Mark Stephens (solicitor)
Encyclopedia
Mark Howard Stephens CBE
(born 7 April 1957) is a British
solicitor
specialising in media law, intellectual property rights and human rights
with the firm Finers Stephens Innocent (FSI). Earlier in his life he wished to become an actor, but then decided to study law at North East London Polytechnic, graduating in 1978 and then studied further in Brussels, being admitted as a solicitor in 1982. He started his career as a lawyer providing advice to artists and soon established his own practice with a partner. He rose to prominence following a case in 1987, where he defended an artist who had reproduced British bank notes, in contravention of British law, but successfully defended him, in part by using the media in the artist's favour. He gained a reputation as "the patron solicitor of previously lost causes" following this case and others where he defended artists' freedom of expression, as well as representing the leaders of the miner's strike of 1984–85
and James Hewitt
when allegations of his affair with Diana, Princess of Wales
first emerged.
During the 1990s he worked on cases involving the occupation of the Brent Spar
oil platform, the censorship of the blasphemous film, Visions of Ecstasy
and provided advice to the "McLibel two", activists who were being sued by McDonalds. In 1999, his law firm merged with Finers to form Finers Stephens Innocent, with Stephens becoming the head of the international and media department, a position he continues to hold today. During the next decade he was involved in several cases defending the publishers of online material (both old
and new
media firms) against charges of libel bought against them. The Times in 2008, described him as both a "passionate supporter of human rights
" and "one of the best advocates for freedom of expression". In 2010, he began to represent Julian Assange
, the founder of the whistleblower website, WikiLeaks
, defending him against extradition to Sweden.
As well as pursuing legal cases, Stephens has sat on many charitable, regulatory, government and academic committees including those related to contemporary art
, education
, media law, libel law and human rights
. In 2009, he was appointed the Chairman of the Governors at the University of East London
, his university alma mater
, which awarded him an honorary doctorate in law in 2001. He has also assisted politicians draft legislation, in the UK in the 1990s regarding the regulation of the press and in Romania in 2005 regarding freedom of information
laws. Stephens frequently appears in the UK media, in the 1990s he was a legal correspondent for Sky TV and he has featured regularly in both print and on television during his career, commenting on cases he has been involved in and others. He has also contributed to two legal books and is on the editorial board of three legal journals.
, Berkshire
, on 7 April 1957 to "very, very poor" parents. He attended St Paul's Secondary Modern School, followed by the Cambridge Manor Academy for Dramatic Arts, since he wanted to become an actor. Later on, he was educated at Strode's Grammar School before going on to study law at North East London Polytechnic (now called the University of East London
). He now says that he was partly "tricked" into studying law by his father, who is an artist. He graduated in 1978 and then went on to study European Community Law at the Vrije Universiteit
in Brussels
and was then admitted as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court in England and Wales in July 1982. He married Donna Coote in 1982 and they have three daughters. In the 1990s, he taught scuba diving and spent his spare time collecting art and sculptures. In his 2010 Who's Who
entry, he lists his hobbies as beekeeping
, badinage (engaging in friendly banter), dandyism and samizdat
. The same entry states that he supports Chelsea Football Club and is a member of the official Aston Martin
owners club.
and has made several legal interventions in the European Court of Human Rights
. Stephens began his career as a volunteer lawyer at ArtLaw, the first legal advice centre for artists, having been interested from an early age as his father was an artist. In 1982 he became the legal director of ArtLaw, a position he held until 1984. In 1983, along with Roslyn Innocent he established Stephens Innocent as a law firm to specialise in visual arts and intellectual property. In 1987, Stephens met Geoffrey Robertson
, who along with John Hendy he admires as "creative lawyers", and the pair went on to successfully represent Bob Monkhouse
who had been "charged with defrauding film distributors in relation to a film and television archive". In the same year, he defended the American artist J. S. G. Boggs
who had been arraigned before The Old Bailey on charges under the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981 in relation to his painted and drawn artworks which mimicked and adapted bank note designs. According to an article in the Law Gazette in 1992, the case was influential in launching his career. He realised that the case against the artists was strong, so decided to make the Bank of England "look as stupid as possible" using the media as a tool, and in the end successfully defended Boggs. Following this case he represented several other artists in cases over freedom of expression, including an art gallery that was displaying earrings made from human foetuses that had been made by Rick Gibson
. He also advised Robert Mapplethorpe
on displaying his images in the UK. In February 1991, Stephens was appointed the lawyer for the National Union of Mineworkers, defending it against claims that had handled funds inappropriately during the miner's strike
of 1984–85. Also in 1991, Stephens took a major free expression case, on behalf of journalists and the general public to challenge Margaret Thatcher's decision to ban broadcasting of certain Irish political parties. The case was heard in the House of Lords
.
Stephens has used his knowledge of the media in favour of his clients. When allegations of an affair between James Hewitt
and Diana, Princess of Wales
were published by The Sun
in 1992, Stephens put out a wire through the Press Association
stating that he had issued proceedings against the newspaper for defamation and libel. As he explained to the Law Gazette
in 2005, he had issued but not actually served the writ, but the statement had the effect that other newspapers did not follow up on the story in detail. Instead, the direction of the story changed, and the next day the papers wrote about whether or not Princess Diana would be likely to appear at a libel trial. At one point he had to go into hiding in the south of France along with Hewitt to avoid the media who were chasing them. Princess Diana later admitted the affair on television, which he admitted was "a bit embarrassing". It was after these cases that the Law Gazette described him as "the patron solicitor of previously lost causes", a label which has stuck with him throughout his career. In his 2009 book on international libel and privacy, Charles Glasser wrote that "it is this reputation for creativity with law that leads international publishers and broadcasters to his door". At the time the label was given to him, Stephens disagreed, stating they were not lost causes: "I usually win". Other cases he took on in 1992 involved representing the families of victims of the Lockerbie bombing, and British soldiers killed in a friendly fire incident during the first Gulf War
.
in 1995, in a case of litigation brought by Shell
over what Shell alleged to be an illegal occupation of the Brent Spar
oil platform. In 1996, he represented Nigel Wingrove
, the producer of Visions of Ecstasy
, a film that was banned in the UK due to it being said by the BBFC to be blasphemous. The case, Wingrove v. UK, was heard at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and was a test case for whether banning the film was in contravention of Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, the right to expression. The court upheld the decision of the UK a decision which Stephens called "very worrying".
Throughout the nineties, Stephens together with barrister
, Keir Starmer
QC, undertook a series of legal challenges on behalf of Quaker, mid-wife & peace activist
, Lindis Percy
. Percy, committed to non-violence, researched ancient rights of way across US spy bases and nuclear facilities, then enforced her ancient right to roam.
