David Conn: The miscarriages of justice following the Hillsborough disaster

About the event

David Conn will deliver the inaugural Mark George Memorial Lecture, which will reflect on the Hillsborough disaster, the families’ longstanding fight for justice and what this tells us about failures in our legal system. Conn will aim to advance discussion and understanding of what helps and hinders truth-finding in the courts, and how we might work to bolster legislative initiatives like the Hillsborough Law.

As Investigations Correspondent at The Guardian and the current news reporter of the year (Press Awards, 2024), Conn has reported on the Hillsborough disaster and the families' campaign for justice for approaching 30 years, and had a significant impact in prompting government action in 2009. He has also worked to expose other injustices, which has deepened his concern about courtroom failings and under-accountability.

Human rights barrister Pete Weatherby KC will deliver a response to Conn’s lecture, which will be chaired by Anna Morris KC.

The event will be followed by a drinks reception and buffet (7pm-8pm), all are welcome.

The Mark George Memorial Lecture Series was established by The University of Manchester in partnership with Garden Court North Chambers. The series commemorates the life and contributions Mark made to the legal, campaigning and education communities during his career. Mark George KC, who passed away in December 2022, was Head of Garden Court North Chambers. He was instructed for 22 families in the Hillsborough Inquiry at the 2014-16 inquests and was crucial to establishing the truth after 27 years.

For more information please contact Professor Eithne Quinn

Speaker Biographies:

David Conn

David Conn is an investigations correspondent for the Guardian, and author of four books. He has reported on the Hillsborough disaster and the bereaved families' campaign for justice for almost 30 years. His 2009 article for the Guardian on the 20th anniversary of the disaster prompted then ministers Andy Burnham and Maria Eagle to call for all documents to be published, which the government developed into establishing the Hillsborough Independent Panel, whose landmark 2012 report led to the quashing of the first inquest. David reported on the new 2014-16 inquests and its determination of unlawful killing, and also covered the subsequent Hillsborough-related prosecutions.

David received the Paul Foot award for investigative and campaigning journalism in 2023, and the 2024 news reporter of the year in the Press Awards, for his investigation into the PPE deals linked to the Conservative peer Michelle Mone. He has been named sports news reporter of the year and football writer of the year three times each for his investigations into the governance of football, which included his Hillsborough reporting.

Pete Weatherby KC

Pete Weatherby KC is one of the founding members of Garden Court North Chambers and worked with MGKC on many cases. Together, Pete and Mark led one of the two main legal teams representing the Hillsborough families in their quest for justice. Pete is a human rights barrister who has appeared at all levels of the domestic legal system and in a number of international courts and tribunals including Strasbourg. He has a public law practice, representing bereaved families and others at public inquiries and inquests, including Grenfell, Manchester Arena, Grainger, Covid and the Undercover Policing Inquiries. He regularly appears in the media on a variety of issues, and he was one of the main drafters of the Public Authority (Accountability) Bill 2017 (Hillsborough Law). He is currently engaging with government in trying to get it enacted.

Pete has appeared in a number of high profile and landmark cases as noted here:https://gcnchambers.co.uk/barrister/pete-weatherby-kc/ [gcnchambers.co.uk]

Anna Morris KC

Anna is recognised as a leading Silk in both public inquiries and inquests. Anna is currently instructed as leading counsel in four modules of the Covid 19 Public Inquiry [youtu.be] and in the Lampard Inquiry into deaths of inpatients in mental health settings in Essex. As a junior, she represented a number of families in the Manchester Arena Inquiry and represented 77 families who lost loved ones at the historic Inquests into the Hillsborough Stadium disaster.

Anna’s inquest practice specialises in complex inquests that engage Article 2 ECHR. A natural jury advocate with extensive experience developed within the criminal and civil courts, Anna has particular expertise in inquests that involve those suffering complex mental health issues, both in state detention, detention under the Mental Health Act 1983 and in the community. Anna has a particular interest in inquests following femicide and those involving the deaths of women and where the deceased was subject to domestic abuse.

Anna, alongside Pete Weatherby KC [gcnchambers.co.uk] gave written and oral evidence to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights about Hillsborough Law [gcnchambers.co.uk], the Duty of Candour and legal aid funding (equality of arms) for all families in inquests where the state is involved. Anna has also provided written evidence to the House of Lords Statutory Inquiries Committee [publications.parliament.uk] in their review of Public Inquiries.

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Accessibility

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