In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry is put on trial for underage wizardry but the court declares he is “cleared of all charges!”. Alan Blacker, a solicitor advocate who appeared in Cardiff crown court wearing barrister’s robes festooned with medals and ribbons did not get off so lightly - he was condemned by the judge as “looking like something out of Harry Potter”.
The ribboned advocate had been representing a defendant who was found guilty of causing the death of a cyclist and sentenced to five years in prison.
Mr Blacker, or “Dr The Right Honourable The Lord Harley of Counsel of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem” as he prefers to be known, presents an unusual profile in a number of ways.
Alan Blacker has long flowing hair that cascades well below his shoulders, and he asks to be called “Lord Harley” in court. He is not a member of the House of Lords but says his title was inherited from his father in Ireland.
At the end of the trial of the dangerous driver, after the defendant was taken down, Judge David Wynn Morgan asked the solicitor why he was wearing colourful ribbons and ceremonial medals on his gown. The lawyer said that he had earned them for voluntarily medical service with the St John Ambulance.
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The judge said he had been practising in the courts since 1978 and had never seen a barrister or solicitor appear wearing a medal or with ribbons sewn on to his gown.
Judge Morgan referred to an eminent barrister in South Wales who later became a judge, and who, during the Battle of Normandy, had won the highest order of gallantry, the Victoria Cross.
Judge Morgan noted that the war hero would never have worn his medal to court, adding, “he would have considered it the height of vulgarity for such a thing to be done”.
Addressing Alan Blacker he then said, “If you ever appear looking like something out of Harry Potter, you can forget coming before this court... I shall exercise my right to decline to hear you.”
The judge explained that he had not raised this issue during the trial because he was mindful of the fact that a young man had died. He said: “I did not want to interfere with the dignity of the proceedings.”
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In court, Alan Blacker said he had been told by “Lord Chief Justice Thompson” that it was appropriate to wear the medals on his robes. If this excuse is examined by any tribunal, it will not sustain much inquiry as, throughout the history of England and Wales, there has never been a Lord Chief Justice Thompson.
During the trial the lawyer had sent an email to the court signed “Doctor The Right Honourable Lord Harley of Counsel”. The nature of the lawyer’s doctoral qualification was not probed but the judge suggested it was inappropriate for the advocate to style himself “of counsel” if he was a solicitor advocate and not a barrister.
Alan Blacker said the judge’s remarks were baseless and that his good faith was “beyond reproach”.
On LinkedIn, the lawyer states he is fluent in Urdu, Punjabi, Gujarati, Hindi, and the Luo language of Kenya and Tanzania. On other sites, he presents testimonials describing him as a “Mozart of the courtroom” and “almost a national treasure”.
Meanwhile, the Order of St John in Wales has issued a statement saying that Alan Blacker is not one of its members and it invited the Chief Constable for South Wales Police to investigate the matter.
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Other courts have been challenged by the unorthodox couture of some lawyers. In 2009, a federal court in New York ruled that attorney Todd Bank did not have a constitutional right to stand up in court dressed as if he were at a baseball game.
Mr Bank had appeared in a civil court in Queens wearing blue jeans, an open-neck casual shirt and a baseball cap. The judge reproached him for his dress, and the senior court clerk told him to remove his hat. Bank then sued them both, alleging he had a constitutional right to dress as he wished.
Rejecting Mr Todd’s claim, the federal court ruled that the function of a courtroom is to provide a place where civil and criminal disputes can be adjudicated and that in this “staid environment” a judge must maintain proper decorum.
In England, judicially condemned features of an advocate’s appearance have included light-grey trousers, brown suede shoes, a pink shirt, a beard, a tweed jacket, a lapel flower, a gold-buttoned waistcoat, bracelets, and undone shoelaces – though these were not all on the same advocate.
Gary Slapper is global professor at New York University, and director of its London campus. His latest book, Further Weird Cases, is published by Wildy, Simmonds & Hill. You can follow him on Twitter @garyslapper