Religion and Belief Taskforce

Julian was called to the Bar in 2006 and specialises in public law, public inquiries, and media and information law. He is a tenant at 11 King’s Bench Walk and a member of the Attorney General’s ‘A’ Panel of Counsel. Julian has been appointed as an Honorary Vice President of the Jewish Leadership Council in recognition of his communal work and provides expertise to the Taskforce on the Jewish faith.

Sultana is Chair of the Bar Standard Board’s Taskforce on Religion and Belief. She is a human rights, international law and criminal justice barrister, advising States, NGOs and individuals. She also advises large multi-national corporations on Diversity & Equality.

​Sultana's unique expertise in high profile counter terrorism & national security cases spans across the Criminal Courts, Coronial Courts, Administrative and Family Divisions of the High Court and the Appellate Courts. She is part of the Organisation of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Roster of Criminal Justice Sector Experts dealing with Counter-Terrorism; and is on Legal Advisory Panel on the People's Review of Prevent.

She advises on international human rights, international criminal law and humanitarian law issues. She is currently on the Advisory Board, Influencing Corridors of Power (ICOP), School of Oriental & African Studies, University of London; Member of Legal Expert Advisory Panel for Fair Trials International (LEAP); Special Advisor on Human Rights for the Oxford Initiative for Global Ethics and Human Rights.

Jaskeerat Singh was called to the Bar in December 2015 and he is currently seeking pupillage to qualify as a practicing barrister. Jaskeerat practices immigration and family law, and he represents vulnerable clients in Immigration Tribunals and Family Courts. As a practicing Sikh, Jaskeerat recognises the barriers which are faced by students and aspiring barristers from diverse background whilst trying to find their feet in this prestigious profession. 

Jaskeerat Singh co-founded Sikh Lawyers Association to allow students from disadvantaged backgrounds to receive mentoring opportunities from practicing members of the profession. Sikh Lawyers Association is the first association for Sikhs in the legal profession and it brings a strong support network for established members. Jaskeerat Singh echoes the principle of Sikhism to “Recognise the Human Race as One”, and he encourages diversity and inclusion within the profession to ensure current and prospective members of the bar can overcome adversity to reach the highest levels despite their race, religion, or background.

Tinessa Kaur was Called to the Bar in 2019 at Lincoln’s Inn and is currently seeking pupillage. She is a co-founder of the Sikh Lawyers Association and the Founder of the CUT IT OUT Project and Director of the Kaurs Legal clinic. Tinessa is able to draw upon her own personal experiences in seeking pupillage to contribute towards positive outcomes for fair recruitment at the Bar.

Tinessa wishes to specialise in criminal law and human rights at the Bar. She has already began building her profile in this sector through her work with the CUT IT OUT Project, conducting pro-bono work for Criminal Solicitor firms and other community work through her organisations. She set up the youth crime prevention project to help and support young people who want to move away from gangs and violence.  

Tinessa set up the first Sikh lawyers' network in 2020 with her co-founders, to ensure that Sikhs are no longer underrepresented within the profession and to help and support lawyers and students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Through the network, she helps to encourage students to pursue a career at the Bar or in the legal profession. It has created great networking opportunities, including solicitors instructing barristers from the group. 

Before even securing pupillage, Tinessa has been awarded two legal category awards in February and July 2022 for her work in the Sikh Community:

1. Highly Commended Rising Star in Law, by the British Sikh Awards;

2. Achievements in Law and Legal Support in the Community by the National Sikh Sports and Community Awards. 

Tinessa is proud to be a part of the BSB's Religion and Belief Taskforce to represent Sikhs. She is looking forward to working alongside her colleagues on the Taskforce to tackle diversity and inclusion at the Bar. 

Ravi is a commercial dispute resolution barrister.  As well as commercial litigation in the Business & Property Courts (primarily the Commercial Court), Ravi has an international arbitration practice.  He frequently appears as counsel in arbitrations seated all over the world (and is periodically appointed as an arbitrator).

Ravi has sat as a deputy district judge in the County Court since 2013 in general civil matters, and in 2020 received an authorisation to hear specialist chancery / bankruptcy and insolvency matters.

Ravi has a longstanding passion for matters of equality, diversity, inclusion, belonging and social mobility, and has taken part in many formal and informal mentoring and CSR initiatives.  In 2021 the Society of Asian Lawyers awarded him their Company / Commercial Lawyer of the Year Award. 