Stephens provided pro bono assistance throughout the McDonald's Restaurants v. Morris & Steel case, to two activists, Helen Steel and David Morris
, the so called "McLibel Two". The defendants had handed out leaflets entitled "What’s wrong with McDonald’s?" in 1985 and were subsequently tried for libel. The case began in 1990 and became the longest running court case in UK history. After the defendants were fined £60,000 he took their case to the ECHR in 2004, where they successfully appealed against the fine. As Stephens explained to The Guardian in 2004, a key part of their defence was that the original trial was not fair as the pair did not have legal aid
and so "they were unable to get witnesses and scientific expertise" to help defend them. Discussing the case with The Lawyer he said he believed that, “British justice failed dismally here” in that the way the pair were left defending themselves for so long. A multi-award nominated fly on the wall documentary, McLibel
was made by Franny Armstrong
and Ken Loach
about the case with footage shot in Strasbourg
at the European Court of Human Rights
.
In 1999, he began to act as a mediator
with ADR Chambers, helping parties to settle disputes without resorting to court, he continues to mediate disputes today. In the same year, The Lawyer reported there was speculation about whether Stephens would leave Stephens Innocent to join another law firm. In December 1999, it was announced that rather than leave the firm, Stephens Innocent would merge with Finers, a firm specialising in property and commercial law, to form Finers Stephens Innocent. Stephens became the head of the international and media department. In 2009, Stephens described the firm to The Times as being a “niche within a niche”.
, he successfully defended A.S. Neills Summerhill School
, a private free school. The proceedings brought by OFSTED
on behalf of then Education Minister David Blunkett
who was seeking the closure of the school. The case was later dramatised by Tiger Aspect Productions
in a TV series entitled, "Summerhill" and broadcast on BBC Four
and CBBC
. In August Stephens was retained by heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson
for a hearing before the British Boxing Board of Control
. The disciplinary hearing related to 2 counts relating to Tyson's behaviour after his 38-second victory over Lou Savarese
in Glasgow
in June that year, Tyson escaped a ban from fighting in Britain. Stephens successfully deployed a defence of freedom of expression for Tyson, the first use before the BBBofC but Tyson was convicted on the other count and fined.
Then in 2002, he defended the Dow Jones in Dow Jones & Co. Inc. v Gutnick
a case where Joseph Gutnick
, an Australian mining magnate, sued the Dow Jones after an article critical of him was published on the website of the Barron's newspaper. Gutnick successfully applied to the Australian High Court, requesting for the case to heard in Australia, rather than the United States, where the First Amendment
protects free speech. Stephens described the ruling as a "very worrying decision" as it potentially opened the door for libel cases related to internet publishing to be heard in any country and in multiple countries for the same article. In January and December 2002 Stephens was retained by the Washington Post to represent its veteran war correspondent, Jonathan Randal, in the Hague at the United Nations
Court, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
establishing the principle of qualified privilege for the protection of journalists in war crimes courts. Of all his cases, Stephens is most proud of his defence of Randal, as he feels if is important that journalists are protected.
In 2005, he was asked to draft new legislation regarding freedom of information by Romania that was compliant with NATO and EU law.
In 2006, along with Geoffrey Robertson, he successfully defended the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) in Jameel v Wall Street Journal Europe
. The case centred on an article published in the WSJ in 2002, which alleged that the United States were monitoring the bank accounts of a Saudi Arabian businessman to ensure he was not funding terrorists. Jameel, who was represented by Carter Ruck, was originally awarded £40,000 in damages but this was overturned in favour of the WSJ. The case was viewed by The Lawyer
as a landmark case which redefined the earlier case of Reynolds v Times Newspapers Ltd, upholding the right to publish if it is deemed to be in the public interest. In late 2006, Stephens represented Russia
, Oleg Mitvol
and RosPrirodNadzor (Russian Federal Service for the Oversight of Natural Resources) in an environmental case to prevent the despoiling of the Russian far east by Royal Dutch Shell
. The case was ultimately settled with Shell giving up many of its rights and paying compensation.
In early 2007, instructed by aboriginal lawyer Michael Mansell
, Stephens launched proceedings for the Tasmanian Aborigines
to recover 15 sets of their stolen ancestral remains, then residing in the bowels of the Natural History Museum
in London. He accused the museum of wishing to retain them for, "genetic prospecting". Later in 2007, he defended the parenting website Mumsnet
pro bono against a libel claim by Gina Ford
, a baby expert. Several users of the site had criticised Ford's techniques; there were other postings she said were "vile and disgusting". Stephens said it was troubling that the website could be held liable for the postings of its users and that people should be able to "give their own views and reasonable readers can make up their own minds." The case was settled out of court, after Mumsnet apologised to Ford and paid some of her legal costs. Stephens has since cited the case as an example of how the law is unable to cope with the digital age, having been created by people "who are not part of the messenger generation" and that it therefore needs revising. Also in 2007, Stephens was instructed to represent cricket umpire Darrell Hair
in relation to ICC
proceedings arising from the ball tampering
incident involving Pakistan in August 2006 at the oval
in the summer of 2006
In 2008, he won an apology from a former police driver who had written "appalling lies" about the novelist and essayist Sir Salman Rushdie in a book he wrote. One allegation was that Rushdie had profited from the fatwa
issued against him after publishing The Satanic Verses
.
In June 2009, Stephens was invited to give oral evidence to amplify his written submission to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport
Parliamentary sub-committee on Libel reform under the Chairmanship of Mr John Whittingdale
MP.
January 2010 brought the first – known colloquially as the alphabet soup case
– in the (then) new UK Supreme Court, Stephens represented several media organisations to argue that the names of several people who were accused of funding terrorist organisations should have their anonymity stripped. The judges agreed with the media and ruled that the names should be released, noting that anonymity orders had become “deeply ingrained” in court cases in the UK. After the ruling Stephens commented, "No court henceforth should grant an anonymity order in a significant case unless it is satisfied that the litigant, if identified, would be in serious danger of physical attack."
In April, Stephens was reported to be representing the author Christopher Hitchens
and the evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins
, who were considering launching legal proceedings against Pope Benedict XVI
during his visit to the UK later that year, over sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. Towards the end of 2010, Stephens was invited by the Jamaican Government to review that country's libel laws and appear before a Parliamentary Select Committee. Shortly after his return Stephens began to defend the founder of WikiLeaks
, Julian Assange
, against extradition to Sweden, where allegations had been made against Assange. Soon after the WikiLeaks cables
disclosure began, Stephens told The Guardian
that he thought he was being monitored by the security services and that his home was being watched. In January 2011, Stephens claimed that United States authorities were trying to develop a criminal case against Assange, citing, for example, a subpoena against Twitter
issued by the United States Department of Justice
to demand private information on Assange and other people associated with WikiLeaks. The Guardian reported that Assange ended his relationship with Stephens after he accused Finers Stephens Innocent of withholding a £412,000 advance for his autobiography to cover legal fees. Assange accused them of "extreme overcharging" which Finers Stephens Innocent denied.
