Gough Square Chambers > London, England > Set Profile

Chambers of Kevin de Haan KC and Jonathan Goulding
Gough Square Chambers
6-7 GOUGH SQUARE
LONDON
EC4A 3DE
England

Email firm Visit website 020 7353 0924 020 7353 2221

London Bar > Consumer Tier 1

Gough Square Chambers is ‘a premier chambers for consumer law work‘. Jonathan Kirk KC is ‘a top-class silk‘ and David Travers KC is ‘an outstanding lawyer‘. Recent instructions for the team include Iain MacDonald acting as co-counsel in Soleymani v Nifty Gateway LLC, involving a challenge to the enforceability of the sale of NFT artwork by auction. The claim involved issues arising from conflict of laws and the applicability of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 to the transaction, as well as jurisdictional issues. Simon Popplewell is sought after for his expertise in advising on all aspects of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. Stuart Jessop joined the team in July 2023.

Rising stars

Sabrina Goodchild - Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 1

Leading Silks

David Travers KC – Gough Square Chambers ‘A master of his craft. His wit, detailed knowledge of consumer law and tenacious approach makes it a pleasure to work with him.’

Ranked: Tier 1

Jonathan Kirk KC –Gough Square Chambers ‘A Rolls Royce silk in the consumer law field. A joy to watch and always impressive.’

Ranked: Tier 1

Kevin de Haan KC –Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 3

Leading Juniors

Simon Popplewell –Gough Square Chambers 'Simon is a very accomplished and very practical barrister.'

Ranked: Tier 1

Jonathan Goulding –Gough Square Chambers 'Jonathan is a very skilled advocate.'

Ranked: Tier 1

Iain MacDonald –Gough Square Chambers ‘A senior junior operating at the level of a silk. He is extremely pragmatic, very responsive and very good at managing client expectations.’

Ranked: Tier 1

Fred Philpott –Gough Square Chambers ‘A very sharp and efficient junior.'

Ranked: Tier 1

Cameron Crowe –Gough Square Chambers ‘Cameron’s expertise in consumer law is astounding. He is a barrister you really want on your side.'

Ranked: Tier 2

Robin Kingham –Gough Square Chambers ‘Robin is calm, engaging and methodical before a court. His advice is clear, concise and always practical.'

Ranked: Tier 2

Anna Medvinskaia –Gough Square Chambers ‘Anna is a compelling advocate.’

Ranked: Tier 2

Julian Gun Cuninghame - Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 3

Lee Finch –Gough Square Chambers ‘Lee is dedicated, reliable, personable, and a real pleasure to work with.’

Ranked: Tier 3

Stuart Jessop –Gough Square Chambers ‘Stuart is a go-to barrister for any regulatory case. Excellent on the papers and on his feet.’

Ranked: Tier 3

Laura Phillips – Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 3

Kate Urell –Gough Square Chambers ‘Kate provides insightful, commercially focused advice on highly technical areas of law in a user-friendly manner.’

Ranked: Tier 3

Daniel Brayley –Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 3

Michael Coley - Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 3

Testimonials

‘Jack Bradshaw is excellent – a real gem.’

‘Bob Weekes, Richard Bryant and Jack Bradshaw are very helpful.’

‘Jack Bradshaw is extremely easy to deal with. He is very efficient.’

‘The clerks’ room, well-led by Bob Weekes, is professional, responsive and knowledgeable.’

‘Chambers’ expertise in this area is beyond compare.’

‘Gough Square Chambers cannot be matched for consumer work. A long-term leader in the field. Quality throughout the set.’

‘Gough Square Chambers is the leading set for consumer work.’

‘The clerks are fantastic and provide a brilliant client focused service.’

London Bar > Financial services regulation Tier 2

Gough Square Chambers consistently act for many of the UK’s major banks and government bodies across the gamut of contentious and non-contentious regulatory areas, with the chambers having a particular strength in the regulation of retail products. Jonathan Kirk KC acted for Diamond Resorts and Club La Costa in consumer credit litigation concerning the mis-selling of timeshare as an investment, with the High Court dismissing claims for judicial review in May 2023. Stephen Neville continues to be an authority on compliance issues, recently advising Masthaven Bank on its withdrawal from the UK mortgage market and the sale of its almost £500m portfolio. Simon Popplewell brings an abundance of experience appearing before the FCA’s Regulatory Decisions Committee and regularly advises on the FCA perimeter and the boundaries in which parliament limits the regulator to act.

