A common theme of the Jeffrey Epstein and Covid procurement scandals has been misconduct by powerful officials in the pursuit of personal gain. In this public lecture, Adam Wagner K.C. will discuss the extraordinary events unearthed by Sir Peter Openshaw’s public inquiry in the British Overseas territory of Gibraltar, in which he acted for the former Commissioner of the Royal Gibraltar Police. The lecture will set out lessons the scandal may have for protecting modern societies from abuses of power.
Adam Wagner KC is a barrister at leading human rights set, Doughty Street Chambers, and a Visiting Professor in Law at The City Law School.
As a leading expert in human rights, public inquiries, constitutional and international law, he has acted in some of the key public law and human rights cases of recent years, including leading cases on the right to protest, human rights during the Covid-19 pandemic and constitutional law, while he has also recently acted at the intersection of law and diplomacy, for the families of British and British-linked hostages of Hamas in Gaza.
Adam regularly acts in public inquiries, most recently into Covid-19 and an inquiry relating to allegations of corruption in Gibraltar. His cases often involved issues of high political and constitutional sensitivity.
In 2025, Adam won the award for Advocate’s International Pro Bono Barrister of the Year, and in 2024 he won the Halsbury’s Award for the Rule of Law and was given an honorary doctorate from the University of Law.
He is also passionate advocate, educator and writer on human rights. He founded and chairs the muti-award winning human rights education charity EachOther, set up the widely-read UK Human Rights Blog and hosted the Better Human Podcast.
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