Hamish Hickey to resume practice after suspension despite 2024 conviction over fatal crash
A barrister convicted of causing death by dangerous driving has been allowed to return to practice after a tribunal decided that disbarment was not necessary.
Hamish Hickey, called to the Bar in 2008, was driving his Volvo XC40 along a narrow country lane near Ampleforth, North Yorkshire, on 26 July 2022 when he collided with another vehicle driven by 84-year-old pensioner Michael Lupton, who later died in hospital.
Hickey, a self-employed barrister practising in family law, admitted causing death by dangerous driving. He was sentenced at York Crown Court in November 2024 to 23 months in prison after the court heard he had been driving in the centre of the road at a speed that, though within the 60mph limit, was “inappropriately fast for the prevailing conditions”. The collision occurred as he mounted a blind summit.
The Bar Tribunals and Adjudication Service heard that Hickey had previous speeding convictions but otherwise an “impeccable professional record”. The tribunal considered a letter from Judge Sean Morris, the Recorder of York, who had presided over the criminal case. In it, the judge urged the Bar Standards Board (BSB) to show leniency, stating that Hickey’s conduct outside the incident was exemplary and that he was a “valuable member of the profession” who showed genuine remorse.
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Representing Hickey, barrister Marc Beaumont said his client had received 23 character references from senior figures in the legal profession, including two Crown court judges, members of chambers, and instructing solicitors. “Solicitors speak to Mr Hickey’s reliability, sensitivity and respect for vulnerable clients,” Beaumont told the tribunal.
He added: “This case concerns a single moment of tragic misjudgment by a junior barrister of previously exemplary character. Mr Hickey is profoundly remorseful, having already endured the most devastating personal and professional consequences.”
Beaumont argued that removing Hickey from the profession would not serve the public interest. “Public confidence would not be damaged but rather reinforced by this tribunal exercising clemency and emphasising the critical distinction between wilful misconduct and human error,” he said. “He is haunted by the memory of the accident and the knowledge of the irreparable loss he caused.”
In a written statement read to the tribunal, Hickey said: “I do not feel I will ever have any peace from the pain I know I have caused his family. I wanted to erase every trace of my shameful existence. I see his face every day and will do until the end of my days.”
Delivering judgment, Judge Nicholas Ainley said Hickey would remain suspended until 30 September 2026, when his current licence expires. The tribunal ruled that further disciplinary action was unnecessary, describing the offence as “not a crime of wickedness or dishonesty”.
Judge Ainley said: “We do not consider it necessary that any sentence beyond the expiration of his suspension is imposed. Certainly, disbarment is not necessary.”
Hickey, who was visibly emotional as the ruling was read out, wept as he learned he would be permitted to return to practice.
The decision has prompted discussion within the legal profession about proportionality in disciplinary cases involving criminal offences. The BSB has stated that its approach is to balance protection of the public and the standing of the profession against fairness to individual practitioners.
Hickey’s case underscores the discretion available to tribunals in assessing whether professional misconduct arising from criminal behaviour justifies permanent exclusion from the Bar. The tribunal accepted that his conviction, while grave, arose from a momentary lapse rather than deliberate wrongdoing.