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Data Protection

1
11KBW
2
5RB
Matrix Chambers
3
39 Essex Chambers
Blackstone Chambers
Monckton Chambers

Leading Silks

1
Andrew Caldecott QC - 5RB ‘He is a class act with a great depth of knowledge.’
Catrin Evans QC - Matrix Chambers ‘A highly intelligent and adept barrister. She has incredible attention to detail and is very confident on her feet and easy to work with and is wonderful with clients.’
Gerry Facenna QC - Monckton Chambers ‘His advocacy is clear and persuasive. Works very well with juniors. You know you're in good hands.’
Timothy Pitt-Payne QC - 11KBW ‘He is a real "brain" when it comes to data protection. He is intelligent, experienced, knowledgeable and highly sought after.’
Anya Proops QC - 11KBW ‘She is pre-eminent in the field of data protection law, is tenacious in approach and gives hands-on and practical advice.’
Hugh Tomlinson QC - Matrix Chambers ‘He is the leading expert in this field. He has a phenomenal breadth of knowledge and experience. He is highly intellectual but approaches issues in a practical way, cutting to the heart of problems. He is at the forefront in developing the application of data protection law, and is innovative in his approach.’
Antony White QC - Matrix Chambers ‘There are a number of barristers specialising in traditional media torts, and there are now a number of data protection specialists, too. However, there are not many who are genuinely expert in both fields. Antony White QC is one.’
2
Jason Coppel QC - 11KBW ‘He is highly organised and someone you don’t want on the other side.’
Philip Coppel QC - Cornerstone Barristers ‘His knowledge of the area is unrivalled. He is strong on litigation strategy and undaunted by difficult cases.’
James Eadie QC - Blackstone Chambers ‘Simply phenomenal.’
Kate Gallafent QC - Blackstone Chambers ‘She combines brilliant intellect, with a peerless demeanour in court. She commands the respect of judges but also is utterly charming and responsive to clients.’
Eleanor Grey QC - 39 Essex Chambers ‘She always takes a well-balanced approach and is very knowledgeable.’
Thomas de la Mare QC - Blackstone Chambers ‘He is very creative – he thinks ‘outside the box’ as much as he thinks inside it.’
Justin Rushbrooke QC - 5RB ‘He is very client friendly, hard working, a human computer, excellent on his feet.’
Andrew Sharland QC - 11KBW ‘A hardworking barrister with strong technical knowledge of data protection.’

2019 Silks

Rory Dunlop QC - 39 Essex Chambers ‘A careful, balanced advocate with real integrity.’
Victoria Wakefield QC - Brick Court Chambers 'She is brilliant. Incredibly quick, very intelligent, and a joy to work with.'

2020 Silks

Julian Milford QC - 11KBW ‘He is meticulous and approachable.’
Adam Speker QC - 5RB ‘Excellent in court. Provides solid, commercial advice. Very good with clients, too.’

2021 Silks

Jonathan Barnes QC - 5RB ‘In the field of data protection, he has no equal, certainly not at the junior Bar. It is a wonder he is not a silk.’
Lorna Skinner QC - Matrix Chambers ‘Fantastically thorough with a great eye for detail, and a comprehensive knowledge of breach of privacy law. You really feel like you're in safe hands with her.’

Leading Juniors

1
Aidan Eardley - 5RB ‘He is considered, clear and commercial in his analysis and advice, and is very professional and calm in his demeanour.’
David Glen - 11KBW ‘An exceptional barrister, who possesses the perfect balance of an outstanding intellect and a solid grasp of the commercial realities of his cases.’
Robin Hopkins - 11KBW ‘He is a true expert in the field and incredibly knowledgeable.’
Christopher Knight - 11KBW ‘Very smart, extremely knowledgeable and experienced in data protection.’
Julianne Kerr Morrison - Monckton Chambers ‘She is super bright and knowledgeable, and considers things from every angle.’
Rupert Paines - 11KBW ‘Intelligent, very thorough and also thoughtful, he gets to grips with very complicated events remarkably quickly.’
Jonathan Scherbel-Ball - 5RB ‘He has quickly adapted to the inclusion of data protection claims being brought alongside traditional media torts, while having the grounding of defending complex, heavyweight defamation and privacy claims.’
2
Julian Blake - 11KBW ‘One of very few barristers who has a deep understanding of both criminal and civil litigation, experience which he deftly brings to bear in the field of data protection litigation.’
Edward Craven - Matrix Chambers ‘Hardworking, very knowledgeable about data protection law, and a creative thinker.’
Heather Emmerson - 11KBW ‘She is a talented, hardworking and charming opponent who is both intellectual and pragmatic.’
Laura Elizabeth John - Monckton Chambers ‘A competent and professional advocate.’
Sara Mansoori - Matrix Chambers ‘She is a class act in her area. Methodical, calm and thorough.’
Hannah Ready - 11KBW ‘Fiercely intellectual, meticulous in her preparation and attention to detail and provides shrewd advice far beyond her year of call. She is wonderfully understated when packing a punch and fantastic with client.’
3
Tom Cross - 11KBW ‘He clearly has a good understanding of regulatory proceedings in the data protection arena.’
Jacob Dean - 5RB ‘He is extremely bright, diligent and responsive. He applies a fiercely academic brain with a commercial perspective. I always know I am in good hands with him.’
Estelle Dehon - Cornerstone Barristers ‘Dogged, hardworking and very good at seeing the bigger picture.’
Ian Helme - Matrix Chambers ‘He is calm and thorough. Very good on his feet and unflappable in court.’
Ben Lask - Monckton Chambers ‘A very effective junior who is able to hold his own against senior QCs.’
Felicity McMahon - 5RB ‘She provides detailed and practical advice, is user-friendly and very intelligent. She always makes time to address issues quickly.’
Ravi Mehta - Blackstone Chambers ‘Brilliant legal brain; very strong field expertise in data protections; very slick in front of clients and the wider legal team.’
Richard Munden - 5RB ‘He is incredibly personal, relentlessly commercial and always user-friendly. He gets straight to the issues in a case and works very collaboratively.’
Ben Silverstone - Matrix Chambers ‘Fantastically bright. Outstanding both on paper and on his feet.’

