For many lawyers, appearing in the Supreme Court is the height of their career. But arguing before the highest court of the land is not all prestige and solemn grandeur.

Lawyers accustomed to the cloistered formality of the Royal Courts of Justice, or other high court seats around the country, have learned to get used to the sudden appearance of groups of tourists clad in shorts and sandals wandering in and out of the proceedings. Understandably, few can take it for more than a few minutes, so there is another distraction as they leave.

Compounded, as the doors swing open, by the echo of courtroom voices from the TV monitor in the lobby.

Obiter can’t help but admire the advocates’ ability to keep going amid the tumult.

 

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