Sundeep Bhatia is a sole practitioner of Beaumonde Law Practice in Pinner, UK. He specializes in Employment Law and Criminal Litigation and is an accredited mediator. He is the immediate past chairman of the Society of Asian Lawyers and, in March 2010, was appointed as one of the two solicitors on the Law Society Council representing the BME constituency.
Sundeep has also just been elected to the Law Society Equality and Diversity Committee and has been appointed to the Employment Law committee of the Law Society.
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For DCC, he answered the following questions:
1: What is your most favourite part of the day?
Coming home to my delightful twins. The unconditional love and affection they display, at the age of three, puts life’s priorities into perspective.
2: What is the worst kind of person you ever sat next to on a flight?
When I was young, a youth sat next to me. He kept availing himself of complimentary alcoholic drinks. Eventually, the inevitable happened and he ended up filling a quantity of sick bags before passing out.
3: Were you ever in a situation where you came up short with a good come back? You can give it now!
I once was doing a jury trial and was riddled with flu. However, I did not want to let the client down so I attended coughing, spluttering and with my nose running. My voice was also affected. This meant that my presentation was not as slick as it usually is. However, I spent every last bit of energy I had on composing and presenting the closing defense speech. This resulted in a hung jury (one that cannot make up its mind)
4: Which trial/case still haunts you till today?
A conspiracy to murder in Venezuela. The prosecution argued that my client conspired with the victim’s husband to travel to Venezuela and that they both killed her. The body turned up in scrub land in the middle of nowhere in Venezuela. It was, as per local custom, reduced to bone and was identified by dental records.
The husband was found guilty of murder. There was a hung jury at the first trial for my client. At the retrial, he was acquitted within an hour of the jury going out.
The main argument re conspiracy was the fact that the rubbish bags the body was found in were not of a type that could be purchased in Venezuela so, they must have been bought in the UK and were taken to Venezuela with that purpose in mind. I traveled to Venezuela. I found the bags! I gave evidence at the Old Bailey.
The case involved suggestions of voodoo and had satanic overtones. I took a statement from a lady who ran a guest house near to a Voodoo shrine.
The client was a Romanian citizen who had been a child chess protege. He was the most interesting, intelligent client I have ever had. The case was more exhilarating than any detective novel I have ever read.
5: If you have a blog, how did you get started? Who or what inspired you to blog?
I have a blog but have to date only done a couple of articles. I love to write. I hope to write a book in the near future.
6: Did you end up in the profession of your childhood dreams?
Up until the age of 16, I wanted to be a doctor like my parents. I idolized them as most children do. However, I was hopeless at scientific practical projects. My “expert” dissection of a frog resulted in the biology teacher threatening to resign (tongue in cheek) if I did A level biology. By then I realised that I had more of an artistic flair. I enjoyed writing and debating. I spent a couple of school holidays working at a solicitors office and enjoyed it. I ended up in the profession of my teenage dreams.
7: Something you always wanted to learn but never did?
Car mechanics. I love cars but have no idea how they work.