Rising Stars

Clara Hamer - 5RB ‘She is bright and tenacious and also very personable and clients love her, especially the media defendants.’
Daniel Isenberg - 11KBW ‘Quick, smart, helpful and hardworking, he is beginning to build a profile in the area of freedom of information appeals, including national security matters. One to watch.’
Peter Lockley - 11KBW ‘He performs incredibly well under pressure and gets to grips with complex issues in a short time frame.’
Claire Overman - Doughty Street Chambers ‘She is very confident and authoritive with the client. She has great knowledge, presence and personality.’
Zac Sammour - 11KBW ‘Absolutely outstanding.’

Data protection in London Bar

11KBW

As 'a leading set in the field with class-leading experience and strength in depth', 11KBW is 'a first choice for information law matters' and is 'pre-eminent in the data protection world'. Chambers' presence in complex and high-profile data work continues, fielding top-choice barristers for the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) and other public authorities alongside notable expertise handling private-sector work. The 'bright, responsive and hardworking' Anya Proops QC and Rupert Paines are defending Morrisons in the Supreme Court in a Data Protection Act 1998 claim arising from a data incident in which a rogue employee uploaded the payroll information of employees to the internet. Timothy Pitt-Payne QC remains a key silk in the arena, while Christopher Knight, David Glen and Robin Hopkins are dominant juniors. Glen and Hannah Ready joined following the closure of One Brick Court in 2019.

5RB

Leveraging its 'unparalleled knowledge of defamation and reputation management issues', 5RB is 'a go-to set for data privacy matters and a pre-eminent media set'. With particular strength at the junior level, recent highlights include Jonathan Barnes, who 'has no equal in the junior Bar', acting for various Morrisons employees in the Supreme Court against Morrisons relating to the unauthorised publication of their payroll information on the internet; Jonathan Scherbel-Ball acting for the defendant in Cooper v National Crime Agency relating to the processing of personal data following the claimant's dismissal; and Clara Hamer defending Bloomberg in ZXC v Bloomberg, a case analysing the media's right to disclose information about suspects in criminal investigations. Key silks include Andrew Caldecott QC and Justin Rushbrooke QC, and the 'completely unflappable' Aidan Eardley is regularly instructed by media organisations.

Matrix Chambers

As 'a great chambers to work with' and 'a highly user-friendly media set', Matrix Chambers is a key name in the market for claims spanning data protection and media law, acting for media organisations, public authorities, companies and private individuals. According to clients, 'there is no one better in this field' than Antony White QC, who is acting for Google with Edward Craven in Lloyd v Google LLC, the first representative action for data protection damages relating to the setting of cookies on iPhone devices; 'leading expert' Hugh Tomlinson QC is acting for the claimants. White and Tomlinson also continue to represent the defendant and claimant respectively in NT1 & NT2 v Google LLC, the first right to be forgotten claim to be tried in the UK. The 'fantastically smart' Catrin Evans QC also represented the National Crime Agency in Cooper v National Crime Agency.

39 Essex Chambers

39 Essex Chambers utilises the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) expertise of Eleanor Grey QC and Rory Dunlop QC to act for a high volume of public sector clients. In a recent highlight, Dunlop acted for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in Maurizi v ICO and CPS in the Upper Tribunal relating to the CPS' refusal to disclose its emails with the Swedish Prosecution Authority regarding Julian Assange; he also represented the Department for Transport in an appeal considering how public authorities should consider documents with a mixture of environmental and non-environmental information.

1 Garden Court

Blackstone Chambers has continued its increasing focus on data protection and freedom of information law mandates with James Eadie QC, Thomas de la Mare QC, Kate Gallafent QC and Ravi Mehta as notable figures contributing to the set's data work. Mehta's recent work includes acting for the claimants in Big Brother Watch and ors. v United Kingdom in the European Court of Human Rights challenging the UK's legislation governing the surveillance of communications.

Monckton Chambers

Monckton Chambers is 'a wonderful, adept and flexible set', which is 'a leading name for data protection and information rights'. 'Housing some of the best legal minds for data issues', key practitioners include Gerry Facenna QC, Julianne Kerr Morrison and the 'very thorough and able' Laura Elizabeth John. Facenna and Morrison are key names for the ICO and are currently acting for the regulator in the first two GDPR penalty decisions against British Airways and Marriott Hotels. John is representing the ICO as defendant against the Department of Transport in an appeal relating to whether information can be severed and dealt with partly under FOIA and partly under the Environmental Information Regulations.