Lawyers told to boycott Beijing by chief of Bar

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Tim Dutton QC, chairman of the Bar Council, said there was a strong "moral case" for rejecting Chinese contracts because "taxes paid by lawyers" could help Beijing supply weapons overseas and carry out repression at home.

His call will add to the controversy about Western involvement with China, which has escalated following the regime's brutality towards protesters in Tibet in the run-up to the Olympic Games in Beijing this summer.

Mr Dutton said he was speaking out because of his concern about the number of British law firms setting up offices in China and the danger that their work could help to support further brutality.

"It is a moral case to do with how far British lawyers should go to support the economy of China when the state there is involved in the supply of weapons and repression overseas as well as its activities at home," he said.

"The taxes paid by lawyers working in China go to pay for the weapons which have been used in Burma, while China is also involved in repression in Tibet and supporting regimes in countries such as Zimbabwe."

Mr Dutton said that work by lawyers seeking to improve the Chinese legal system and respect for human rights was justifiable.

But he rejected an argument made by some supporters of engagement with China that commercial contact would ultimately bolster the law, saying it was taking a "very long time" for any significant progress to be seen.

He added: "Some British law firms have set up offices in Shanghai and there are members of the Bar who work in China. It is up to individuals to make their own choices but I would hope that many would bear in mind what is happening in Tibet, Burma and Zimbabwe as well as in China itself. I personally would not work in China, save to support projects which promote the rule of law and respect for human rights."

Mr Dutton is a member of London's Fountain Court chambers and was made a QC in 1998. His wife Sappho, also a barrister, is Burmese.

London firms with offices in China include Clifford Chance, Linklaters, Allen & Overy and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.