Ian Winter Refers Himself to Bar Regulator After Journalist Clash

Ian Winter KC, Russell Brand's defence barrister, referred himself to the Bar Standards Board on Friday after a Sunday Times journalist said he confronted her outside court following the verdicts in Brand's trial, according to the BBC.

What did Rosamund Urwin say happened?

Speaking on a Times and Sunday Times podcast on Thursday, Rosamund Urwin said she introduced herself to Winter outside court after the verdicts were delivered. She said Winter responded with a "snarl" and told her, "I hope you're pleased with yourself," then added "well it wasn't you" and swore at her, the BBC reported. Urwin, who worked on a 2023 Channel 4 Dispatches and Times/Sunday Times investigation into Brand, said she replied, "I am pleased that justice has been done," though she added she could not actually remember saying it and was relying on reporting of the exchange.

How did Winter respond?

Winter did not dispute the broad outline of the encounter in his public statement. "Having seen the ways matters have been characterised in today's press I consider my professional duty requires me to self-report those allegations to the Bar Standards Board, so the matter can be subject to proper scrutiny. I have made such a report," he said, according to the BBC.

What does the Bar Standards Board do?

The Bar Standards Board regulates barristers in England and Wales in the public interest, per the BBC. Self-referral triggers a review of whether a barrister's conduct meets professional standards; the board can investigate and, if warranted, pursue disciplinary action. No timetable for a decision was given in the reporting.

Why did this encounter happen outside a Brand trial?

Four women accused Brand of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse in the September 2023 joint investigation by Channel 4 Dispatches and the Times and Sunday Times, allegations Brand has denied. None of those women were complainants in the criminal trial that just concluded. In October, Brand's lawyers unsuccessfully argued at a pre-trial hearing that the publicity from that 2023 coverage made a fair trial impossible; prosecutors opposed the application, the BBC reported.

"I hope you're pleased with yourself." — Ian Winter KC, as recounted by journalist Rosamund Urwin

What else is pending against Brand?

Brand is also under investigation over two further rape allegations from two other women, and court documents from a Southwark Crown Court hearing indicate one accuser was 16 at the time of the alleged offense and appeared in a Channel 4 documentary, according to the BBC. Brand has denied those allegations as well. Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said Friday on BBC Radio 4's Today programme that he "wouldn't be surprised" if more people came forward, praising the "bravery" of women who testified and saying police would "do everything we can to bring to justice the powerful people who are responsible."

What to watch

• Whether the Bar Standards Board opens a formal investigation into Winter and on what timeline.
• Any additional statement from Urwin, the Sunday Times or the Times following Winter's self-referral.
• Developments in the separate rape allegations still under police investigation involving Brand.
• Whether the outstanding pre-trial publicity argument resurfaces in any future Brand proceedings.

Artiglio is A coming-soon iPhone chief of staff for briefings and drafts. Not on the App Store yet.