James Segan KC > Chambers of Tom Weisselberg KC and Jane Mulcahy KC > London, England > Barrister Profile

Blackstone Chambers is highly reputable in trade mark and copyright matters in the media and entertainment industries; Robert Howe KC is highly adept in this area and he represented the defendant in Warner Music v TuneIn before the Court of Appeal, a case regarding if hyperlinks are a form of communication to the public. James Segan KC frequently provides representation before the Patents Court, as well as the Copyright Tribunal – he represented Ocado on a patent dispute with Norwegian company Autostore concerning the robots used in its warehouses.

Blackstone Chambers offers ‘great strength in depth, at both silk and junior level’ for competition work, operating at the forefront of regulatory and private damages actions in the UK; as well as a recognised reputation for international expertise, representing governments, regulators, defendants and claimants across multiple jurisdictions. Acting under temporary admission to the Hong Kong Bar, Competition Commission of Hong Kong v W Hing Construction, James Segan KC represented the Commission in the first case heard in the that forum about pecuniary penalties for contravention of that jurisdiction’s competition law. In two significant judgments handed down by the CAT, Brian Kennelly KC and Paul Luckhurst represented UBS in a case regarding applications for opt-out collective proceedings under 47B of the Competition Act; while Monica Carss-Frisk KC, Jessica Boyd KC, Isabel Buchanan and Tom Coates appeared in CityFibre Limited v Ofcom, with the tribunal dismissing CityFibre’s appeal under section 192 of the Communications Act 2003.

Blackstone Chambers is ‘outstanding‘ in public procurement law. James Segan KC is ‘an extremely accomplished advocate‘ and is highly regarded for his expertise in advising on IT and telecoms sector mandates. Hanif Mussa KC is well known for assisting government departments with a broad range of procurement matters. The ‘incredibly smart‘ Emily Neill is a key name at the junior end of chambers, and regularly acts for claimants, defendants and tenderers as interested parties across a wide spectrum of procurement issues.

Blackstone Chambers fields several ‘doyens of sport law’, who are ‘in a league of their own’. The set acts for all types of domestic and international clients from the world of sports, including high-profile athletes, managers and agents, teams, broadcasters and other commercial parters as well as governing bodies on all types of matters from commercial activity to regulation. For example, Adam Lewis KC acted for the European Tour in its disciplinary proceedings relating to players having played in an LIV Golf tournament despite having been refused permission to play in the rebel tournament, while Tom Mountford and David Lowe, led by James Segan KC, acted on behalf of the golfers. In Fulham FC v Jones, a leading sports injury case, Luka Krsljanin was successful as sole counsel for the club in managing to get a judgement overturned which had found Fulham liable for a reckless tackle which caused career-ending injuries to a Swansea FC youth player. Jane Mulcahy KC acts for sports regulators, organisations and individuals and was recently active in cases concerning historic allegations of race discrimination.

Blackstone Chambers has ‘strong expertise in telecoms matters‘, with an excellent track record in representing prominent regulators and communication operators. In a prominent matter, James Segan KC appeared before the Supreme Court for the respondent in R (VIP Communications Ltd) v Secretary of State for the Home Department, a case concerning the Home Secretary’s direction to Ofcom not to exempt GSM gateways from individual licensing requirements due to national security concerns. The Supreme Court ruled that the Home Secretary had acted lawfully. Emily Neill provides ‘robust, commercial and clear advice‘ to regulators and regulated entities, including fixed line and mobile telecommunications providers. In March 2023, Tom Richards KC was elevated to silk.