Page 62 - Judicial Diversity Update report

lawyers told us of frequently arriving in court to be told that the lift wasn’t
working, resulting in lawyers being carried upstairs in some instances.

2.103. Second, we took evidence from disabled judges – fee-paid and salaried – who
did not find the appointment processes themselves to be particularly onerous.
They have, however, found sitting itself to be fraught with difficulty. These
judges reported struggling to secure reasonable adjustments for their
disabilities. We were repeatedly told that the inaccessibility of many court
buildings to wheel-chair users means that physically disabled judges are unable
to do their work. We took evidence from disabled fee-paid judges who had to
change jurisdiction because the courts in their jurisdiction of choice were not
141
accessible. Based on these experiences disabled judges in fee-paid roles
142
indicated that they would not apply for salaried judicial posts.

2.104. Finally, there are very low declaration rates of disability. Researchers at
143
Cardiff University shared concern that under-reporting was the result of
144
fears of discrimination. We took evidence that suggested that people who
disclosed mental health problems, for example, felt less confident about their
future in the profession. One individual shared with us their experience of how
not declaring a disability in applications increased their chances of being
invited for an interview. Our evidence also highlighted concerns among the
legal profession relating to potential additional costs of employing a person
with a disability. There is a lack of awareness of schemes that might reimburse
such costs.

141 We took evidence that the exception in the court estate is the Supreme Court, which was designed in
consultation with disability academics from Cardiff University and is resultantly the ‘Rolls Royce’ of
accessibility. We also took evidence of how retrenchment in the court estate has disproportionately
affected disabled lawyers and judges. For example, the abolition of court canteens, is of little
consequence to people who can walk to a local café for a coffee, but presents significantly more
challenges for disabled people.
142 We have also heard stories from the Lawyers with Disabilities Division of lifts breaking down at
court, or there being no lifts at all, as well as issues with the availability of disabled parking, resulting
in individuals receiving parking tickets.
143 In contrast, we understand that in 2017, 13 per cent of students attending university or college
reported having at least one disability. See, ‘Beyond the bare minimum: Are universities and colleges
doing enough for disabled students?’, Office for Students, available online at
https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/beyond-the-bare-minimum-are-universities-and-
colleges-doing-enough-for-disabled-students/
144 ‘LEGALLY DISABLED? Career experiences of disabled people in the legal profession’, Legally
Disabled, available online at http://legallydisabled.com/
57