The Legal 500

Within Commercial, insolvency and property,

Chancery House Chambers has a great reputation in commercial and chancery work. Gregory Pipe receives praise from clients and peers in equal measure and has been involved in large shareholder disputes. 2010 saw the departure of Lisa Linklater (who specialises in insolvency, corporate, financial services and commercial litigation) to Exchange Chambers. However, the addition of Stuart Roberts adds to the set’s developing private chancery work. Other key names include William Buck and Dominic Crossley.

Within Construction, planning, licensing and environmental,

Construction is a strong practice area for Chancery House Chambers. Despite the departure of Bruce Walker to Exchange Chambers, the set continues to receive instructions in this area. Anthony Edwards has ‘many strings to his bow’, having also qualified as a quantity surveyor.

Within Overview ,

Chancery House Chambers has seen a number of defections of late to Exchange Chambers, a new player in the Leeds market, but remains a strong set. No. 6 continues to house ‘strong advocates’, and St Paul’s Chambers maintains its ‘great reputation’ through its ‘proficient and hardworking’ individuals. Clients praise Trinity Chambers’ ‘excellence’ although, some note inconsistencies. However, the set has been strengthened by a number of key arrivals during 2010. The clerks are ‘reliable’ and ‘easy to communicate with’.

Within Chancery and commercial litigation,

Exchange Chambers’ Mark Cawson QC is an insolvency expert who is a ‘very good lawyer, always well prepared and useable’. Edward Bartley Jones QC, (‘exudes confidence and clients love his incisive intellect’) handles a wide range of commercial disputes. Scott Redpath is recommended for pensions, as is Christopher Cook for intellectual property matters and Alison Graham-Wells for VAT Tribunal matters. Giles Maynard-Connor is a highly recommended insolvency junior.

Within Crime,

At Exchange Chambers, Stephen Meadowcroft QC and Brian Cummings QC have wide-ranging criminal practices, and Tania Griffiths QC has a niche practice in historical abuse cases. John Jones QC and Simon Berkson have notable fraud practices. Oliver Jarvis is recommended for road traffic cases, particularly where tachographs are involved, and Mark Ainsworth is a strong junior with a diverse criminal practice. Alaric Bassano recently joined the team from 9 St John Street.

Within Family,

At Exchange Chambers, Judith Fordham is ‘perceptive, feisty in the right cases, solution focused and approachable’, and is recommended for high-value ancillary relief cases. Karen Gregory and the ‘up-and-coming’ Caroline Gee are highly recommended. Archna Dawar recently joined the set from Albion Chambers.

Within Overview, Exchange Chambers (Chambers of David Turner QC and Bill Braithwaite QC) is a first tier firm,

The Northern Circuit comprises the largest volume of sets and barristers outside of London. Now that Manchester is home to the GMC and the new Administrative Court, and, combined with the fact that it is a strong Bar, local sets retain more of the complex work than historically was the case. The circuit is hugely receptive to the challenges the modern Bar faces; many sets are waiting on the sideline with a ProcureCo in place, and yet another set, namely Young Street Chambers, has folded. St Johns Buildings, which houses the leading family team, is in the process of merging with Paradise Chambers and India Buildings Chambers to have greater leverage for LSC tendering. Kings Chambers is the leading chancery, commercial and planning set; Lincoln House Chambers is top for crime; Byrom Street Chambers is the go-to set for personal injury and clinical negligence; and 9 St John Street is known for its employment offering. Deans Court Chambers and Exchange Chambers are solid sets with sound reputations. Garden Court North Chambers has notable prison and immigration law practitioners and has seen the recent arrival of three new tenants. St James’s Chambers, Cobden House Chambers and 18 St John Street Chambers, which recently took on several former Young Street Chambers members, are efficient and effective sets. In Liverpool, 7 Harrington Street has an incredible selection of criminal silks; Atlantic Chambers is a well-liked set and has several members who have national credit hire practices; and Liverpool Civil Law is a specialist civil set with several key PI practitioners.

Within Personal injury and clinical negligence,

Exchange Chambers’ claimant-focused Bill Braithwaite QC is a ‘truly exceptional Queen’s Counsel’. Gerard Martin QC is ‘a favourite, going back many years, for his decisive judgement calls that stand the test of time’. William Waldron QC is an ‘extremely capable advocate and technician with an affable personality’; he handles ‘serious personal injury cases, particularly involving aviation accidents, which he understands well’. New silk Amanda Yip QC is highly rated and is a ‘force to be reckoned with’. Christopher Barnes’ service is ‘consistently impressive’, and David Knifton always provides ‘concise and soundly reasoned advice’.

Within Planning, construction and property,

Exchange Chambers’ Edward Bartley Jones QC and Neil Cadwallader have notable property and housing practises.

Within Treasury Panel Lists Region 1