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can I become a barrister if I'm trans (transsexual)?

Before you call me disgusting and say that I make everything about my transsexuality, i dont. I never make a point of my transsexuality, dont talk about it, try to hide it as much as possible irl, bc id prefer to just forget about it. id like to hide it as much as possible in my career too. however, theres a very real chance of it getting out (people from my uni know im trans). also fyi, i pass 100%, if you dont know i wasnt born the sex i present as, youd never guess.

Anyway, with those things in mind, do you think the fact that im trans can be a serious obstacle in getting a populliage/ becoming a barrister? again, i usually keep it very low, i dont talk about it, i look like any other person of the sex ive transitioned to (if not better lol;jk!)

Reply 1

HoldThisL

Original post by youllneverknow

Before you call me disgusting and say that I make everything about my transsexuality, i dont.

no, but a tendency to make unnecessary jabs at strangers might get in your way

Reply 2

youllneverknow

Original post by HoldThisL

no, but a tendency to make unnecessary jabs at strangers might get in your way

i just know cis people tend to find transpeople who constantly talk about the trans part annoying, so i decided to add that to avoid some angry comments. Also do you mean no, it is not an obstacle, or ..?

Reply 3

donya.karimi

Original post by youllneverknow

no being trans should not hinder the chance of you being a barrister, the same way being gay wouldnt hinder anything. Youll be all good

Reply 4

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

It would be illegal for them to discriminate against you on the basis of your gender identity. So no, being trans won't prevent you from becoming a barrister, regardless of whether you play into "respectability politics" of "not talking about trans stuff" or not. There is also at least one notable trans barrister (Robin White), who I think has written a couple articles and been featured in a podcast discussing what it's like being trans in the legal sector.

Reply 5

Fay713

Original post by artful_lounger

Yeah I wouldn’t think anyone would discriminate against anyone because of their gender identity But there are some cases and some people who would.. and if they discriminate they wouldn’t say oh it’s because you’re trans they’ll just say anything else not related so they won’t get in trouble like that idk

Reply 6

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by Fay713

As in, they can't not hire you for being trans, and they can't fire you for being trans. And if you felt you were fired/rejected for employment due to being trans you could certainly challenge it in an employment tribunal for at least the former, and they would need to prove that they fired you for legitimate reasons otherwise. They could of course be transphobic personally, although if they make a transphobic remark in the workplace you could make a complaint...although the nature of barrister sets might make that less likely to have any outcome/be plausible, compared with working in a corporate environment as a solicitor. So that may be a consideration.

The be all and end all is that there are trans barristers (at least one) and in principle you can't be discriminated against for that reason under UK law. If you have a chip on your shoulder about it then what are you going to do; not pursue that career? Not pursue any job because you think you may be rejected from it for that reason? It's an irrelevant consideration because it is necessary to work and earn in order to exist in our capitalist society so unless you plan to introduce a social paradigm shift you're going to need to get over that possibility existing - whether it materialises in this country or not - and just progress with your life otherwise.

The UK is not like the US in that regard, and I know this because I have trans friends from the US who can and are rejected or fired from jobs simply because they are trans - and their employers say as much, and they are legally entitled to in some states - and they end up being limited in the kinds of jobs they can do as a result. That simply isn't the case in the UK. So there is no point in umming and ahhing over whether it might affect things because you have far more protections here against such discrimination and routes to challenge it, and in principle it's illegal and in practice it's extremely unlikely to happen, especially in the legal profession where they are extremely aware of the legislation and potential punitive measures that may be taken if they are found guilty of such discrimination.

Reply 7

Blayze

Original post by artful_lounger

One thing to note is that pupillage is not a contract for employment, but that doesn't mean much because the regulator is still going to get invovled if you were denied pupillage because of your trans status. It should not be a detriment, but be aware that if you do become a barrister, you are then self-employed; people may not instruct you if they know you a trans, but candidly you probably don't want to work with those kinds of people anyway.

Reply 8

Kabzzzy

I would be more concerned you had to ask this question considering the profession you have chosen.

Reply 9

youllneverknow

No I know about that. But as it already was said, pupillage isn’t the same as employment. And also, there are just so many ways to go around equality act.

I just wanna know the opinion of people, bc in the end, you can discriminate in stealthy ways and avoid any responsibility for it, so culture matters more than law in this situation.

And I get that it’s annoying for some, but frankly what would you do in my place? Obviously you’d want to asses your chances before going in.

Reply 10

youllneverknow

Original post by Kabzzzy

I would be more concerned you had to ask this question considering the profession you have chosen.

Thanks for the answer first, and secondly, pls specify at least slightly. I do know about the equality act, if you’re talking about that. But again, it’s so easy to walk around it- especially when the competition is as high as it is.

Reply 11

Blayze

Original post by youllneverknow

As said, you will be fine. If you pass then no one is going to actually ask you about it, and unlike the gender of your signficiant other, its not going to come up in casual conversation either.