Lawyer in the news

Who? Bernard Crick, head of criminal litigation and managing partner of the Aldershot office of Herrington & Carmichael, a four-partner practice with offices in Camberley and Wokingham.

Why is he in the news? Defending male nurse Kevin Cobb at the Old Bailey, who is accused of the drugging and manslaughter of a female colleague, and injecting and sexually assaulting three female patients in accident and emergency.

Background: Graduated from Southampton University in 1974, and Guildford Law School in 1975.

Articled at London firm Kenwright & Cox.

Qualified in 1977, when he moved to Aldershot to join Pocknell & Co (later Pocknell Crick & Co) to work mainly on crime.

On the death of his partner, he joined Herrington & Carmichael.Route to the case: 'It was in response to a duty solicitor call at Woking police station in January 1999.'Thoughts on the case: 'It's extremely unusual.

This is a high-profile case and the work has been at the cutting edge in respect of forensic evidence and the experts which have been used on both sides as it concerns the alleged misuse of the drug midazolam.

It's a frequently used drug in the accident and emergency department.

We had help from junior counsel very early from Jonathan Page of Godalming Chambers.'Dealing with the media: 'We have been approached but have not felt it right to respond.

There has been media interest at the court, which focused mainly upon the client and my assistant who attended most of the trial to date.

My assistant solicitor, Michael Nicholson, was mainly in the firing line as photographers tried to get pictures.

We need to be careful in dealing with the media because we have to be seen to take proper account of the alleged victims, their families and of course the same applies to the defendant.

This is not, after all, a jamboree.

We have had high-profile cases before, but this is exceptional and one might not come across a similar case for many years.'Anne MizziX In last week's lawyer in the news (see [2000] Gazette, 5 May, 12), Nick Makin actually said he had brought in Max Clifford to deal with the media in the Tony Martin case, not bought in as stated.