Recently, Stephens has been invited to make a number of interventions in the European Court of Human Rights in free speech cases. Sanoma v Netherlands, MGN v United Kingdom, Mosley v United Kingdom and Haldimann v Switzerland.
In July 2011, it was reported that Stephens had been one of a group of high-profile lawyers who may have been the victim of the News International phone hacking scandal.
puppet". In 2003 Stephens as Chair of the Internet Watch Foundation
publicly tangled with rock guitarist Pete Townshend
. In 2001, a website operated by an anti-feminist, angryharry.com created a section dedicated to vilifying Stephens. He told the Law Gazette that the site did not bother him and that he had added a link to his CV. Commenting to The Times in 2009 on the perceived glamour of being a media solicitor, he said that this is incorrect: "It's not glamorous, not a good work-life balance and you need to be available 24/7," but he added that "the work can be very stimulating". He was described in The Times 2008 Law100 list as "Mr 'Media Lawyer' himself", as a "passionate supporter of human rights
" and "one of the best advocates for freedom of expression".
. Later that year, Stephens was appointed the first Chair of the Policy board of the Internet Watch Foundation and became the Vice Chairman on the merger of the Policy and Management Boards of the Internet Watch Foundation. He is currently a trustee of Index on Censorship
, Chair of the International Advisory Board of the Media Legal Defence Initiative
, the postgraduate course in comparative media law and social policy at Oxford University, the Solicitors Pro bono
Group (now, LawWorks), and the International Bar Association
's Human Rights Institute and Media Law Committee.
On the 1st April 2006 Stephens was appointed to be a trustee of the International Law Book Facility, a charitable organisation whose objects are to donate lawbooks in order to improve access to legal information/access to justice where there is a need.
In August 2009 he was appointed Chairman of the Governors at the University of East London
and in October 2010 as Chair of the Contemporary Art Society. He is a Freeman
of the City of London
.
He was appointed by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
to be a member of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office
's Free Expression Advisory Board; in January 2010, he was appointed to a working group on libel laws
, set up by the then Justice Secretary, Jack Straw
, which published a report in March 2010. Stephens is currently serving on the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth Lawyers Association and was elected Vice President of its Council at the Hyderabad Conference.
In January 2011 Stephens was asked to Judge the documentary Current Affairs - International category 2009/2010 for the Royal Television Society
.
In October 2011, Mark Stephens was appointed as the new Chair of the Design and Artists Copyright Society
(DACS), replacing Andrew Potter who steps down at the end of this year. Mark was instrumental in the establishment of DACS in 1984 – law firm Stephens Innocent was a home to DACS in the first years after its establishment.
quiz show Point of Law, as a team captain, between 1998 and 2001. In 2007 Stephens was asked by the artist Phil Collins
to collaborate with him in his Return Of The Real project arising from his Turner Prize
nominated exhibit.
Appearing on the BBC Radio 4 programme The Music Group he recounted growing up with Pink Floyd
's music publisher as the family lodger, which led to his later work as part of the band's touring retinue.
Stephens was outspoken in his criticism of the development of superinjunctions and their growing use in 2011.
Stephens was interviewed by children from Summerhill School and from primary schools in Tower Hamlets as part of a series of events at the local town hall exploring human rights and justice. The school children acted as lawyers arguing for or against Summerhill, role playing the legal case.
.
. In 2008 and 2010 he was listed among the Evening Standard
s 1000 most influential people in London. He has also been featured in the Times Top 100 Lawyers list since its inception in 2008.
He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2011 Birthday Honours
for services to the legal professions and the arts.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 7 April 1957) is a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
solicitor
Solicitor
Solicitors are lawyers who traditionally deal with any legal matter including conducting proceedings in courts. In the United Kingdom, a few Australian states and the Republic of Ireland, the legal profession is split between solicitors and barristers , and a lawyer will usually only hold one title...
specialising in media law, intellectual property rights and human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
with the firm Finers Stephens Innocent (FSI). Earlier in his life he wished to become an actor, but then decided to study law at North East London Polytechnic, graduating in 1978 and then studied further in Brussels, being admitted as a solicitor in 1982. He started his career as a lawyer providing advice to artists and soon established his own practice with a partner. He rose to prominence following a case in 1987, where he defended an artist who had reproduced British bank notes, in contravention of British law, but successfully defended him, in part by using the media in the artist's favour. He gained a reputation as "the patron solicitor of previously lost causes" following this case and others where he defended artists' freedom of expression, as well as representing the leaders of the miner's strike of 1984–85
UK miners' strike (1984–1985)
The UK miners' strike was a major industrial action affecting the British coal industry. It was a defining moment in British industrial relations, and its defeat significantly weakened the British trades union movement...
and James Hewitt
James Hewitt
James Hewitt is a former British household cavalry officer in the British Army. He had an affair with Diana, Princess of Wales for five years, receiving extensive media coverage after revealing details of the affair.-Early life:...
when allegations of his affair with Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...
first emerged.
During the 1990s he worked on cases involving the occupation of the Brent Spar
Brent Spar
Brent Spar or Brent E, was a North Sea oil storage and tanker loading buoy in the Brent oilfield, operated by Shell UK. With the completion of a pipeline connection to the oil terminal at Sullom Voe in Shetland, the storage facility had continued in use but was considered to be of no further value...
oil platform, the censorship of the blasphemous film, Visions of Ecstasy
Visions of Ecstasy
Visions of Ecstasy is a 1989 short film directed by Nigel Wingrove.It was refused certification by the British Board of Film Classification because of scenes featuring a sexualised representation of Saint Teresa of Ávila caressing the body of Jesus on the cross...
and provided advice to the "McLibel two", activists who were being sued by McDonalds. In 1999, his law firm merged with Finers to form Finers Stephens Innocent, with Stephens becoming the head of the international and media department, a position he continues to hold today. During the next decade he was involved in several cases defending the publishers of online material (both old
Old media
The Old Media or Legacy Media are traditional means of communication and expression that have existed since before the advent of the new medium of the Internet...
and new
New media
New media is a broad term in media studies that emerged in the latter part of the 20th century. For example, new media holds out a possibility of on-demand access to content any time, anywhere, on any digital device, as well as interactive user feedback, creative participation and community...
media firms) against charges of libel bought against them. The Times in 2008, described him as both a "passionate supporter of human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
" and "one of the best advocates for freedom of expression". In 2010, he began to represent Julian Assange
Julian Assange
Julian Paul Assange is an Australian publisher, journalist, writer, computer programmer and Internet activist. He is the editor in chief of WikiLeaks, a whistleblower website and conduit for worldwide news leaks with the stated purpose of creating open governments.WikiLeaks has published material...
, the founder of the whistleblower website, WikiLeaks
Wikileaks
WikiLeaks is an international self-described not-for-profit organisation that publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources, news leaks, and whistleblowers. Its website, launched in 2006 under The Sunshine Press organisation, claimed a database of more...
, defending him against extradition to Sweden.
