Personal profile
Following a successful career at the Bar, in October 2004, Dame Linda became the first non-white high court judge in the UK. At the Bar she was a member of, and chaired, a number of committees, including the Race Relations, Equal Opportunities, International, Professional Conduct and Professional Standard Committees. In 2003 she became the Chairman of the Criminal Bar Association where she set up its first Equality and Diversity sub-committee. Whilst on the High Court Bench she was the Senior Liaison Judge for Diversity, Chair of the Magisterial Committee of the Judicial Studies Board and Chair of the International Committee of the Judicial College and a Fawcett Commissioner.
Dame Linda is a contributing and consultant editor to a number of legal publications. She has been involved in the training of lawyers and judges both in the UK and internationally for over 20 years and is the Director of training at the Judicial Institute for Africa, based at the University of Cape Town where she is an honorary professor.
She has advised, assisted, participated and devised training in the following areas:
i) professional ethics;
ii) judicial ethics;
iii) human rights;
iv) drug trafficking/money laundering/asset seizure;
v) corruption;
vi) fraud;
vii) criminal law and procedure;
viii) sexual offences;
ix) expert evidence;
x) advocacy training;
xi) judge-craft, including judgment writing and case management;
xii) evidence;
xiii) sentencing;
xiv) equal treatment and vulnerable witnesses.