The English Bar: Commercial

Leading juniors
Rising stars

Leading juniors

Leading juniors are those with significant experience of key cases, strong market recognition from both peers and clients, and are seen as future candidates for silk.

Ali Almihdar

Outer Temple Chambers

Yash Bheeroo

3 Verulam Buildings

'Yash is an excellent advocate. He knows the law extremely well, is detail oriented, yet see the broader strategic picture.'

4 New Square Chambers

'Tim is extremely commercial, clients love that he can distil the most complex legal issues into the important commercial realities. Tim has long-standing and extensive on the ground experience across the Middle East, which makes his advocacy sharp and compelling. Tim’s advocacy style is a pleasure to watch, relaxed, always with deep technical knowledge.'

Stephen Doherty

Serle Court

‘Stephen’s advocacy is clear and structured. He is not easily flustered, even when confronted with questions from left field. He is very knowledgeable about the law of the DIFC and its history.’

Ian Edge

3PB

'He is guru on Sharia law, having taught it for many years and handled numerous cases. Stellar.'

Lucas Fear-Segal

2 Temple Gardens

'Well ahead of his years of call, instructing Lucas is like getting the right counsel at the right time for any type of commercial (re)insurance dispute. When working with a team, he is often the key member of such team, with consummate knowledge and an amazing knack of working through problems with ease and making everyone around him comfortable.'

Gregor Hogan

Serle Court

'Well versed in DIFC Court procedure, particularly jurisdictional elements.'

Timothy Killen

3 Verulam Buildings

‘Tim has outstanding intellectual ability and close knowledge of DIFC law and procedure and of political and cultural issues in the region. His advocacy style is beguilingly understated, and he is listened to by judges, arbitrators and opposing counsel.’

Laurence Page

4 Pump Court

Philip Punwar

Outer Temple Chambers

'Philip is a very pleasant individual, articulate and easy to work with. He has a good connection with the arbitral tribunal.'

Justina Stewart

Outer Temple Chambers

Alastair Tomson

4 Stone Buildings

'A strength is Alastair’s comprehension of respondents tactics and their moves before they happen, helping to ensure that the client and case is well founded and defended. His advocacy make any case simple before a judge, any complex defence stunts by the opposing counsel is met with a unravelling approach of the issue at hand that allow the courts to easily grasp the issue at hand and focus.'

Karishma Vora

39 Essex Chambers

'Karishma Vora’s key strengths lie in her exceptional advocacy skills and deep understanding of commercial law. She is highly articulate, presenting complex arguments in a clear, persuasive, and structured manner that resonates with both judges and tribunals. She has a calm yet authoritative courtroom presence, which instils confidence in clients.'

Matthew Watson

3 Verulam Buildings

Sean Yates

Outer Temple Chambers

'Sean has a meticulous attention to detail and strong work ethic. He brings to bear a wealth of private practice and in-house legal expertise which makes him quite unique as a barrister. He is incredibly well versed in Middle East law and practice.'

Tariq Baloch

Essex Court Chambers

'Extremely hard working but also pragmatic and commercial and with a very good eye for detail. Ed quickly gains the trust and confidence of the lay client and demonstrates a maturity beyond his years.'

Arshad Ghaffar

XXIV Old Buildings

Francis Hornyold-Strickland

Monckton Chambers

Sophia Hurst

Essex Court Chambers

'Sophia’s knowledge of the caselaw of the DIFC Courts and increasingly the ADGM Courts is exceptional. She has deep experience of the interplay with the civil law courts of the UAE, and she advises with confidence. She is a team player, and her oral advocacy is always well considered and prepared.'

Anthony Jones

4 New Square Chambers

'Able to synthesise issues quickly – cuts through legal issues with precise application of the facts.'

‘Kevin is an exceptionally skilled and talented barrister with a ferocious strategical mind. His razor-sharp memory, towering intellect, keen eye for details, holistic understanding of the brief, advocacy style, and skillful and adaptable styles of negotiation ensures the best outcome for the client. A wholehearted collaborator and team player who is an absolute delight to work for.’

Peter Linstead

Outer Temple Chambers

Zara McGlone

4 Stone Buildings

'Zara is an exceptional barrister with a strong command of legal drafting, particularly in preparing comprehensive written submissions before the common law courts. Her ability to distill complex legal issues into clear, persuasive, and well-structured submissions stands out. Zara’s drafting is always meticulously researched and demonstrates a deep understanding of both procedural and substantive law, which greatly enhances the persuasiveness of the documents.'

‘Andrew is an excellent junior barrister – ferociously intelligent, charming, and a real pleasure to work with. His drafting and research skills are second to none. He has exceptional judgement, a strong work ethic, and always takes a commercial and pragmatic approach. Increasingly taking on his own cases, he is a compelling, confident and fearless advocate.’

Albert Sampson

4 Stone Buildings

'His strength is his grip of somewhat niche area (complex financial issues with lots of numbers and moving parts) together with meticulous attention to detail and ability to present everything simply to the Tribunal.'

‘His drafting, responsiveness and attention to detail are all excellent, as can be expected. His advocacy is where his energy really comes through, however. As an advocate James is enthusiastic and aggressive in all the right ways which helps to instill confidence in his handling of the case.’

Thomas Williams

Kings Chambers

Rising stars

Rising stars at the Bar are defined as barristers between four and eight years’ call who are seen as up-and-coming members of the Bar in their respective practice areas by clients and peers alike. They will already be instructed in high-profile, complex, and high-value contentious and non-contentious matters, working with and opposite more experienced leading counsel.

Karl Anderson

4 Stone Buildings

'A very bright up-and-coming barrister. Very user friendly and confident advocate.'

Anson Cheung

4 New Square Chambers

‘Anson is a savvy commercial barrister. She has great attention to detail, her written worked is highly impressive and she has considerable commercial acumen.’