Annabel Timan is a criminal barrister with substantial experience in serious and complex criminal trials and appeals including Murder, Terrorism, offences under the Modern Slavery Act, Firearms offences and Financial Crime.

She has particular expertise in appellant proceedings having been instructed in recent years in some of the most high-profile appeals against conviction in the country.

She is frequently instructed in cases involving a substantial international element, having previously worked in France advising a multi – national company on its obligations under the UK Bribery Act, and in Ukraine providing advice and training (to the government of Ukraine, the Chief Military Prosecutor’s Office and the State Security Services) on cooperation with the International Criminal Court and domestic prosecutions for war crimes arising out of the Russian occupation of Crimea and the armed conflict in the East of Ukraine.

Ramya Nagesh is a barrister at 4-5 Gray's Inn Square. After having spent approximately ten years practising primarily in general crime, she decided she was ready to expand her growing practice in inquests, inquiries and regulatory law.  She now focuses almost entirely on those three areas. 

Ramya has always had an interest in tackling discrimination and promoting equality. She has lectured and written extensively on the topic of hate crime, including a book on the topic published in 2020 (which is one of four practitioners' guides she has written on various aspects of law). Additionally, for a number of years she has been the independent legal representative to the West Midlands Scrutiny Panel on Hate Crime. 

She sits on the roster of experts for Girls Human Rights Hub, which includes mentoring girls from diverse backgrounds. She is a mentor with Bridging Barriers - an organisation designed to assist those from non-traditional backgrounds. She is also a Trustee for Justice Is Now, which is an organisation seeking to bring about positive changes in the way that serious sexual assaults are treated in both education and the criminal justice system. 

Ramya is excited to bring not only her professional, but also her personal experience to the BSB's Taskforce on Religious Discrimination. As a practising Hindu married to a person of Christian background, with close friends from various other religious and atheist backgrounds, she is deeply passionate about promoting respect for all religious and non-religious belief systems. She is confident that this Taskforce will go a long way towards doing so within the Bar.

Narinder Jhittay was called to the Bar in 2010. She is a member of Maitland Chambers, specialising in commercial chancery litigation and arbitration. She was one of the 36 barristers across the country selected to take part in the Bar Council’s inaugural Leadership Programme, to help drive forward a positive, open and inclusive culture across the Bar.

Jane Heybroek is a member of Goldsmith Chambers. She was a founding members of chambers’ Inclusion Committee, created in 2020 in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd. She specialises in Immigration, Asylum and Nationality law. Jane has been a practising Nichiren Buddhist for over 29 years, and is a Buddhist leader in faith in her local area. Using the key tenets of her faith – kindness, compassion and respect for all – she strives to improve everyone’s experience of the legal process.

Mark Neale has had a long career of public service. From 2010, he led the Financial Services Compensation Scheme for nine years, transforming its capability in the wake of the financial crisis to protect consumers in the event of major failures, and putting many of its services online. Before the FSCS, Mark was a civil servant in both policy and delivery roles. This culminated in Director General roles in both The Home Office where he was responsible for counter-terrorism, organised crime and international work from 2002 to 2005, and in HM Treasury where he was the Managing Director for Budget, Tax and Welfare between 2005 and 2010. Mark has also worked as a civil servant on education, employment and welfare issues.

Declarations of interest:

The Lending Standards Board – Non Executive Director

Froebel Trust –  Chair

Poornima Karunacadacharan is the Policy Manager for Equality and Access to Justice at the BSB. She has been leading on the drafting of the Equality Rules, as well as ensuring equality, diversity, and inclusion is embedded in all areas of BSB regulation. She has over 20 years experience working in the Charity Sector and as a consultant for public sector organisations on equality and human rights issues. Poornima has expertise in training public, private, and voluntary sector organisations on the Equality Act 2010 and the Public Sector Equality Duty.

Dee Sekar is a qualified solicitor (England and Wales) and has worked as a corporate solicitor at Pinsent Masons and Addleshaw Goddard. Dee has worked in the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) space for 12 years, most recently as a Senior Manager at PwC. She also led the Global DEI department at Chambers and Partners for eight years as Global DEI Director. Dee is a global Environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) and DEI expert with experience working across Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America and North America. 

Dee held the position of committee member for The Law Society's Ethnic Solicitors Network and is the former Deputy Chair of InterLaw Diversity Forum. She is an active mentor and enjoys supporting the next generation of talent through coaching and practical guidance. Dee is a strong advocate for pro bono work and has supported pro bono projects at PwC and the In House Pro Bono Group.