Green, and online via Zoom. Attendance in person is encouraged where possible.

This is a members-only AGM. Please ensure your Haldane membership is active before attending. If your membership has lapsed, or if you would like to join for the first time, please visit haldane.org/join in advance.

Programme:

• 6:30pm – Guest talk and Q&A: Fahad Ansari (Riverway Law)

• 7:15pm – AGM business

The Zoom link and AGM papers will be sent to members the day before.

Get involved:

Members are warmly encouraged to consider standing for election to the Executive Committee. If you are interested in becoming actively involved, please email secretary@haldane.org. Members are also welcome to submit political motions for discussion at the AGM.

Statement by ELDH on the USA’s Illegal Act of Aggression Against Venezuela

We draw attention to the statement published by our affiliate organisation, European Association of Lawyers for Democracy & World Human Rights (ELDH), condemning the illegal act of aggression by the United States against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

The statement sets out in detail the legal basis on which the United States’ actions constitute a violation of international law, undermine the international legal order, and pose a serious threat to international peace and security.

You can read the full statement here:

ELDH Statement on the Illegal Act of Aggression by the United States Against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (PDF)

ELDH states:

“We strongly and unequivocally condemn the acts of aggression carried out by the United States against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. These actions constitute a grave and flagrant violation of international law, undermine the international legal order, and pose a serious threat to international peace and security…

We call upon European States and the institutions of the European Union to publicly and unequivocally denounce these acts of aggression, reaffirm their commitment to the UN Charter and international law, and refrain from any action that may contribute to or legitimize unlawful uses of force.

We further urge Member States to request an urgent meeting of the United Nations Security Council to address this situation, to demand the immediate release of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, and to take all necessary measures, in accordance with the Charter, to uphold international peace and security and ensure accountability for violations of international law.”