As well as pursuing legal cases, Stephens has sat on many charitable, regulatory, government and academic committees including those related to contemporary art
Contemporary art
Contemporary art can be defined variously as art produced at this present point in time or art produced since World War II. The definition of the word contemporary would support the first view, but museums of contemporary art commonly define their collections as consisting of art produced...
, education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, media law, libel law and human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
. In 2009, he was appointed the Chairman of the Governors at the University of East London
University of East London
The University of East London is a university located in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, based at two campuses in Stratford and Docklands areas...
, his university alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
, which awarded him an honorary doctorate in law in 2001. He has also assisted politicians draft legislation, in the UK in the 1990s regarding the regulation of the press and in Romania in 2005 regarding freedom of information
Freedom of information
Freedom of information refers to the protection of the right to freedom of expression with regards to the Internet and information technology . Freedom of information may also concern censorship in an information technology context, i.e...
laws. Stephens frequently appears in the UK media, in the 1990s he was a legal correspondent for Sky TV and he has featured regularly in both print and on television during his career, commenting on cases he has been involved in and others. He has also contributed to two legal books and is on the editorial board of three legal journals.
Personal life and education
Stephens was born in Old WindsorOld Windsor
Old Windsor is a large village and civil parish in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the English county of Berkshire.-Location:...
, Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
, on 7 April 1957 to "very, very poor" parents. He attended St Paul's Secondary Modern School, followed by the Cambridge Manor Academy for Dramatic Arts, since he wanted to become an actor. Later on, he was educated at Strode's Grammar School before going on to study law at North East London Polytechnic (now called the University of East London
University of East London
The University of East London is a university located in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, based at two campuses in Stratford and Docklands areas...
). He now says that he was partly "tricked" into studying law by his father, who is an artist. He graduated in 1978 and then went on to study European Community Law at the Vrije Universiteit
Vrije Universiteit Brussel
The Vrije Universiteit Brussel is a Flemish university located in Brussels, Belgium. It has two campuses referred to as Etterbeek and Jette.The university's name is sometimes abbreviated by "VUB" or translated to "Free University of Brussels"...
in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
and was then admitted as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court in England and Wales in July 1982. He married Donna Coote in 1982 and they have three daughters. In the 1990s, he taught scuba diving and spent his spare time collecting art and sculptures. In his 2010 Who's Who
Who's Who (UK)
Who's Who is an annual British publication of biographies which vary in length of about 30,000 living notable Britons.-History:...
entry, he lists his hobbies as beekeeping
Beekeeping
Beekeeping is the maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in hives, by humans. A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect honey and other products of the hive , to pollinate crops, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers...
, badinage (engaging in friendly banter), dandyism and samizdat
Samizdat
Samizdat was a key form of dissident activity across the Soviet bloc in which individuals reproduced censored publications by hand and passed the documents from reader to reader...
. The same entry states that he supports Chelsea Football Club and is a member of the official Aston Martin
Aston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Limited is a British manufacturer of luxury sports cars, based in Gaydon, Warwickshire. The company name is derived from the name of one of the company's founders, Lionel Martin, and from the Aston Hill speed hillclimb near Aston Clinton in Buckinghamshire...
owners club.
1982–1992
Stephens is licensed to practice before the Judicial Committee of the Privy CouncilJudicial Committee of the Privy Council
The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is one of the highest courts in the United Kingdom. Established by the Judicial Committee Act 1833 to hear appeals formerly heard by the King in Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is one of the highest courts in the United...
and has made several legal interventions in the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
. Stephens began his career as a volunteer lawyer at ArtLaw, the first legal advice centre for artists, having been interested from an early age as his father was an artist. In 1982 he became the legal director of ArtLaw, a position he held until 1984. In 1983, along with Roslyn Innocent he established Stephens Innocent as a law firm to specialise in visual arts and intellectual property. In 1987, Stephens met Geoffrey Robertson
Geoffrey Robertson
Geoffrey Ronald Robertson QC is an Australian-born human rights lawyer, academic, author and broadcaster. He holds dual Australian and British citizenship....
, who along with John Hendy he admires as "creative lawyers", and the pair went on to successfully represent Bob Monkhouse
Bob Monkhouse
Robert Alan "Bob" Monkhouse, OBE was an English entertainer. He was a successful comedy writer, comedian and actor and was also well known on British television as a presenter and game show host...
who had been "charged with defrauding film distributors in relation to a film and television archive". In the same year, he defended the American artist J. S. G. Boggs
J. S. G. Boggs
J. S. G. Boggs was an American artist, best known for his hand-drawn, one-sided depictions of U.S. banknotes and his various "Boggs bills" he draws for use in his performances. He spends his "Boggs notes" only for their face value. If he draws a $100 bill, he exchanges it for $100 worth of goods...
who had been arraigned before The Old Bailey on charges under the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981 in relation to his painted and drawn artworks which mimicked and adapted bank note designs. According to an article in the Law Gazette in 1992, the case was influential in launching his career. He realised that the case against the artists was strong, so decided to make the Bank of England "look as stupid as possible" using the media as a tool, and in the end successfully defended Boggs. Following this case he represented several other artists in cases over freedom of expression, including an art gallery that was displaying earrings made from human foetuses that had been made by Rick Gibson
Rick Gibson
Rick Gibson is a Canadian sculptor and artist. He was born in Montreal, Quebec and he studied Psychology at the University of Victoria. Between 1973 and 1974 he drew weekly comics for the student newspaper. After completing his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1974 he moved to Vancouver, Canada. He...
. He also advised Robert Mapplethorpe
Robert Mapplethorpe
Robert Mapplethorpe was an American photographer, known for his large-scale, highly stylized black and white portraits, photos of flowers and nude men...
on displaying his images in the UK. In February 1991, Stephens was appointed the lawyer for the National Union of Mineworkers, defending it against claims that had handled funds inappropriately during the miner's strike
UK miners' strike (1984–1985)
The UK miners' strike was a major industrial action affecting the British coal industry. It was a defining moment in British industrial relations, and its defeat significantly weakened the British trades union movement...
of 1984–85. Also in 1991, Stephens took a major free expression case, on behalf of journalists and the general public to challenge Margaret Thatcher's decision to ban broadcasting of certain Irish political parties. The case was heard in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
.
