Lawyer who hit a Covent Garden operagoer is banned for a year
OperaMatthew Feargrieve, a lawyer who assaulted an underwear designer who was trying to climb into the neighbouring seat at the opera in March 2019, has been suspended for 12 months by the Bar Standards Board.
He was convicted of breaching his core duty by behaving in a way that was likely to diminish the trust and confidence the public places in the legal profession.
Feargrieve was previously convicted of assault and ordered to pay £2,265 in damages and costs at Westminster Crown Court.
The incident took place during an episode of Wagner’s Ring cycle.
Is it in any way relevant that the assault victim leading to this unseemly chapter of events was an underwear designer? Would the character of the assault be any different if it had been a housewife, a student, a miner, another lawyer?
I would have thought by now you would have known that if any story has a real or potential or even imaginary salacious element to it, that element will be highlighted on SD…..
Well, it is rather funny, so I would argue it is most relevant.
False advertising. The guy wanted a refund on the underwear purchase he made.
Bad fit, durability, and ride up issues.
Only the potential headline, LAWYER ASSAULTS UNDERWEAR DESIGNER FOR CLIMBING IN NEIGHBOURING SEAT AT RING CYCLE
all perfectly normal on and off stage – alberich curses love and steals gold.
Violence is inside loads of opera and ballet.
Look at Romeo and Juliet or Berstein’s take on it – West side story!
some educated people can be violent. he should be
banned in the opera
house for life.
The fuss is because the victim had the audacity to move from a 730 quid seat to an empty 1200 quid one next to the lawyer’s lady friend. Arrivistes deserve everything they get.
I am surprised that an organisation that can charge that kind of money for attendance still appears to be short of a quid from time to time.
Why has this adjudication taken so long? Feargrieve was convicted of the crime more than 4 years ago.
I guess procrastination comes naturally to those who are paid by the hour.
Listening to Wagner makes people violent…
So that explains the increase in knife attacks on the streets of our major cities?
Of course – that explains why, after every Wagner performance, there are mass knifings as the audience leave the opera house.
Thank you, for supplying my first laugh of the day!
“Every time I hear Wagner, I want to invade Poland.”
According to the Daily Telegraph, the incident took place in 2018 (not 2019 as stated above) at the Royal Opera House during a performance of Siegfried. There had been an altercation between the barrister’s partner and the interloper, a fashion designer. The barrister punched the interloper. (Perhaps he was practising for the role of conductor of the Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique.) He was found guilty of assault and fined over £2,200. As a solicitor, he was rebuked for this incident by the regulatory body in 2021. He was also practising as a barrister without the mandatory license. For this he was fined a further £1,560.
It’s amazing that it took this long for him to be suspended by the Law Society, but even more shocking that for all this, he was not struck off. If he had been licensed to drive a London black cab and had been found guilty of assault or any other serious crime, he would have lost his licence immediately and probably permanently
“Episode”
The name of the assailant is so telling.
And, perfect for a lawyer.
That’s got to be the greatest joke of all!
” behaving in a way that was likely to diminish the trust and confidence the public places in the legal profession”.
I thought was the primary reason to be a lawyer – extreme proficiency in lying, insincerity and pursuing self interest above all others…almost as smart as the police who are even more lying, insincere, corrupt and cover up ad infinitum.
I have first hand experience of them all.
Maybe nobody remembers the stuff about Hillsborough- how those lying b..stards covered up their lies for 2 decades+
The Barristers and legal profession defended them – a study in just how 2 faced and cynical are the whole shower.
Typical 2 faced British – I wouldn’t trust a single one of them.
No doubt the underwear designer behaved like a wounded cretin, probably to get his nice slice of wad…
Which episode?
Search the CG basement, as he’s now unemployed, he may become the next phantom.