Barrister prohibited after criminal conviction for punching a fashion designer

London barrister Matthew Feargrieve has been prohibited from practising after being convicted of assaulting a fashion designer at the Royal Opera House.

Feargrieve was convicted of criminal assault by the Central London Magistrates Court in December 2019.

He was found guilty of punching Ulrich Engler while attending a performance of Ring Cycle by Wagner in October 2018 over an empty seat at the Royal Opera House.

Feargrieve had lost his temper with Engler after he sat down next to his partner in an empty seat in the front-row seats in the stall circle, a move from his bench seats in row B.

On Wednesday, an independent disciplinary tribunal concluded that the barrister should be prohibited from obtaining a practising certificate for 12 months.

The Tribunal found that the charge was proved to the criminal standard and that he behaved in a way that was likely to diminish the public’s trust and confidence in him or in the profession.

Feargrieve is already unregistered but this decision means the Bar Standards Board (BSB) are not allowed to issue him with a practising certificate for the next 12 months.

He was called to the Bar of England and Wales by Lincoln’s Inn on 8 November 1996.

Commenting on the order, a BSB spokesperson said: “Barristers have an obligation not to behave in a way which is likely to diminish the trust and confidence which the public places in them or in the profession, even when not practising.”

“The tribunal’s decision shows that Feargrieve’s actions leading to his conviction were a clear breach of that duty and the sanction reflects the seriousness of this breach,” they added.