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Leading Silks

Dijen Basu KCSerjeants’ Inn Chambers 'Approachable, very responsive, able to assimilate huge amounts of information into easily digestible advice. Very pleasant to work with.' 
John Beggs KCSerjeants’ Inn Chambers 'John is in a class all on his own. Exceptional advisor and advocate.' 
Andrew Warnock KCDeka Chambers ‘Andrew’s attention to detail is second-to-none. He picks up complex cases with relative ease and quickly understands all the issues. His advice throughout is simple, sound and clearly reasoned. His advocacy at court is fantastic and a joy to watch.’
Fiona Barton KC5 Essex Chambers 'Fiona has experience, judgement, clarity of thought and a practical approach.' 
Gerard Boyle KCSerjeants’ Inn Chambers ‘Gerard is an extremely able and hardworking advocate. He has an ability to communicate clearly with even the most difficult of clients, provides realistic advice in a courteous but straightforward way. His advocacy is well-structured, eloquent and effective.’
Hugh Davies OBE KC  –Three Raymond Building 'Hugh is a remarkable court presence. His advocacy and cross-examination skills demand full attention.'
Anne Studd KC5 Essex Chambers 'Anne is steadfast and resolute.'
William Emlyn Jones KCThree Raymond Buildings 'William is a class act, a trustworthy and scrupulously fair opponent. He is a skilled and extremely effective advocate.' 
Matthew Butt KCThree Raymond Buildings 'Matthew is a very confident and well prepared advocate, with a clear grasp of both the law and tactics of a case. His cross-examination is focused and effective.'
Samantha Leek KC5 Essex Chambers 'Samantha is a top silk in the field. Authoritative and highly respected.' 
Ian Skelt KCSerjeants’ Inn Chambers ‘Ian is a fantastic barrister. He is sharp and astute with good commercial awareness. His written advice is strong, and he is assured and robust in conference. His advocacy is very good, and he is confident and persuasive. He is also proactive in suggesting ways to advance the case.’
Alisdair Williamson KCThree Raymond Buildings ‘His advocacy skills, preparation, written submissions and tactical acumen mean he is at the very upper echelons of the Bar, possibly second to none. A first choice as an advocate for any case of complexity and seriousness.’

2022 Silks

Laura Johnson KC – Deka Chambers ‘Fights tough cases with passion and great skill but always with a bit of humour.’
Claire Watson KCSerjeants’ Inn ChambersHighly regarded for her astute tactical approach to cases.

2023 Silks

Francesca Whitelaw KC5 Essex Chambers 'Francesca is approachable and devastating in court. She is robust but fair and manages to navigate a careful line of maintaining both her client and the court confidence.' 