Stephens has used his knowledge of the media in favour of his clients. When allegations of an affair between James Hewitt
James Hewitt
James Hewitt is a former British household cavalry officer in the British Army. He had an affair with Diana, Princess of Wales for five years, receiving extensive media coverage after revealing details of the affair.-Early life:...
and Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...
were published by The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
in 1992, Stephens put out a wire through the Press Association
Press Association
The Press Association is the national news agency of the United Kingdom and Ireland, supplying multimedia news content to almost all national and regional newspapers, television and radio news, as well as many websites with text, pictures, video and data content globally...
stating that he had issued proceedings against the newspaper for defamation and libel. As he explained to the Law Gazette
The Law Society Gazette
The Law Society Gazette is a British weekly trade magazine for solicitors in England and Wales published by the Law Society of England and Wales....
in 2005, he had issued but not actually served the writ, but the statement had the effect that other newspapers did not follow up on the story in detail. Instead, the direction of the story changed, and the next day the papers wrote about whether or not Princess Diana would be likely to appear at a libel trial. At one point he had to go into hiding in the south of France along with Hewitt to avoid the media who were chasing them. Princess Diana later admitted the affair on television, which he admitted was "a bit embarrassing". It was after these cases that the Law Gazette described him as "the patron solicitor of previously lost causes", a label which has stuck with him throughout his career. In his 2009 book on international libel and privacy, Charles Glasser wrote that "it is this reputation for creativity with law that leads international publishers and broadcasters to his door". At the time the label was given to him, Stephens disagreed, stating they were not lost causes: "I usually win". Other cases he took on in 1992 involved representing the families of victims of the Lockerbie bombing, and British soldiers killed in a friendly fire incident during the first Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
.
1993–1999
In 1993, he helped the MP, Clive Soley to draft a parliamentary bill on press regulation, he commented that people thrust into the public light needed protection from the press, but that "astronomical" fines would be needed to be able to achieve this. According to The Guardian his public profile was further raised by defending GreenpeaceGreenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
in 1995, in a case of litigation brought by Shell
Royal Dutch Shell
Royal Dutch Shell plc , commonly known as Shell, is a global oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the fifth-largest company in the world according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine and one of the six...
over what Shell alleged to be an illegal occupation of the Brent Spar
Brent Spar
Brent Spar or Brent E, was a North Sea oil storage and tanker loading buoy in the Brent oilfield, operated by Shell UK. With the completion of a pipeline connection to the oil terminal at Sullom Voe in Shetland, the storage facility had continued in use but was considered to be of no further value...
oil platform. In 1996, he represented Nigel Wingrove
Nigel Wingrove
Nigel Wingrove , is the founder of the horror film company Redemption Films and the Salvation Group and creator of the online alternative female collective, Satanic Sluts...
, the producer of Visions of Ecstasy
Visions of Ecstasy
Visions of Ecstasy is a 1989 short film directed by Nigel Wingrove.It was refused certification by the British Board of Film Classification because of scenes featuring a sexualised representation of Saint Teresa of Ávila caressing the body of Jesus on the cross...
, a film that was banned in the UK due to it being said by the BBFC to be blasphemous. The case, Wingrove v. UK, was heard at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and was a test case for whether banning the film was in contravention of Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, the right to expression. The court upheld the decision of the UK a decision which Stephens called "very worrying".
Throughout the nineties, Stephens together with barrister
Barrister
A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...
, Keir Starmer
Keir Starmer
Keir Starmer, QC, is a barrister in England and Wales. He became the fourteenth Director of Public Prosecutions and the sixth head of the Crown Prosecution Service on 1 November 2008...
QC, undertook a series of legal challenges on behalf of Quaker, mid-wife & peace activist
Peace activist
This list of peace activists includes people who proactively advocate diplomatic, non-military resolution of political disputes, usually through nonviolent means.A peace activist is an activist of the peace movement.*Jane Addams*Martti Ahtisaari...
, Lindis Percy
Lindis Percy
Lindis Percy is a prominent peace activist in the United Kingdom and founding member and joint coordinator of the Campaign for the Accountability of American Bases. Reporting for The Guardian, journalist Rob Evans claimed that "there must surely be few Britons who have been arrested in political...
. Percy, committed to non-violence, researched ancient rights of way across US spy bases and nuclear facilities, then enforced her ancient right to roam.
Stephens provided pro bono assistance throughout the McDonald's Restaurants v. Morris & Steel case, to two activists, Helen Steel and David Morris
David Morris
David Morris may refer to:*David Morris , American general*David Morris , musician and radio personality*David Morris, one of the two defendants in the McLibel Case...
, the so called "McLibel Two". The defendants had handed out leaflets entitled "What’s wrong with McDonald’s?" in 1985 and were subsequently tried for libel. The case began in 1990 and became the longest running court case in UK history. After the defendants were fined £60,000 he took their case to the ECHR in 2004, where they successfully appealed against the fine. As Stephens explained to The Guardian in 2004, a key part of their defence was that the original trial was not fair as the pair did not have legal aid
Legal aid
Legal aid is the provision of assistance to people otherwise unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. Legal aid is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality before the law, the right to counsel and the right to a fair trial.A number of...
and so "they were unable to get witnesses and scientific expertise" to help defend them. Discussing the case with The Lawyer he said he believed that, “British justice failed dismally here” in that the way the pair were left defending themselves for so long. A multi-award nominated fly on the wall documentary, McLibel
McLibel (film)
McLibel is a documentary film directed by Franny Armstrong and Ken Loach for Spanner Films about the McLibel case. The film was first completed, as a 52 minute television version, in 1997, after the conclusion of the original McLibel trial...
was made by Franny Armstrong
Franny Armstrong
Franny Armstrong is a British documentary film director working for her own company, Spanner Films, and a former drummer with indie pop group The Band of Holy Joy...
and Ken Loach
Ken Loach
Kenneth "Ken" Loach is a Palme D'Or winning English film and television director.He is known for his naturalistic, social realist directing style and for his socialist beliefs, which are evident in his film treatment of social issues such as homelessness , labour rights and child abuse at the...
about the case with footage shot in Strasbourg
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
at the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
.
In 1999, he began to act as a mediator
Mediation
Mediation, as used in law, is a form of alternative dispute resolution , a way of resolving disputes between two or more parties. A third party, the mediator, assists the parties to negotiate their own settlement...
with ADR Chambers, helping parties to settle disputes without resorting to court, he continues to mediate disputes today. In the same year, The Lawyer reported there was speculation about whether Stephens would leave Stephens Innocent to join another law firm. In December 1999, it was announced that rather than leave the firm, Stephens Innocent would merge with Finers, a firm specialising in property and commercial law, to form Finers Stephens Innocent. Stephens became the head of the international and media department. In 2009, Stephens described the firm to The Times as being a “niche within a niche”.
2000 onwards
In 2000, in the Independent Schools Tribunal, sitting at the Royal Courts of JusticeRoyal Courts of Justice
The Royal Courts of Justice, commonly called the Law Courts, is the building in London which houses the Court of Appeal of England and Wales and the High Court of Justice of England and Wales...
, he successfully defended A.S. Neills Summerhill School
Summerhill School
Summerhill School is an independent British boarding school that was founded in 1921 by Alexander Sutherland Neill with the belief that the school should be made to fit the child, rather than the other way around...
