This month’s issue barrister bible, Counsel Magazine, has attracted a flurry of social media attention — for all the wrong reasons
Some sectors of the legal specialist press aren’t known for their stylish use of imagery — to be frank, crap stock photos are usually the order of the day.
However, the editorial team at barrister magazine Counsel has really let things slide in the publication’s latest issue. Flick to page 15 of the glossy mag and you will be greeted with an article focusing on gender equality at the bar.
But it’s the accompanying image that caused a stir on Twitter yesterday afternoon, as the country waited for election polling stations to close and the real fun to begin. The feature is illustrated with the image of a little girl holding a hammer.
@igavels p15 of this month's Counsel magazine. Think that's meant to be a gavel, but is really just a big old mallet. pic.twitter.com/ajPKac7kjE
— Julia Larwood (@julialarwood) May 7, 2015
It wasn’t long before Tumblr account and gavel obsessive Inappropriate Gavels got wind of the legal faux pas.
This is terrifying. https://t.co/kh2NXSrPID
— Inappropriate Gavels (@igavels) May 7, 2015
Legal Cheek is unsure whether the image even falls within the Inappropriate Gavels remit, as the little girl seems to be clutching something else entirely. It appears someone at Counsel Magazine popped down to B&Q to fetch a rubber-headed hammer as apposed to purchasing an actual gavel such as our friends in the US use.
Earlier this week Legal Cheek reported on the largest gavel in the world, which is situated outside the Ohio state Supreme Court building in Columbus. So note to Counsel and its publishers, the Bar Council of England and Wales: the next time you are confused about what a gavel looks like, check out Legal Cheek.