Leading Juniors

James BerrySerjeants’ Inn Chambers ‘His thoroughness and attention to detail in evidence is first-class.’
Beatrice Collier5 Essex Chambers 'Beatrice is a strong advocate, with excellent judgement.'
Elliot GoldSerjeants’ Inn Chambers 'Elliot's attention to detail and understanding of complex issues is unparalleled. He has an unrivalled technical understanding of the law.' 
Susannah StevensQEB Hollis Whiteman 'Susannah is incredibly knowledgeable in this area and a great strategic thinker. She is across every last detail in often complex cases, giving clear and robust advice. She is a great advocate and excellent with clients.'
George ThomasSerjeants’ Inn Chambers 'George is exceptional. He is extremely hard-working and is meticulous in every respect. He is always in demand and has an outstanding reputation within this area.'
Geoffrey WeddellDeka Chambers 'Geoffrey has a calm manner, superb knowledge of the law and regulations to be able to rebut defense. Unflappable.'
Georgina Wolfe5 Essex Chambers ‘Georgina is by far and away the best police law junior at the Bar. She is efficient, hard-working, and on top of every detail.’
Colin BanhamNo5 Barristers’ Chambers 'Colin is a very experienced and knowledgeable counsel. He is regularly instructed by clients who rely on his diligence, tactical acumen, and hard work.' 
Kevin BaumberThree Raymond Buildings ‘Kevin has a razor-sharp intellect. He is a fearsome courtroom advocate, a ruthless cross-examiner and a stellar black letter lawyer.’ 
Jonathan Dixey5 Essex Chambers ‘Jonathan is a confident advocate who garners the respect of his peers and the Court with his persuasive advocacy style.’ 
Lisa DobieDeka Chambers 'Lisa is a rising star. She has a calm and confidence-inspiring approach, and successfully extracts the details and nuances of a case.' 
Guy LadenburgThree Raymond Buildings 'Guy is a highly experienced and dedicated advocate. He has in-depth knowledge of police law and police misconduct work.'   
Frances McClenaghanSerjeants’ Inn Chambers 'Frances has a keen eye for detail, and a breadth of experience which gives her the ability to view matters from different angles.'  
Stephen MorleySerjeants’ Inn Chambers 'Stephen is an excellent advocate. He is the best junior barrister in the country for police work.' 
Edmund Gritt Three Raymond Buildings ‘Edmund is an impressive and robust advocate who commands the tribunal’s attention. His strength is his gravitas and attention to detail.’ 
Edwin BuckettDeka Chambers 'A calm and thoughtful advocate who brings clarity of thought, sensible analysis and judgement to cases. Impressive on his feet. Sensitive and empathetic with clients.'
Amy Clarke  – 5 Essex Chambers ‘Forensic attention to detail and compelling advocacy.’
Ian ClarkeDeka Chambers 'Ian provides very clear advice; he is a no-nonsense and practice advocate.'
Robert Cohen5 Essex Chambers 'Technically excellent, strong advocate and very approachable and responsive. Calm under pressure.'
Cicely Hayward5 Essex Chambers 'Cicely's meticulous case preparation and formidable skills as an advocate make her very effective in cross examination. She has great client handling skills, and excellent judgement.' 
Matthew HoldcroftSerjeants’ Inn Chambers 'Matthew is a practical lawyer and a canny tactician.'
Mark Thomas5 Essex Chambers 'Mark is a great all-round advisor.' 

Rising Stars

Remi Reichhold11KBW ‘Very hard working with a good grasp of details. Tactically very astute.’
Jennifer Wright  – 5 Essex Chambers ‘Jennifer is an enthusiastic barrister and a confident advocate with a thorough knowledge of regulatory laws.’
Thom Dyke – Deka Chambers ‘Thom is a delight to work with. He is always extremely knowledgeable and is an excellent advocate.’

Police law (forces and constables) in London Bar

5 Essex Chambers


Considered the ‘go-to set for police law,’ 5 Essex Chambers chambers undertakes work ranging from judicial reviews and civil inquests to highly complex and sensitive litigation, primarily for police forces. Jason Beer KC  represented the National Police Chiefs’ Council in R (YZ) v CC South Wales Police, a judicial review of the lack of total deletion of all information about an arrest after an acquittal. Turning to the set’s juniors, Andrew Waters  represented the force in Lewis-Ranwell v Chief Constable of Devon & Cornwall and others, a claim for damages brought by a man who killed three elderly men in their own homes and was acquitted of murder in grounds of insanity, alleging negligent treatment following a sectioning – at issue was if the claim was barred under the doctrine of ex turpi causa. Kate Cornell is now a circuit judge.

Testimonials

‘My favourite and most used set. Strength in depth for a variety of claims involving the police or other public bodies.’

‘5 Essex Chambers are an exceptional chambers who offer an extremely varied set of Counsel to meet almost all needs. I would highly recommend them.’

‘5 Essex Chambers have a number of excellent barristers who I can resort to at various levels of calls. They are my first port of call of police matters.’ 

‘A go-to set for police forces, with counsel of all levels of experience.’

‘Expert police chambers, strength in depth.’

