No punches pulled in Brookman's advertising campaign

This week in the media was all about confrontation: whether at the receiving end of John Prescott's fearsome left jab or being exhorted to 'ditch the bitch' by a firm of divorce lawyers.Specialist City divorce firm Henry Brookman & Co tested the maxim that no publicity is bad publicity when it hit the headlines thanks to a poster campaign encouraging men to 'ditch the bitch'.

Another poster showed a woman lying face down on a bed with the phrase 'all men are bastards' - both images, unsurprisingly, provoked a storm of complaints from women's groups and family campaigners.Equally unsurprisingly, it was the Daily Mail which weighed in most heavily.

The 'offensive' and 'derogatory' (16 May) advertisements were produced by Australian lawyer Henry Brookman, and women's groups claimed they 'do not exhort respect for either sex', 'encourage couples to split up' and moreover 'are not worthy of comment'.

Mr Brookman's wife, presumably more of a fan of Bridget Jones than Andrea Dworkin, defended the adverts as 'funny' (London Evening Standard, 16 May) and the 'happily married mother of three' argued that 'they represent what a man is feeling when he splits up from his wife'.Also on the subject of advertising the legal profession, Guardian law columnist Marcel Berlins weighed into the ongoing compensation culture argument about personal injury lawyers encouraging claims.

'The government is constantly telling the legal profession to open itself up to competition,' he wrote persuasively.

'Advertising is the main way of informing the public of your existence and competence.

'Why is it OK to say, "I bake excellent bread.

Buy it", or "If your tap is leaking, I'm a plumber who can fix it", but somehow reprehensible to state on a card, "You are injured.

You may have legal rights.

I'm a good lawyer.

Come to me."'?From a metaphorical battle to a literal one, and the impromptu Rocky impersonation by 'two jabs' Prescott.

The incident caused consternation in the legal world, with more than one leading lawyer expressing surprise that the Deputy Prime Minister was not arrested after lashing out at an egg- throwing protester.Barrister Michael Sunderland, 'who led the legal defence for Sunderland grocer Steve Thoburn, "the Metric Martyr"' (Evening Standard, 17 May), said the failure to arrest Mr Prescott was a 'scandal', and said he 'would be willing to represent the protester Craig Evans in a private prosecution'.The Daily Telegraph also quoted lawyers 'expressing surprise' at the police's failure to arrest Mr Prescott.

Malcolm Fowler, chairman of the Law Society's criminal law committee, said it was 'good police practice for both parties to be arrested and interviewed' (18 May).

Where that did not happen, 'it might well look like a double standard'.

This attitude was echoed by many other lawyers, with one particularly perceptive criminal solicitor claiming that 'Mr Prescott's position as Deputy Prime Minister might have had an unreasonable effect on the police mind'.The House of Lords ruling that rape victims can be questioned about their previous sexual history in court received predictable coverage.

According to the Lords, a new law designed to protect rape complainants from having their previous sexual activity discussed in court 'must not be allowed to stifle a defendant's claim that the alleged victim consented to sex' (Daily Express, 18 May).The organisation Women Against Rape criticised the ruling by the all-male panel of judges, saying that 'discretion has been given to judges who have proved in practice that they are sexist and do not protect women from irrelevant and abusive questioning'.

The final word this week should go to leading human rights lawyer Geoffrey Bindman, who in a heart- stirring and breast-beating piece for The Guardian (15 May) fiercely defended the right of the May Day protesters to seek legal advice.

'Public cynicism is deeply ingrained, but those of us who cherish our historic commitment to democracy and the rule of law must surely acknowledge that the lawyer has a vital role in monitoring the exercise of power and challenging its abuse'.

Monitoring the exercise of power, presumably, does not mean blocking a Prescott punch.Victoria MacCallum