The Legal 500

Blackstone Chambers is ‘willing to go that extra mile to provide a first-class standard.‘ The ‘truly excellent‘ Michael Beloff QC appeared in MT (Palestine) which examined whether stateless ethnic Palestinians constituted refugees. Notable cases for the ‘incredibly professional‘ Lord Pannick QC and Monica Carss-Frisk QC include the ECHR case of N v United Kingdom, (a claim by an AIDS sufferer that repatriation to Uganda would involve inhuman and degrading treatment). Michael Fordham QC is a ‘very effective advocate‘ in the Court of Appeal, while the ‘excellent‘ Jane Collier and ‘impressive‘ Kate Gallafent are both good juniors.

Garden Court Chambers ‘has a good choice of experienced immigration and human rights specialists‘ that provide ‘sound advice‘, including Laurie Fransman QC (the ‘number one choice for nationality law‘). Clients consider the team ‘real stars‘. Ian MacDonald QC is applauded for his experience in race relations cases; both the ‘knowledgeable‘ Richard Scannell and the ‘superior‘ Duran Seddon are singled out, as is ‘excellent‘ Nadine Finch. The ‘incredibly enthusiastic‘ Sadat Sayeed is seen as a junior of promise. Kathyrn Cronin is renowned for her expertise in family/immigration crossover cases; Nicola Rogers has ‘excellent EU law expertise‘, acting on cases such as KG (Sri Lanka).

Doughty Street Chambers is ‘highly rated for its immigration law expertise‘, with 13 juniors working in this area. With an ‘incredible knowledge of the law‘ Simon Cox notably won the case of Aissaoui where the Court of Appeal reversed guidance on the refusal of indefinite leave to remain for over-stayers working under false names. Mark Henderson acted on the successful judicial review of the Government’s policy of preventing Gurkha veterans from settling in the UK, R (Limbu). The ‘highly intelligent‘ Judith Farbey is commended as ‘one of the best at the immigration Bar‘, boasting a ‘fantastic range of skills‘ while Laura Dubinsky provides work that is at a ‘very high quality‘, being ‘thorough in her preparation for cases‘.

39 Essex Street harmonises its immigration work with judicial review and public law work for both sides. In 2008, the ‘highly rated‘ Nigel Pleming QC notably acted an appellate hearing on the removal of an alleged terrorist organisation from the list of proscribed organisations. Steven Kovats acted for the defendants in the landmark case on Gurkhas - (Limbu). The ‘expert‘ Lisa Giovannetti successfully defended a challenge to the government’s exercise of the power to grant “leave to remain” to child (later adult), asylum seekers. Also recommended are the ‘first-rate‘ Kate Grange, the ‘highly intelligent‘ Eleanor Grey and Parishil Patel.

6 King’s Bench Walk is ‘rated highly‘ for its leading practitioners, including Manjit Gill QC and Sibghat Kadri QC. Rambert de Mello is ‘admired in this field‘ and Joanne Rothwell has a special interest in asylum cases involving women and children. Daniel Bazini Grace Brown and Mahmud Al-Rashid are recommended.

Leading silks at Matrix Chambers include Rabinder Singh QC who in 2008 appeared in the House of Lords case, EM (Lebanon), which concerned the deportation of a mother and her child. Acting in Court of Appeal cases such as AS (Pakistan), Samantha Knights’ practice includes exclusions under the Refugee Convention and trafficking cases. The ‘extremely clever and hardworking‘ Raza Husain is singled out.

A set that is ‘increasingly strengthening its immigration practice‘, 1 Pump Court’s Doron Blum is praised for his ‘extensive experience in representing at all stages of the appeal process‘ and has ‘exceptional ability‘. Ranjiv Khubber has an ‘imaginative approach to the law‘ and has a ‘willingness to take cases as far as possible so as to obtain the best outcome for clients.‘ The ‘dedicated‘ Parosha Chandran is ‘very imaginative and fearless in her approach to cases.‘

The ‘excellent‘ Tooks Chambers is praised as ‘user-friendly‘ and members are described as ‘very bright and knowledgeable, with a good understanding of business needs‘ and are also praised for ‘meeting deadlines promptly, without fuss or drama.‘ Headline cases for the ‘quick‘ Amanda Weston include Trevor Smith (aka Busta Rhymes) & RockCorps, in relation to an allegation of unlawful detention. Rebecca Chapman ‘combines a deep knowledge of the law with a very pragmatic approach‘, Glen Hodgetts is a ‘bright lawyer with excellent drafting skills‘ and Amanda Weston is ‘highly recommended‘.

At Mitre House Chambers, Eric Fripp is experienced in the international law of refugee status. In 2009, he appeared in House of Lords case of R (Baiai). S. Chelvan is renowned for his expertise in gender identity and sexual orientation cases.