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Serjeants' Inn Chambers


Serjeants’ Inn Chambers is ‘a stand out set,’ with a ‘first class team,’ involved in cases at all levels and all areas of police law. The breadth and depth of the set’s members’ practice covers judicial reviews, misconduct and misfeasance cases, and a large range of advisory work in addition. Dijen Basu KC instructed on a death in custody inquest representing Great Manchester Police after a man died in custody, following a physical struggle with police, after a cocaine overdose.  Gerard Boyle KC successfully defended a judicial review of the decision to not dismiss Robyn Williams, a Metropolitan Police superintendent who was convicted of possessing indecent images of children after having received, but not viewed, an unsolicited video of a girl engaged in sexual activity with an adult male. James Berry represented the British Transport Police in an Investigatory Powers Tribunal claim arising from surveillance of a police officer suspected of conducting an affair while on duty, successfully arguing that the IPT does not have jurisdiction to hear the claim because it was during a misconduct investigation.

Testimonials

‘Lee Johnson is without doubt the best clerk there is. He is always responsive but more importantly he knows the needs of the client, understands their organizational needs and does his very best to ensure they have the barrister who best suits their needs, litigation and strategic risks.’

‘We rate Jennifer Pooler, Clare Sabido, and the clerking team very highly in their responsiveness and their flexibility. They are always friendly and helpful. In particular, Lee Johnson always goes above and beyond to ensure our client gets the best service possible and is always available at short notice.’

‘Serjeants’ Inn are reliable and experienced. They have a good depth of counsel to meet all nature of claims against the police.’

‘They are the stand-out set for police misconduct work.’

‘Experts in their field in relation to police pension advice, and understanding the complexities and technicalities of this area of work.’

‘Serjeants’ Inn is the leading set on presentation and prosecution. Strength in depth, proactively keeping up with the law.’

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Deka Chambers


Deka Chambers is a ‘great set with a good range of counsel,’ and an ‘excellently run set.’ Laura Johnson KC successfully defended the force in Transport Arendonk BVBA v Essex Police, a claim for damages by a haulage company after its lorry’s contents were stolen after the vehicle was left overnight in a layby, its driver having been arrested for drink-driving. Edwin Buckett represented a Civil Service Support Officer, who suffered psychiatric injury after processing extreme child abuse material as evidence for the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, in a claim against the National Crime Agency, while Lisa Dobie  represented Thames Valley Police in claims found to be totally without merit brought by a convicted rapist acting as a litigant in person, obtaining a civil restraint order against the claimant.

Testimonials

‘Deka Chambers is an excellently run set. Clerking and client care is spot on. David Landa will always go out of his way to ensure professional clients are well looked after.’

‘Clark Chessis and David Barrow are both excellent clerks. I have always found them very helpful and accommodating.’

‘A great set with good range of counsel.’

‘Great strength and depth for PI work at all levels. In many ways the leading set for this area of work.’

‘This Common Law set has a formidable criminal team.’

‘The clerks always respond promptly and are helpful.’

 

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Three Raymond Buildings


Three Raymond Buildings, an ‘impressive set with a number of outstanding barristers and quality at every level,‘ has particular strength in the representation of police officers, with a long-standing relationship with the Police Federation and its preferred firms of solicitors. Hugh Davies OBE KC represented two central command officers, separately from Greater Manchester Police, in the Manchester Arena bombing inquiry. Turning to the set’s juniors, Kevin Baumber represented a Met officer who kept her place in the force after she, having been refused permission to do so by the force, appeared on the Nigerian version of Big Brother.

Testimonials

‘Three Raymond Buildings is extremely strong in the field of police disciplinary and misconduct work. It runs through the whole set: from the silks to the junior tenants.’

‘Three Raymond Buildings possess an unrivalled array of talent from top to bottom.’

‘Very good set of Chambers, my go to Chambers for this type of work.’

‘The clerking at Three Raymond Buildings is also unrivalled in any other criminal set. I have never been let down and instruct the set very frequently indeed. ‘

Work highlights