Leading Silks

Jonathan Kirk KC –Gough Square Chambers ‘His advocacy is considered and directed, often managing to ensure the judge sees the bigger picture. Jonathan is a joy to watch and always impressive.’

Ranked: Tier 2

Leading Juniors

Fred Philpott –Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 1

Iain MacDonald –Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 2

Simon Popplewell –Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 2

James Ross –Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 2

Kate Urell –Gough Square Chambers ‘Kate is very responsive and provides insightful, commercially focused advice on highly technical areas of law, but in a user-friendly manner and bearing in mind that her advice will often also be received by non-lawyers and business teams.’

Ranked: Tier 2

Stephen Neville –Gough Square Chambers ‘Stephen is incredibly knowledgeable, not only about the regulations but the industry as a whole and the way the courts and regulators apply and interpret the regulations.’

Ranked: Tier 2

Robin Kingham – Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 3

Daniel Brayley –Gough Square Chambers ‘Detailed and thorough analysis; Daniel is great to work with.’

Ranked: Tier 3

Lee Finch – Gough Square Chambers ‘A silk in the making: Lee is dedicated, reliable and bright. Judges have always taken a real shine to his style, which is firm and direct, but polite and respectful at all times.’

Ranked: Tier 3

Testimonials

‘The clerks are fantastic and provide a brilliant client focused service, often working to tight deadlines, and ably handle competing demands and deadlines. We have dealt with Richard Bryant, Bob Weekes and Jack Bradshaw.’

‘Bob Weekes is superb and a pleasure to deal with – he has a great knowledge of counsel’s expertise.’

‘We always receive great service from Gough Square.’

‘An annual consumer law conference is a real treat and the clerking team are fantastic.’

‘Gough Square Chambers is our go-to set, they have fantastic strength in depth.’

London Bar > Banking and finance (including consumer credit) Tier 3

‘Strong in advising on regulatory law,’ Gough Square Chambers has a particular focus on this space on retail products, acting for most of the UK’s major banks, alongside receiving instructions from government bodies including HM Treasury and the FCA. Iain MacDonald has a broad banking and financial services practice, with a focus on retail banking, while Simon Popplewell has dealt with numerous cases before the FCA Regulatory Decisions Committee and other major, including Various SAM Borrowers v Bank of Scotland, with Simon acting for the bank in respect of a challenge to shared appreciation mortgages, where the amount to repay is linked to the price of the property at the time of redemption. The challenges were made on the basis of the unfair relationship provisions in the Consumer Credit Act 1974. Anna Medvinskaia is a notable junior in the team.

Leading Silks

Jonathan Kirk KC – Gough Square Chambers ‘The Rolls-Royce of leaders in the Consumer Law field, quite simply people listen to what he says.’

Ranked: Tier 5

Leading Juniors

Stephen Neville –Gough Square Chambers ‘Fantastic knowledge of financial services and consumer credit law and practice that he has built up over many years and has a commercial and practical approach. A pleasure to work with.’

Ranked: Tier 2

Fred Philpott –Gough Square Chambers 'Fred is second to none. Utterly outstanding in his field, and his advice is uniquely tailored to clients' specific concerns.'

Ranked: Tier 2

Simon Popplewell –Gough Square Chambers ‘Simon is extremely bright and very approachable. He knows the law inside out and back to front and can summarise it clearly. He is also an excellent advocate. Clients love him.'

Ranked: Tier 2

Iain MacDonald –Gough Square Chambers ‘Iain is very responsive, calm under pressure, good on his feet and has good client management skills.'

Ranked: Tier 2

Kate Urell – Gough Square Chambers ‘Kate is a go-to barrister for Consumer Credit Act matters. She has in depth and entrenched knowledge of the issues both at hand and prevalent in the market in general.’

