Our
Champions
Sir Andrew McFarlane
(Judge)
Sir Andrew has stated the following on why he chose to be a Champion for LWC:
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‘As President, I am particularly aware of the difficulties that young care leavers experience, I am therefore particularly keen to encourage those who wish to practice law by supporting LWC in its work.'
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Sir Andrew McFarlane is the current President of the Family Division and Head of Family Justice. Sir Andrew was called to the Bar in 1977 and practised in chambers in Birmingham until 1993 when he moved to a specialist family law chambers in London. He appeared at all levels of court including the House of Lords and the European Court of Human Rights. He was appointed as a QC in 1998. In April 2005 he was appointed to the High Court, Family Division and was, for five years, the Family Division Liaison Judge for the Midland Circuit. He was the legal member of the Government ‘Family Justice Review’ Panel. In July 2011 he was appointed to be a Lord Justice of Appeal sitting full time in the Court of Appeal in London.
On 28 July 2018 Sir Andrew succeeded Sir James Munby as President of the Family Division and Head of Family Justice. Together with the late David Hershman he is the co-author of a loose-leaf legal text book entitled “Children: Law and Practice”. In addition, he has contributed to other publications and lectured throughout the UK and abroad. Sir Andrew has been a trustee of YoungMinds (the national young person’s mental health charity) and is Patron of HOPE Family Centre (Bromyard).
In addition to being Chancellor of the Diocese of Exeter, Sir Andrew was Chair of the Church of England Clergy Discipline Commission and President of Clergy Discipline Tribunals for five years until 2019. He has been a native of Herefordshire and Worcestershire for over 20 years.
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We are honoured at LWC to have Sir Andrew believe in us and champion care-experienced young people in legal careers.
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More about Sir Andrew here.
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Kama Melly KC
(Barrister)
Kama Melly KC (Call 1997, Silk 2016) is a specialist in dealing with cases involving vulnerable people. Kama is Deputy Head of Park Square Barristers, the largest set of chambers in the North of England. Kama is a Recorder in Family and Crime, a Bencher of the Middle Temple and Governor of the Inns of Court College of Advocacy. Kama is chair of the North Eastern Circuit’s Women’s Forum.
In the case of R v U (2010), Kama's approach to vulnerable young offenders in sentencing was described as 'a model.' She helped develop the Inns of Court College Of Advocacy National Training programme on Advocacy for vulnerable people and children and is now part of developing a new National Course regarding trauma awareness.
On why she is happy to be a Champion for LWC, Kama says:
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“My work to date has been about improving the inclusivity of our justice systems for users of it, but it is vital that the same thought and development is given to the lawyers within them. It is hard to fully appreciate the challenges faced by those who have lived with our care systems, but increasing the representation of those who have had those experiences will have a profound impact on our understanding as well as helping the individuals involved reach their potential within our profession.”
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We invited Kama to be a Champion for LWC because, like Paul and Sir Andrew, she has shown commitment to inclusivity in the legal profession. We also support Kama's work on trauma-informed practices in law, which she spoke about at the 2023 Access to Justice Conference by Communicourt. Her excellent speech on 'the future of inclusion and special measures in the courts' can be listened to here.
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More about Kama here.
Oliver Conway
(Solicitor)
Oliver Conway is a neurodivergent solicitor specialising in complex family matters at Oliver Fisher Solicitors in London.
Before the Law Oliver worked with young people in Art and Music, putting on gigs, exhibitions and not getting enough sleep.
Oliver has spent the last decade supporting vulnerable people in the family court, challenging decisions of local authorities and still not getting enough sleep!
Oliver was recognised for his work at the Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards 2021 and 2024. He lives in West London with his cat Mici and is on Twitter far too much.
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On why he is a Champion for LWC:
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"Lawyers Who Care is a fantastic organisation because it recognises the talents, resilience and potential of care experienced young people. We need far more people with lived experiences in the Law.
I am only in the Law because my parents ran a legal aid law firm!
Without family and connections it is very difficult for people to gain entry to the legal world, this must change if we are to have the best people working in the Law.
I hope in 10 years time we have a new generation of care experienced lawyers and I cannot wait to see what brilliance LWC will help those lawyers achieve!"
Amanda Meusz
(Barrister at Garden Court Chambers)
Amanda's practice relates to all areas of the law relating to children, including serious non-accidental injury (NAI) cases, the death of a child, fabricated or induced illness (FII), child sexual abuse, medical treatment of children and deprivation of liberty (DoL) cases, as well as disputes relating to the provision of services to children and young people. Amanda has considerable experience in representing parents and children who have been the victims of trauma, parents and children with mental health or neurodevelopmental difficulties and learning disabilities. Amanda has developed an innovative a trauma informed approach to representation of vulnerable clients in proceedings and the aftermath of proceedings. In 2022 Amanda was shortlisted for Family Law Junior of the Year.
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We've chosen Amanda to be a Champion for us because she lives her advocacy for care-experienced people and trauma-informed practices in the law. She has adopted a trauma-informed practice herself and trains our mentors with us for our mandatory Trauma-Informed course. Amanda is also a passionate mentor and is always seeking new opportunities to help care-experienced people.
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Quote from Amanda on why she is a Champion for LWC:
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"Throughout my career, I have advocated for fair access to justice and representation of care experienced parents and their children. I grew up in a single-parent household, with little money and was the first person in my family to obtain any qualifications. I am acutely aware of the structural inequalities, prejudice and of feeling like an outsider in an alien system that prevents individuals from even considering this profession. I am very aware of the even greater challenges for a care-experienced person and want in some way to bring about change. It is an honour to be a Champion for this fabulous organisation and to now advocate for the inclusion of those who have experienced the care system into the profession. Our legal system will be immeasurably improved by harnessing the lived experience and wisdom of more care-experienced individuals. I hope to nurture and support any care experienced young person who wants to become a lawyer, and to walk alongside them in their journey."