Shaun Wallace, known as a Chaser on ITV's The Chase, has said his television fame is of no use in his day job as a barrister. The 66-year-old is a senior criminal defence advocate with more than 35 years' experience and an Honorary Doctor of Laws.
Away from the quiz show, he handles serious criminal cases including murder, manslaughter, fraud, money laundering, firearms and drug trafficking. He admitted that while he is recognised, it does not affect proceedings.
Recognition does not change evidence
Speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk, he said: "When I'm doing jury trials, I can't help being recognised, but they're not interested in Shaun Wallace from The Chase or the TV quizzer. They're interested in Shaun Wallace, the barrister. It's two different media, and it doesn't give me an advantage. It certainly doesn't change the evidence."
Passion for protecting citizens' rights
Wallace is a passionate advocate for his profession. In March this year, he told Express: "I'm passionate about the fact that we need to protect the rights of the citizens," as barristers prepared to protest the government's proposal to cut the crown court backlog by reducing the number of trials heard by jurors.
There have also been issues around barristers' pay. Six months of strikes in Northern Ireland earlier this year over rates ended when barristers accepted an 8.66% fee increase. The dispute delayed nearly 2,500 Crown Court cases, prompting recovery plans from the Lady Chief Justice to prioritise vulnerable and urgent matters.
Funding concerns for legal aid
Speaking on behalf of Gambling.com, where he works as Head of Smarter Gambling, Wallace said: "As long as my profession was happy in relation to this sort of settlement, then that was good. I thought we caved in a little bit too early, but I think it was important that we made our point."
He insisted: "That was important that we have proper funding for legal aid because if we don't, then it's going to mean that our professional diet because the youngsters who are coming through simply won't be able to survive."
He added: "Sadly, there's not enough funding. I'm not saying that there's not enough funding in the sort of legal services, the court services, the prison services. It's just a question of funding, and the government simply doesn't have the time or indeed the resources to actually fund these things properly, so I'm sure somewhere down the line we'll be back out."
Reflecting on the situation, he said: "They always kick the problem. It's like kicking the can down the line. It's somebody else's problem, instead of them sort of grabbing the bull by the horn and sorting it out. That's what always happens, sadly."
