Byrom Street Chambers

Byrom Street Chambers is a specialist serious injury and clinical negligence set based in Manchester and instructed nationally. Ranked in Tier 1 for both Personal Injury and Clinical Negligence in The Legal 500 UK Bar 2027, it is the North's top-ranked serious injury chambers. Its 18 members include 12 KCs, act for claimants and defendants in catastrophic injury, high-value clinical negligence, fatal accident, industrial disease, group litigation, and inquests.

Head Clerk: Matt Tudor.

Firm's work & experience

Byrom Street Chambers is a select group of leading KCs and senior juniors known for exceptional advocacy and client service. Sixteen members are ranked in The Legal 500 UK Bar 2027. Members handle catastrophic injury, fatal accident, industrial disease and high-value clinical negligence claims for claimants and defendants, and have appeared in the Hillsborough, Shipman and Southport inquiries and landmark cases including Fairchild, Montgomery and Swift v Carpenter.

Notable work

Manchester Arena Litigation

Represented 16 Manchester arena bombing victims, including children and protected parties, securing £20 million damages.

Uber Insurance Litigation

Instructed in a landmark £30 million insurers’ claim against Uber testing gig economy liability for delivery drivers.

Diego Garcia Group Litigation

Instructed in a group action by 50 Sri Lankan migrants detained on Diego Garcia against the BIOT authorities and G4S.

Firm's key people

Christopher Melton KC (Head of Chambers)

Sally Hatfield KC (Deputy Head of Chambers)

Matt Tudor (Head Clerk)

Firm's industry sectors

Clinical Negligence

Personal Injury

Inquests & Inquiries

Mediators

Firm's capabilities (16)

Catastrophic personal injury

High-value clinical negligence

Fatal accident claims

Occupational disease

Group litigation

International Injury

Sports Injury

Professional Disciplinary & Liability

Clinical Negligence Department Overview

Type of work handled: Byrom Street Chambers is ranked in Tier 1 for Clinical Negligence in The Legal 500 UK Bar 2027. The team handles the most serious and highest-value claims, including birth injuries resulting in cerebral palsy and hypoxic brain injury, delayed diagnosis of cancer and spinal injury, surgical errors, negligent clinical management and fatal claims arising from medical treatment.

Categories of clients: Members are instructed by solicitors acting for claimants and appear at inquests where clinical care is under scrutiny.

Recent work highlights: In SD (Executor of the Estate of BD) v Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, members acted in a claim arising from the failure to treat a woman's heart condition during her second pregnancy. She suffered a ruptured aorta causing catastrophic injury, and her newborn child died. She later died herself. The case involved complex medical issues and required particular sensitivity.

Specialisations: Ten members are individually ranked for Clinical Negligence: Christopher Melton KC, Winston Hunter KC, James Rowley KC, Sally Hatfield KC, Rhiannon Jones KC, Lauren Sutherland KC, Stephen McNamara and Jason Wells (all Tier 1), and Mary Ruck KC and Darryl Allen KC (Tier 2).

Members have appeared in significant medical law cases in the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, including Montgomery v Lanarkshire Health Board on informed consent and Thompstone v Tameside and Glossop Acute Services NHS Trust.

The Alder Hey Inquiry is among the public inquiries in which members have appeared.

Personal Injury Department Overview

Type of work handled: Byrom Street Chambers is ranked in Tier 1 for Personal Injury in The Legal 500 UK Bar 2027. Members specialise in catastrophic injury claims, including brain injury, spinal cord injury and amputation, together with high-value fatal accident claims, industrial disease, and group and multi-party litigation.

Categories of clients: Members act for claimants and defendants, instructed by solicitors on both sides of the most complex and highest-value claims.

Specialisations: Tier 1 rankings are held by Christopher Melton KC, Winston Hunter KC, Rhiannon Jones KC, Peter Burnks KC, Simon Kilvington KC and Mike Lemmy. Tier 2 rankings are held by James Rowley KC, Sally Hatfield KC, Darryl Allen KC, Darrel Crilley. Tier 3 ranking is held by Pascale Hicks.

Members have appeared in significant medical law cases in the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, including Montgomery v Lanarkshire Health Board on informed consent.

The Alder Hey Inquiry is among the public inquiries in which members have appeared.