, a private free school. The proceedings brought by OFSTED
Ofsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills is the non-ministerial government department of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools In England ....
on behalf of then Education Minister David Blunkett
David Blunkett
David Blunkett is a British Labour Party politician and the Member of Parliament for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough, having represented Sheffield Brightside from 1987 to 2010...
who was seeking the closure of the school. The case was later dramatised by Tiger Aspect Productions
Tiger Aspect Productions
Tiger Aspect Productions is a British television production company, particularly noted for its situation comedies. Co-founded by producer Peter Bennett-Jones, its productions have included popular hits such as The Vicar of Dibley and Mr. Bean...
in a TV series entitled, "Summerhill" and broadcast on BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
and CBBC
CBBC
CBBC is one of two brand names used for the BBC's children's television strands. Between 1985 and 2002, CBBC was the name given to all the BBC's programmes on TV for children aged under 14...
. In August Stephens was retained by heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson
Michael Gerard "Mike" Tyson is a retired American boxer. Tyson is a former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and holds the record as the youngest boxer to win the WBC, WBA and IBF world heavyweight titles, he was 20 years, 4 months and 22 days old...
for a hearing before the British Boxing Board of Control
British Boxing Board of Control
The British Boxing Board of Control is the governing body of professional boxing in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1929 from the old National Sporting Club and is headquartered in Cardiff.- Councils :...
. The disciplinary hearing related to 2 counts relating to Tyson's behaviour after his 38-second victory over Lou Savarese
Lou Savarese
Lou Savarese is an Italian-American boxer, and a former professional boxer from Houston, Texas, United States.-Amateur career:...
in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
in June that year, Tyson escaped a ban from fighting in Britain. Stephens successfully deployed a defence of freedom of expression for Tyson, the first use before the BBBofC but Tyson was convicted on the other count and fined.
Then in 2002, he defended the Dow Jones in Dow Jones & Co. Inc. v Gutnick
Dow Jones & Co. Inc. v Gutnick
Dow Jones & Co. Inc. v Gutnick was an Internet defamation case heard in the High Court of Australia, decided on 10 December 2002. The 28 October 2000 edition of Barron's Online, published by Dow Jones, contained an article entitled "Unholy Gains" in which several references were made to the...
a case where Joseph Gutnick
Joseph Gutnick
Joseph Isaac Gutnick is an Australian businessman and mining industry entrepreneur. He is also an ordained rabbi and is well known for his philanthropy in the Jewish world.-Business holdings:Among Gutnick's business holdings:...
, an Australian mining magnate, sued the Dow Jones after an article critical of him was published on the website of the Barron's newspaper. Gutnick successfully applied to the Australian High Court, requesting for the case to heard in Australia, rather than the United States, where the First Amendment
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
protects free speech. Stephens described the ruling as a "very worrying decision" as it potentially opened the door for libel cases related to internet publishing to be heard in any country and in multiple countries for the same article. In January and December 2002 Stephens was retained by the Washington Post to represent its veteran war correspondent, Jonathan Randal, in the Hague at the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Court, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
The International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991, more commonly referred to as the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia or ICTY, is a...
establishing the principle of qualified privilege for the protection of journalists in war crimes courts. Of all his cases, Stephens is most proud of his defence of Randal, as he feels if is important that journalists are protected.
In 2005, he was asked to draft new legislation regarding freedom of information by Romania that was compliant with NATO and EU law.
In 2006, along with Geoffrey Robertson, he successfully defended the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) in Jameel v Wall Street Journal Europe
Jameel v Wall Street Journal Europe
Jameel v Wall Street Journal Europe was a House of Lords judgment on English defamation law. The judgment was an affirmation of Reynolds v Times Newspapers Ltd and effectively upholds a public interest defence in libel cases.-External links:...
. The case centred on an article published in the WSJ in 2002, which alleged that the United States were monitoring the bank accounts of a Saudi Arabian businessman to ensure he was not funding terrorists. Jameel, who was represented by Carter Ruck, was originally awarded £40,000 in damages but this was overturned in favour of the WSJ. The case was viewed by The Lawyer
The Lawyer
The Lawyer is a weekly British magazine for commercial lawyers and corporate directors, first published in 1981. It is owned by Centaur Media plc....
as a landmark case which redefined the earlier case of Reynolds v Times Newspapers Ltd, upholding the right to publish if it is deemed to be in the public interest. In late 2006, Stephens represented Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Oleg Mitvol
Oleg Mitvol
Oleg Lvovich Mitvol is a Russian environmentalist, businessman and government official, well-known for his activity in the chair of environmental protection department.-Business career:...
and RosPrirodNadzor (Russian Federal Service for the Oversight of Natural Resources) in an environmental case to prevent the despoiling of the Russian far east by Royal Dutch Shell
Royal Dutch Shell
Royal Dutch Shell plc , commonly known as Shell, is a global oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the fifth-largest company in the world according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine and one of the six...
. The case was ultimately settled with Shell giving up many of its rights and paying compensation.
In early 2007, instructed by aboriginal lawyer Michael Mansell
Michael Mansell
Michael Mansell is an Aboriginal lawyer and activist, who has dedicated his life to social, political and legal reform to improve the lives and social standing of Tasmanian Aborigines....
, Stephens launched proceedings for the Tasmanian Aborigines
Tasmanian Aborigines
The Tasmanian Aborigines were the indigenous people of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Before British colonisation in 1803, there were an estimated 3,000–15,000 Parlevar. A number of historians point to introduced disease as the major cause of the destruction of the full-blooded...
to recover 15 sets of their stolen ancestral remains, then residing in the bowels of the Natural History Museum
Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is one of three large museums on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, England . Its main frontage is on Cromwell Road...
in London. He accused the museum of wishing to retain them for, "genetic prospecting". Later in 2007, he defended the parenting website Mumsnet
Mumsnet
- Content and traffic :Mumsnet is Britain's busiest website for parents, hosting discussion forums where parents give and receive peer-to-peer parenting support, as well as discussing a wide range of other topics...
pro bono against a libel claim by Gina Ford
Gina Ford
Gina Ford is a British writer on parenting methods and a former maternity nurse, without formal qualifications, who claims to have cared for over 300 babies during her career. Ford's 1999 book The Contented Little Baby Book advocates a daily routine for both the baby and the parents, with the day...
