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Index of tables

  1. Immigration – Leading Sets
  2. Immigration – Leading Silks
  3. Immigration – New Silks
  4. Immigration – Leading Juniors

Immigration – Leading Juniors

The ‘first classGarden Court Chambers houses barristers with ‘a fantastic range of depth and experience’. In particular, Laurie Fransman QC remains ‘a god of nationality law, with unmatched knowledge of the area’, and he and Ian Macdonald QC are highly admired by peers and clients alike. Among the juniors, Stephanie Harrison is ‘very knowledgeable’ and competent in all areas of EU law; Nadine Finch is ‘a reliable and unflustered collaborator’; Peter Jorro has ‘intellectual vigour and is quick to get to the important issues’; Duran Seddon is ‘very knowledgeable and offers practical solutions’; and David Jones’ has a ‘highly technical mind and encyclopaedic knowledge of asylum law’. Clients also benefit from Kathryn Cronin’s ‘useful combination of childcare and immigration expertise’; Navtej Singh Ahluwalia’s ‘strong communication skills’; and Sadat Sayeed’s ‘determined attitude’.

Hailed as a ‘very professional and organised set’, Blackstone Chambers reaps praise for its immigration expertise. Lord Pannick QC, Michael Beloff QC and Michael Fordham QC are well respected in the field. Monica Carss-Frisk QCcuts through confusion with great elegance’, and Mark Shaw QC is also highly regarded. Leading juniors include Kate Gallafent, Jane Collier, Guy Goodwin-Gill and Naina Patel.

Noted for its ‘amiable and helpful clerks’, Doughty Street Chambersalways strives to achieve the best outcome for its clients’. New silk Judith Farbey QC acted on the English UK judicial review case, and produces ‘killer legal arguments’. Simon Cox has ‘outstanding intellect’, and Laura Dubinsky is ‘committed and genuinely cares for her clients’. Mark Henderson is involved in the landmark EU case of Saeedi, and Joseph Middleton receives impressive solicitor recommendations. John Walsh is ‘very good on deportation cases’; Phil Haywood is ‘brilliantly intellectual’; and Alasdair Mackenzie is ‘thorough and meticulous’.

At Thirty Nine Essex Street, Steven Kovats QC and Nigel Pleming QC are the leading immigration silks. Kovats took silk in 2010 and acts for the government in a large number of immigration cases. In 2011, three further immigration juniors took silk, namely Lisa Giovannetti QC, praised for her ‘sharp wit and logical mind’, Eleanor Grey QC and Jenni Richards QC. Parishil Patel appeared in RS (Zimbabwe) v SSHD, and is also recommended.

Clients appreciate the dynamism at Matrix Chambers, where the clerks are ‘well organised and have a realistic approach and commercial appreciation’. The ‘well-preparedRabinder Singh QCdemolishes his opponents’ arguments, which often look childlike in comparison’, and the ‘razor-sharpRaza Husain QC is a ‘star performer – both knowledgeable and tenacious’. Of the juniors, Samantha Knights has ‘great attention to detail and tremendous tenacity’; and Nick Armstrong is ‘able to identify solutions that would often not occur to others’.

At Tooks Chambers, new silk Hugh Southey QC is ‘a brave and creative advocate, with excellent tactical judgement’. Rebecca Chapman is ‘very sensitive to clients’ concerns, and quick thinking’; Glen Hodgetts is ‘extremely thorough and will often go the extra mile in case preparation’; and Amanda Westonrapidly identifies the issues and finds novel solutions’. Grace Brown has ‘deep expertise’, and Abigail Smithremains amazingly calm in a crisis and instinctively takes the right course of action’.

At No5 Chambers, Manjit Gill QC is the go-to silk for immigration. Ramby de Mello, Abid Mahmood and Mahmud Al-Rashid are highly regarded in the field of national security, and Danny Bazini is well known for his judicial review work. Edward Nicholson has an ‘affable approach which puts clients at ease’.

Landmark Chambers is commended for its value for money and enthusiasm for immigration law. Tim Buley is ‘extraordinarily bright’ and Galina Ward is ‘incredibly gifted on her feet and popular with clients’. Other notable practitioners include Declan O’Callaghan (‘extremely diligent and conscientious’); Mark O’Connor (who has ‘second-to-none knowledge of immigration’); and Christopher Jacobs (‘an extremely safe pair of hands’).

Mitre House Chambers has highly regarded juniors in Eric Fripp, who is ‘professional, knowledgeable and very good with clients’; Allan Briddock, who has specialised in immigration since he was called to the Bar in 2000; and Victoria Laughton, who acted on MM (Iran).

At 1 Pump Court, Parosha Chandran has specialist knowledge in human trafficking cases, and Doron Blum has ‘an exceptional ability to anticipate arguments from judges’. Graham Denholm and Ranjiv Khubber are also highly regarded.

Also recommended are Sibghat Kadri QC of 6 King’s Bench Walk; Robin Tam QC at Temple Garden Chambers; Jeremy Johnson QC of 5 Essex Court; and the ‘highly committedTim Eicke QC at Essex Court Chambers, who took silk in 2011.

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Legal Developments in the UK

Legal Developments and updates from the leading lawyers in each jurisdiction. To contribute, send an email request to
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  • Immigration update May 2012

    In this issue:
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Press Releases in the UK

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