By Grace Zigah
A barrister in England and Wales has been disbarred after a disciplinary tribunal found her guilty of a series of professional misconduct offences, including secretly recording family court proceedings, misleading the court, breaching client confidentiality and harassing a former employee.
Mariam El-Sobky, who was called to the Bar of England and Wales by Lincoln’s Inn in March 2001, was ordered to be disbarred following a disciplinary hearing that concluded on August 11, 2026.
The case centred on three sets of disciplinary proceedings in which the tribunal found multiple instances of misconduct involving dishonesty, lack of integrity and failures to comply with her professional obligations to the court and clients.
Secret recordings became central to case
One of the most serious findings concerned El-Sobky’s decision to secretly record family court hearings.
According to findings cited by the Bar Standards Board (BSB), she made audio recordings of family court proceedings on at least three occasions between March and December 2021 without obtaining permission from either the parties involved or the presiding judge.
The tribunal found that El-Sobky knew she was not legally entitled to make the recordings but nevertheless proceeded with them.
She subsequently sent the recordings to employees and instructed them to transcribe what had been captured.
The tribunal regarded the conduct as a serious breach of her duty to the court and the administration of justice. It also found that the behaviour had the potential to undermine public confidence in both the barrister and the wider legal profession.
The issue was particularly significant because family court proceedings frequently involve highly sensitive personal and confidential information.
The findings underscored the professional responsibility of lawyers to respect restrictions governing court proceedings, confidentiality and the protection of information disclosed during cases.
Tribunal finds further misconduct
The disciplinary tribunal also found El-Sobky guilty of other forms of misconduct unrelated to the secret recordings.
In one instance, she was found to have harassed a former employee through a group chat by making inappropriate comments about the employee’s confidential mental health issues.
The tribunal also found that she failed to adequately protect a client’s confidential information.
Appeal papers relating to a client’s case were reportedly sent to the personal email address of an individual employed by El-Sobky to undertake work on the matter.
The tribunal found that she had not first obtained a confidentiality agreement from that individual.
The collection of findings ultimately demonstrated, according to the disciplinary decision, conduct substantially below the standards expected of a barrister.
Previous disciplinary action
The disbarment also came against the background of an earlier disciplinary matter involving El-Sobky.
In 2021, she was reprimanded and fined £2,000 after another tribunal found that she had improperly approached an opposing party in family proceedings without the person’s lawyer being present.
She was additionally ordered to shadow an experienced family practitioner for six months.
At that time, the tribunal concluded that although she had acted out of concern for her client, she lacked sufficient experience of the rules and procedures governing family practice.
Five-person tribunal heard case
The latest disciplinary proceedings involved a five-person tribunal that sat between February 23 and March 3, 2026.
The matter was later adjourned for consideration of the appropriate sanction, with hearings held on August 10 and 11.
The Bar Tribunals and Adjudication Service records the panel as being chaired by His Honour Simon Davis. Claire Cheetham, Ian Arundale, Naomi Ryan and Kane Simons were also members of the tribunal.
After considering the allegations and findings, the tribunal imposed disbarment, effectively marking the most severe professional sanction available within the Bar’s disciplinary system.
The Bar Standards Board said the decision reflected the seriousness of El-Sobky’s conduct.
A spokesperson for the regulator said the barrister had failed to observe her duty to the court in the administration of justice and that her behaviour fell significantly below the standards expected by the public.