, a baby expert. Several users of the site had criticised Ford's techniques; there were other postings she said were "vile and disgusting". Stephens said it was troubling that the website could be held liable for the postings of its users and that people should be able to "give their own views and reasonable readers can make up their own minds." The case was settled out of court, after Mumsnet apologised to Ford and paid some of her legal costs. Stephens has since cited the case as an example of how the law is unable to cope with the digital age, having been created by people "who are not part of the messenger generation" and that it therefore needs revising. Also in 2007, Stephens was instructed to represent cricket umpire Darrell Hair
Darrell Hair
Darrell Bruce Hair is an Australian former Test match cricket umpire, from New South Wales. He stood on the Emirates International panel of umpires from 2002 to 2003, before he, along with fellow Australian Simon Taufel, and New Zealander Billy Bowden, was appointed to the ICC Elite umpire panel...
in relation to ICC
ICC
-Political:* International Control Commission, which oversaw the 1954 Geneva Accords ending the First Indochina War* International Communist Current, a communist organization* Interstate Commerce Commission, a now defunct US Government regulatory body...
proceedings arising from the ball tampering
Ball tampering
In the sport of cricket, ball tampering is an action in which a fielder illegally alters the condition of the ball. Under Law 42, subsection 3 of the Laws of Cricket, the ball may be polished without the use of an artificial substance, may be dried with a towel if it is wet, and have mud removed...
incident involving Pakistan in August 2006 at the oval
Oval
An oval is any curve resembling an egg or an ellipse, such as a Cassini oval. The term does not have a precise mathematical definition except in one area oval , but it may also refer to:* A sporting arena of oval shape** a cricket field...
in the summer of 2006
In 2008, he won an apology from a former police driver who had written "appalling lies" about the novelist and essayist Sir Salman Rushdie in a book he wrote. One allegation was that Rushdie had profited from the fatwa
Fatwa
A fatwā in the Islamic faith is a juristic ruling concerning Islamic law issued by an Islamic scholar. In Sunni Islam any fatwā is non-binding, whereas in Shia Islam it could be considered by an individual as binding, depending on his or her relation to the scholar. The person who issues a fatwā...
issued against him after publishing The Satanic Verses
The Satanic Verses
The Satanic Verses is Salman Rushdie's fourth novel, first published in 1988 and inspired in part by the life of Prophet Muhammad. As with his previous books, Rushdie used magical realism and relied on contemporary events and people to create his characters...
.
In June 2009, Stephens was invited to give oral evidence to amplify his written submission to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is a department of the United Kingdom government, with responsibility for culture and sport in England, and some aspects of the media throughout the whole UK, such as broadcasting and internet....
Parliamentary sub-committee on Libel reform under the Chairmanship of Mr John Whittingdale
John Whittingdale
John Flasby Lawrance Whittingdale OBE, , is a Conservative politician in the United Kingdom. He has been a Member of Parliament since 1992.-Education:...
MP.
January 2010 brought the first – known colloquially as the alphabet soup case
– in the (then) new UK Supreme Court, Stephens represented several media organisations to argue that the names of several people who were accused of funding terrorist organisations should have their anonymity stripped. The judges agreed with the media and ruled that the names should be released, noting that anonymity orders had become “deeply ingrained” in court cases in the UK. After the ruling Stephens commented, "No court henceforth should grant an anonymity order in a significant case unless it is satisfied that the litigant, if identified, would be in serious danger of physical attack."
In April, Stephens was reported to be representing the author Christopher Hitchens
Christopher Hitchens
Christopher Eric Hitchens is an Anglo-American author and journalist whose books, essays, and journalistic career span more than four decades. He has been a columnist and literary critic at The Atlantic, Vanity Fair, Slate, World Affairs, The Nation, Free Inquiry, and became a media fellow at the...
and the evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins
Richard Dawkins
Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL , known as Richard Dawkins, is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author...
, who were considering launching legal proceedings against Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
during his visit to the UK later that year, over sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. Towards the end of 2010, Stephens was invited by the Jamaican Government to review that country's libel laws and appear before a Parliamentary Select Committee. Shortly after his return Stephens began to defend the founder of WikiLeaks
Wikileaks
WikiLeaks is an international self-described not-for-profit organisation that publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources, news leaks, and whistleblowers. Its website, launched in 2006 under The Sunshine Press organisation, claimed a database of more...
, Julian Assange
Julian Assange
Julian Paul Assange is an Australian publisher, journalist, writer, computer programmer and Internet activist. He is the editor in chief of WikiLeaks, a whistleblower website and conduit for worldwide news leaks with the stated purpose of creating open governments.WikiLeaks has published material...
, against extradition to Sweden, where allegations had been made against Assange. Soon after the WikiLeaks cables
United States diplomatic cables leak
The United States diplomatic cables leak, widely known as Cablegate, began in February 2010 when WikiLeaks—a non-profit organization that publishes submissions from anonymous whistleblowers—began releasing classified cables that had been sent to the U.S. State Department by 274 of its consulates,...
disclosure began, Stephens told The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
that he thought he was being monitored by the security services and that his home was being watched. In January 2011, Stephens claimed that United States authorities were trying to develop a criminal case against Assange, citing, for example, a subpoena against Twitter
Twitter subpoena
On 14 December 2010, the United States Department of Justice issued a subpoena accompanied by a national security letter to Twitter in relation to ongoing investigations of WikiLeaks...
issued by the United States Department of Justice
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
to demand private information on Assange and other people associated with WikiLeaks. The Guardian reported that Assange ended his relationship with Stephens after he accused Finers Stephens Innocent of withholding a £412,000 advance for his autobiography to cover legal fees. Assange accused them of "extreme overcharging" which Finers Stephens Innocent denied.
Recently, Stephens has been invited to make a number of interventions in the European Court of Human Rights in free speech cases. Sanoma v Netherlands, MGN v United Kingdom, Mosley v United Kingdom and Haldimann v Switzerland.
In July 2011, it was reported that Stephens had been one of a group of high-profile lawyers who may have been the victim of the News International phone hacking scandal.
Reception
His public clashes have resulted in some counterstrokes. A week after a radio debate with a former editor of The News of the World the paper published an "'axe murderer' type photo" of him, related to a case he was working on. He laconically commented that, "If you don’t like it, you should go and do some residential conveyancing or something". On his CV he also notes how he was once "rendered into a Spitting ImageSpitting Image
Spitting Image is a British satirical puppet show that aired on the ITV network from 1984 to 1996. It was produced by Spitting Image Productions for Central Television. The series was nominated for 10 BAFTA Awards, winning one for editing in 1989....
puppet". In 2003 Stephens as Chair of the Internet Watch Foundation
Internet Watch Foundation
The Internet Watch Foundation is a non-governmental charitable body based in the United Kingdom. It states that its remit is "to minimise the availability of 'potentially criminal' Internet content, specifically images of child sexual abuse hosted anywhere, and criminally obscene adult content in...
publicly tangled with rock guitarist Pete Townshend
Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for the rock group The Who, as well as for his own solo career...
. In 2001, a website operated by an anti-feminist, angryharry.com created a section dedicated to vilifying Stephens. He told the Law Gazette that the site did not bother him and that he had added a link to his CV. Commenting to The Times in 2009 on the perceived glamour of being a media solicitor, he said that this is incorrect: "It's not glamorous, not a good work-life balance and you need to be available 24/7," but he added that "the work can be very stimulating". He was described in The Times 2008 Law100 list as "Mr 'Media Lawyer' himself", as a "passionate supporter of human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
" and "one of the best advocates for freedom of expression".
