A PROMINENT barrister has made history as the first woman recorder sworn in at Ipswich Crown Court.

Sarah Przybylska, from Maldon, decided she wanted to become a barrister after watching legal drama This Life on TV in the 1990s.

She went to work for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in Chelmsford in a bid to save up enough to go backpacking.

That is where she started out, helping barristers prosecuting trials, keeping a note of the evidence in court, making sure the witnesses were ready to give evidence and “doing a lot of photocopying”.

She said: “One of the cases I helped with was a murder trial involving south Essex drug dealers, which was so exciting – lots of very senior barristers were acting in the case and they were really encouraging about my career aspirations.

“By the end of my time working for the CPS I was absolutely certain that I wanted to be a barrister.”

Years later, at 39, Sarah is one of 18 specialist barristers based at the Old Bailey and approved to prosecute the most serious and complex cases in the country.

Now she has marked a milestone in her career, and made history, after being sworn in as a part-time judge at Ipswich Crown Court.

This is the first time the court has sworn in a female recorder.

Resident judge Martyn Levett said: “I sincerely hope it will not be the last. Your appointment as a crown court recorder comes at a vital time for the county of Suffolk.”

Sarah’s job is a stark contrast to her home life with husband Paul and two-year-old son Freddie. The couple also have another baby on the way.

Sarah added: “I have quite a different life at home - my husband, Paul, is a sheep farmer and I am probably the only barrister whose typical day starts with milking a ewe or catching a grumpy ram and continues with prosecuting a murder trial at the Old Bailey or sitting as a judge in Ipswich.”