Mr Rory Dunlop KC > Chambers of Charlie Cory-Wright KC and Richard Harwood KC > London, England > Barrister Profile

39 Essex Chambers is a ‘well-known specialist public law set’ with a particular presence acting in judicial reviews and tribunal claims at the intersection of health care and education law. Fenella Morris KC frequently acts for clients in negligence and breach of contract claims, while in R (T) v Secretary of State for Education, Rory Dunlop KC defeated a judicial review brought by non-working parents to the government’s pledge of fully-funded childcare for three and four-year olds; the claimants argued that the policy was discriminatory under Article 14 of the ECHR. At the junior level, Steve Broach KC regularly exhibits the set’s strength in SEND matters by acting in tribunal claims and judicial reviews for children with special educational needs, while Jennifer Thelen has been active in judicial reviews related to school exclusions and disability discrimination.

39 Essex Chambers has ‘real strength in depth‘ in immigration, regularly appearing in judicial reviews challenging removal, detention, and immigration rules before the first tier and upper tribunals, and going up to the Court of Appeal, Supreme Court, and European Court of Justice. The set ‘has been involved in many of the leading cases over the last years‘, with Rory Dunlop KC acting for the government in respect of R (AAA and others) v SSHD interim relief and case management hearings concerning the Rwanda proposals before the Administrative Court, Court of Appeal, and Supreme Court. Joining the set in November 2022 from 5 Essex Chambers, Alan Payne KC has been representing the government in relation to the challenge to immigration officers to seize mobile phones from small boat arrivals to the UK in R (HM) v Secretary of State for the Home Department. Lisa Giovannetti KC, Charles Cory-Wright KC, and Zane Malik KC are also key members of the chambers – all notable for their government work, and Cory-Wright KC in his capacity as a special advocate in national security-related proceedings.

At 39 Essex Chambers, members have a solid track record in assisting government entities, media companies and regulatory bodies with a broad spectrum of data protection matters. Recent instructions include Rory Dunlop KC and David Mitchell  representing the British Medical Association in a challenge to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Security’s decision to allow automatic access to GP patients’ records on the grounds that such access was a breach of data protection principles.