Amanda Clift-Matthews > Doughty Street Chambers > London, England > Barrister Profile

Amanda Clift-Matthews

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Position

Amanda is an experienced appellate practitioner who appears at the highest level in criminal and human rights cases on important points of law and evidence.

Career

Year of call: 1995

Her criminal cases before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council have ranged from the questioning of juveniles in police detention, the use of particle or ‘GSR’ evidence, diminished responsibility, and to life or long-term sentences. Her human rights cases, including before the UK Supreme Court and the Caribbean Court of Justice, have ranged from the sharing of information between governments when there is a risk that the death penalty will be imposed, parole and the possibilities for release, to the treatment of prisoners with HIV.

“Amanda Clift-Matthews has an excellent analytic mind and a profound understanding of criminal justice issues …original and creative and excellent at marshalling and presenting complex arguments under pressure. She is thoughtful and open-minded and has an impressive grasp of the wider political and sociological dimensions of her appellate work as a lawyer.”

Amanda was formally the inhouse counsel at The Death Penalty Project, where she obtained a wealth of experience representing prisoners under sentence of death in the courts throughout the Caribbean, Asia and Africa, as well as gaining first-hand experience of strategic litigation within the charity and NGO sector.

“She is a dynamic and thoughtful lawyer – emotionally intelligent – able to understand concerns and find an appropriate way to action whatever needs to be done. She has that rare ability to use her vast legal knowledge and instinct for justice, to put together compelling and cutting-edge arguments which might succeed or help lay the ground for future success.” 

Significant cases include Gobi A/l Avedian v PP (2020), which made history in Singapore as the first death sentence to be overturned after the usual avenues of appeal had been exhausted; Hewey v R (2022), which was the first occasion in living memory that an appellant’s conviction was fully quashed by the Privy Council; Longsworth v R, which saw the introduction of diminished responsibility to Belize (2014) and Baptiste v R (2015), which saw the release of the last man on death row in that jurisdiction.

Amanda a special interest in Southeast Asia, where she partners with local advocates in the region in murder and drug-trafficking appeals. She is pursuing a doctorate at the Centre for Criminology at Oxford University focusing on drug trafficking cases attracting the death penalty in Singapore.

“Her written advocacy and legal knowledge are first rate, her commitment to fundamental rights and criminal justice unquestionable, and her professionalism exemplary. I have always been impressed with her diligent work ethic, intellectual integrity, strategic thinking and innovation.”

As well as case work, Amanda has produced advisory documents for regional and international treaty bodies, overseas government organisations, professional bodies and NGOs.  She has published articles in the mainstream press and in peer-reviewed journals as well as delivering seminars on the death penalty, life sentences and international standards for a fair trial.