Elisabeth Acker > 23ES > London, England > Barrister Profile
23ES Offices
1 Gray's Inn Square
WC1R 5AA
England
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Elisabeth Acker
Position
Elisabeth is a persuasive and precise advocate who understands the importance of client care and active case management. She practices in crime, the civil offshoots of crime and various professional discipline/regulatory arenas.
Her trial work includes arson with intent to endanger life, witness intimidation, supply Class A, burglary, robbery, threats to kill, harassment, and sexual assault. She has also worked under others in more complex cases. She was junior to defence investigations counsel, Gary Summers, in His Excellency President Uhuru Kenyatta’s ICC trial. She was instructed by the SFO as independent counsel for the purposes of LPP in Operation Steamroller and by the FCA for the purposes of disclosure in Operation Ripley.
Having completed secondments with both, she continues to be instructed by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and the Nursing and Midwifery Council, both as an advocate and in an advisory capacity. She is regularly instructed to defend in professional discipline cases by the Royal College of Nursing and the National Head Teachers Union. She also has experience of police complaints and discipline.
Her article on the implications of the judgement in Jones v Kaney was published in Medicine, Science and Law and she was interviewed by Baroness Kennedy about female defendants on BBC Radio 4. She was involved in the Law Society consultation on Youth Justice, attending meetings with government representative, charities and other stake holders. She provides advocacy training at the College of Law.
Before coming to the bar she studied history at Oriel College, Oxford and worked in the music industry.
Career
Called 2010; Middle Temple.
Memberships
Middle Temple; Criminal Bar Association; Young Fraud Lawyers; YBC (committee member), Prison Reform Trust.
Education
Oxford University, Oriel College (BA (Hons) Modern History); BBP Law School (BVC and GDL).
Lawyer Rankings
London Bar > Crime
(Leading Juniors)Ranked: Tier 2Elisabeth Acker – 23ES ‘Elisabeth has an excellent analytical ability to understand and highlight the key issues in a case. Her empathetic and kind nature ensures that she is a perfect advocate for cases involving youths or extremely vulnerable witnesses and complainants. Her advocacy is also exceptional.’
23ES is ‘a very well established and highly respected set’ with a ‘breadth of talent‘. Prior to her December 2023 appointment to the Circuit Bench in November 2023, Allison Hunter prosecuted a thirteen-defendant drug conspiracy involving 1000kg of cocaine in a case featuring Encrochat evidence. Elisabeth Acker prosecuted alone in a case in which the defendant was convicted for importing and selling endangered species, specifically jewellery containing elephant parts, contrary to CITES – the matter involved arguments on the adequacy of expert opinion, the appropriate method of scientific testing, the admissibility of evidence obtained from abroad, and on the statutory interpretation. James Bloomer was instructed for the defence in the case of a young man of previous good character accused of a bomb hoax and possession of an imitation firearm following a bungled attempt at a bank robbery – the case turns on the psychiatric evidence, assessing whether he was in the grip of a psychotic episode at the relevant time as well as the admissibility of a quasi-confession given during interview.