David Blundell KC > Chambers of David Holland KC and Jenny Wigley KC > London, England > Barrister Profile
Landmark Chambers Offices
Landmark Chambers
180 FLEET STREET
LONDON
EC4A 2HG
England
- Set Profile
- Go to...
David Blundell KC
Position
David regularly appears in the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court. He frequently acts as sole counsel on behalf of the United Kingdom Government in proceedings before the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and has represented the United Kingdom in proceedings before the European Court of Human Rights.
David is ranked as a leading barrister in six different areas in the main legal directories: Administrative Law, Environment, EU Law, Immigration Law, Local Government Law and Planning Law.
The 2015 Planning Magazine survey ranked him as a top-rated planning junior. The 2009 Planning Magazine survey ranked him in the top 10 planning barristers in the country under 35.
David was named the Immigration ‘Silk of the Year’ at The Legal 500 UK Bar Awards 2023. David was shortlisted for the Chambers and Partners Human Rights and Public Law Junior of the Year award in both 2018 and 2016, and for the Legal 500 Public Law Junior of the Year award in 2018.
In 2015, he was appointed to the Attorney General’s A Panel of Junior Counsel to the Crown, after 5 years on the B Panel and 3 years on the C Panel before that. He was also on the Treasury Solicitor’s former list of counsel specialising in Freedom of Information issues until its incorporation into the main Attorney General’s Panels. He regularly works on national security cases.
David began practice in 2004, after spending a year working as a Judicial Assistant to the Law Lords (Lord Nicholls and Lord Rodger).
He is the Joint Editor of the leading public law journal Judicial Review and was a Visiting Lecturer in European Community law at City University.
David is fluent in French, and has good German, basic Czech and Slovak and is learning Farsi.
Memberships
- Administrative Law Bar Association
- United Kingdom Environmental Law Association
Education
Qualifications
- Modern Languages (French and German) at Trinity College, Cambridge, and the Ecole Normale Supérieure, Paris.
- M.Phil in International Relations at Trinity College, Cambridge. Thesis: minority rights in the EU accession process, with particular focus on the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
- Law at City University, awarded MA in Law. Dissertation: material error of fact as a ground of judicial review.
- Major Scholar of the Inner Temple
- Inner Temple Bursary holder
- Bar Council Stage Scholar
Scholarships
Whilst at Cambridge, David was awarded a number of college scholarships. He was also awarded scholarships by the German and Czech Governments for academic work abroad.
Publications
- Book: Author of the chapter on access to environmental information in Banner, The Aarhus Convention: A Guide for UK Lawyers (2015), Hart Publishing.
- Book: Author of the human rights chapter in Bickford-Smith and Francis Rights of Light: The Modern Law (2007) 2nd Ed., Jordan Publishing.
- Book: Updated the Social Services chapter of Drabble, Maurici and Buley Local Authorities and the Human Rights Act (2004), Blackstone Press.
- Published article: “Top 10 Public Law Cases 2015-2016″ [2016] JR Vol 21, Issue 3.”
- Published article: “Irrationality”, “Habeas corpus” and “Legitimate expectation”: author of articles in Westlaw’s Insight online legal encyclopedia (regularly updated).
- Published article: “Ultra Vires Legitimate Expectations” [2005] JR Vol 10, Issue 2.
- Published article: “Material Error of Fact: Where Are We Now?” [2004] JR Vol 9, Issue 1.
- Published article: “Surinder Singh and the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2000: A Step in the Wrong Direction?”, Columbia Journal of European Law, August 2002.
- Editorial work: Joint Editor of Judicial Review (with David Lock KC), Routledge.
- Editorial work: Editor of the Planning Encyclopedia (with David Elvin KC), Sweet and Maxwell.
- Editorial work: Case digester for the Administrative Court Digest, 2002-2011.
Personal
Awards
- Shortlisted for the Legal 500 UK Bar Awards 2023 Immigration ‘Silk of the Year’
Lawyer Rankings
London Bar > Environment
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 4London Bar > Immigration (including business immigration)
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 2David Blundell KC – Landmark Chambers ‘David is a formidable advocate. He contributes a superb technical knowledge of immigration law and with a very astute strategic sense for difficult and complex litigation. He is trusted by clients for the most difficult, sensitive and complex cases.’
Landmark Chambers acts for claimants, NGOs, and the government in leading cases across the High Court, Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court, leveraging the set’s strengths in public law to expertly handle immigration litigation. David Blundell KC has represented the government across a number of high-profile cases, appearing before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission in the ongoing Shamima Begum citizenship revocation litigation, and in the case of R (Howard) v SSHD as to the legality of the good character requirement for naturalisation under the Windrush scheme. Samantha Broadfoot KC and Tim Buley KC are both involved in work around the Rwanda litigation on behalf of refugee and NGO claimants. Richard Drabble KC remains a key figure in this field.
London Bar > Administrative law and human rights
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 3David Blundell KC –Landmark Chambers ‘David is an expert in administrative law. He is calm, articulate, and very persuasive in the court room. He creates authoritative and compelling arguments.’
‘Renowned set‘ Landmark Chambers stands out for its expertise in handling prominent civil liberties cases, and members regularly act in administrative law matters before the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court. Human rights work has been prominent in the team’s recent caseload. The ‘formidable advocate‘ David Blundell KC and the ‘excellent‘ Yaaser Vanderman appeared for the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission before the Supreme Court concerning Reference by the Attorney General for Northern Ireland – Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Northern Ireland) Bill, a challenge case concerning the compatibility of legislation introducing buffer zones, in which protests are prohibited, around abortion clinics in Northern Ireland with Articles 9, 10 and 11 of the European Court of Human Rights; the Supreme Court upheld the legislation. In recent developments for the set, David Lock KC retired from practice in December 2022; Siân McGibbon joined the group from 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square in January 2023; and Alex Goodman KC took silk in March 2023.
London Bar > Planning
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 4London Bar > European Union law
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 3David Blundell KC – Landmark Chambers ‘David does not overplay his hand, and his balance convinces courts of his judgement.’