Appointments
Stephens has held many charitable, regulatory, government and academic appointments. He is also a Freeman of the City of London. In 1986 he was appointed the treasurer of the North East London Law Society and in 1989 was elected to the committee. He was on ICSTIS' (a premium telephone line regulator) emergency committee, but resigned in 1996, after it emerged he had not disclosed a possible conflict of interestConflict of interest
A conflict of interest occurs when an individual or organization is involved in multiple interests, one of which could possibly corrupt the motivation for an act in the other....
. Later that year, Stephens was appointed the first Chair of the Policy board of the Internet Watch Foundation and became the Vice Chairman on the merger of the Policy and Management Boards of the Internet Watch Foundation. He is currently a trustee of Index on Censorship
Index on Censorship
Index on Censorship is a campaigning publishing organisation for freedom of expression, which produces an award-winning quarterly magazine of the same name from London. The present chief executive of Index on Censorship, since 2008, is the author, broadcaster and commentator John Kampfner, former...
, Chair of the International Advisory Board of the Media Legal Defence Initiative
Media Legal Defence Initiative
The Media Legal Defence Initiative is a non-governmental organization established in 2008 to provide legal assistance to journalists and news media organizations, support training in media law and promote the exchange of information, litigation tools and strategies for lawyers working on media...
, the postgraduate course in comparative media law and social policy at Oxford University, the Solicitors Pro bono
Pro bono
Pro bono publico is a Latin phrase generally used to describe professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment or at a reduced fee as a public service. It is common in the legal profession and is increasingly seen in marketing, technology, and strategy consulting firms...
Group (now, LawWorks), and the International Bar Association
International Bar Association
The International Bar Association is an international association of lawyers and lawyers' associations. The IBA's stated purpose is to promote an exchange of information between legal associations worldwide, support the independence of the judiciary and the right of lawyers to practice their...
's Human Rights Institute and Media Law Committee.
On the 1st April 2006 Stephens was appointed to be a trustee of the International Law Book Facility, a charitable organisation whose objects are to donate lawbooks in order to improve access to legal information/access to justice where there is a need.
In August 2009 he was appointed Chairman of the Governors at the University of East London
University of East London
The University of East London is a university located in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, based at two campuses in Stratford and Docklands areas...
and in October 2010 as Chair of the Contemporary Art Society. He is a Freeman
Freedom of the City
Freedom of the City is an honour bestowed by some municipalities in Australia, Canada, Ireland, France, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, the United Kingdom, Gibraltar and Rhodesia to esteemed members of its community and to organisations to be honoured, often for service to the community;...
of the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
.
He was appointed by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, commonly referred to as the Foreign Secretary, is a senior member of Her Majesty's Government heading the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and regarded as one of the Great Offices of State...
to be a member of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, commonly called the Foreign Office or the FCO is a British government department responsible for promoting the interests of the United Kingdom overseas, created in 1968 by merging the Foreign Office and the Commonwealth Office.The head of the FCO is the...
's Free Expression Advisory Board; in January 2010, he was appointed to a working group on libel laws
English defamation law
Modern libel and slander laws, as implemented in many Commonwealth nations as well as in the United States and in the Republic of Ireland, are originally descended from English defamation law...
, set up by the then Justice Secretary, Jack Straw
Jack Straw
Jack Straw , British politician.Jack Straw may also refer to:* Jack Straw , English* "Jack Straw" , 1971 song by the Grateful Dead* Jack Straw by W...
, which published a report in March 2010. Stephens is currently serving on the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth Lawyers Association and was elected Vice President of its Council at the Hyderabad Conference.
In January 2011 Stephens was asked to Judge the documentary Current Affairs - International category 2009/2010 for the Royal Television Society
Royal Television Society
The Royal Television Society is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present and future. It is the oldest television society in the world...
.
In October 2011, Mark Stephens was appointed as the new Chair of the Design and Artists Copyright Society
Design and Artists Copyright Society
The Design and Artists Copyright Society is a UK not-for-profit rights management organisation that exists to collect and distribute royalties to visual artists....
(DACS), replacing Andrew Potter who steps down at the end of this year. Mark was instrumental in the establishment of DACS in 1984 – law firm Stephens Innocent was a home to DACS in the first years after its establishment.
Media attention and appearances
Stephens is frequently mentioned in the UK media. In 2005 he was the tenth-most mentioned lawyer, and between July 2009 and June 2010 he was the sixth-most mentioned. Earlier in his career, during the 1990s, he was a legal correspondent for Sky TV. He has also written commentary articles for several newspapers and appeared on the BBC Radio 4BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
quiz show Point of Law, as a team captain, between 1998 and 2001. In 2007 Stephens was asked by the artist Phil Collins
Phil Collins (artist)
-Life and work:Phil Collins was born in Runcorn, England and now lives in Berlin He studied Drama and English at the University of Manchester, graduating in 1994. During his time there he worked as a cloak-room boy and pint-puller at the Hacienda nightclub on Whitworth Street...
to collaborate with him in his Return Of The Real project arising from his Turner Prize
Turner Prize
The Turner Prize, named after the painter J. M. W. Turner, is an annual prize presented to a British visual artist under the age of 50. Awarding the prize is organised by the Tate gallery and staged at Tate Britain. Since its beginnings in 1984 it has become the United Kingdom's most publicised...
nominated exhibit.
Appearing on the BBC Radio 4 programme The Music Group he recounted growing up with Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
's music publisher as the family lodger, which led to his later work as part of the band's touring retinue.
Stephens was outspoken in his criticism of the development of superinjunctions and their growing use in 2011.
Stephens was interviewed by children from Summerhill School and from primary schools in Tower Hamlets as part of a series of events at the local town hall exploring human rights and justice. The school children acted as lawyers arguing for or against Summerhill, role playing the legal case.
Publishing
Stephens has contributed to two books, Miscarriages of Justice: a review of justice in error (1999) and International Libel and Privacy Handbook (2005). He is also on the editorial boards of Communications Lawyer, Copyright World and European Intellectual Property ReviewEuropean Intellectual Property Review
The European Intellectual Property Review is a monthly journal published by Sweet & Maxwell since 1978 and dedicated to international intellectual property law. The language of publication is English....
.
Recognition
In 2001, Stephens was awarded an honorary doctorate in law by the University of East LondonUniversity of East London
The University of East London is a university located in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, based at two campuses in Stratford and Docklands areas...
. In 2008 and 2010 he was listed among the Evening Standard
Evening Standard
The Evening Standard, now styled the London Evening Standard, is a free local daily newspaper, published Monday–Friday in tabloid format in London. It is the dominant regional evening paper for London and the surrounding area, with coverage of national and international news and City of London...
s 1000 most influential people in London. He has also been featured in the Times Top 100 Lawyers list since its inception in 2008.
He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2011 Birthday Honours
2011 Birthday Honours
The Birthday Honours 2011 for the Commonwealth Realms were announced on 7 June 2011 in New Zealand and 11 June 2011 in United Kingdom to celebrate the Queen's Birthday of 2011.-Privy Councillors:...
for services to the legal professions and the arts.