Ranked: Tier 3

Lee Finch – Gough Square Chambers ‘A silk in the making Lee is dedicated, reliable and bright, but personable and real pleasure to work with. Judges have always taken a real shine to his style, which is firm and direct, but polite and respectful at all times.’

Ranked: Tier 4

Robin Kingham - Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 4

Anna Medvinskaia – Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 4

James Ross –Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 4

Testimonials

‘The clerking team is outstanding and go above and beyond to assist, particularly with the availability of counsel. Jack Bradshaw and Richard Bryant, have always come back to me extremely quickly with options for counsel and fee quotes whenever I have needed them and are always very personable and cheery on the phone!’

‘The set is strong in advising on regulatory law, with multiple counsel at different levels of seniority, meaning that there is usually someone available to assist urgently.’

‘Gough Square have an excellent team of financial services counsel, who are always willing and eager to assist with any instructions sent their way.’

‘Gough Square Chambers are my ‘go to’ for all things Consumer Credit.’

‘Very good set with lots of options for this type of work.’

Work highlights

London Bar > Environment

Leading Silks

David Travers KC – Gough Square Chambers ‘David has a phenomenal mind and is tactically very astute. He knows the law inside out and is particularly strong where there are difficult commercial or reputational issues.’

Ranked: Tier 1

Leading Juniors

Stuart Jessop – Gough Square Chambers ‘A real fighter.’

Ranked: Tier 4

London Bar > Health and safety

Leading Silks

David Travers KC – Gough Square Chambers ‘Definitely one of the leading silks in the country in this area of law. He is a very good advocate, and strikes the right tone with judges and juries.‘

Ranked: Tier 1

Leading Juniors

Laura Phillips – Gough Square Chambers ‘She is good at spotting the strengths and weaknesses of the client’s position and also good at anticipating and preparing for the issues that will be raised in proceedings.‘

Ranked: Tier 3

Cameron Crowe - Gough Square Chambers

Ranked: Tier 4

London Bar > Inquests and inquiries

Leading Silks

David Travers KC – Gough Square Chambers ‘David is a charming and disarming advocate. He has a magnetism in his personality which makes him relatable.‘

Ranked: Tier 3

London Bar > Local government (including rating law)

Leading Silks

David Travers KC – Gough Square Chambers ‘David is phenomenal. He’s tenacious, driven and fun to work with. His advocacy is always a masterclass.’

Ranked: Tier 3

Leading Juniors

Anna Medvinskaia – Gough Square 'Anna's advice is pragmatic, concise and easy to understand.'

Ranked: Tier 4

London Bar > Licensing

Leading Juniors

Stuart Jessop –Gough Square Chambers ‘Stuart is very commercially aware and is able to explain complex legal arguments in a comprehensible way.‘

Ranked: Tier 2

This set provides specialist advice and representation in all aspects of consumer, regulatory and finance law and offers expertise in additional areas in the commercial business field.

The set: The set has a progressive approach to its work and aims to provide a friendly and flexible service at competitive rates. Members are responsive to the needs of business and are ready to give advice at short notice as required.

Clients include City, regional and company solicitors acting for banks, building societies, finance houses and other lenders, as well as leading supermarkets, retailers and manufacturers, cosmetics companies, and distributors. Chambers is also happy to accept instructions by direct professional access.

Chambers publishes a free quarterly Trading Law Bulletin detailing recent legal developments (which can be sent to those interested on request) and the Consumer and Trading Law Reports, in six parts per year. Seminars and conferences on consumer law are also given.

Types of work undertaken: Chambers’ expertise in consumer law results in members advising and representing clients in relation to consumer credit, secured lending, timeshare and package holidays, trading schemes and franchising, food safety, trade descriptions, pricing, advertising and marketing, sale and supply contracts, unfair contract terms, weights and measures, data protection, health and safety, environmental pollution, product safety, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.

Individual members of chambers also have expertise in a number of other areas, including banking, sale of goods, commercial contracts, company and partnership, landlord and tenant, employment, trusts, pension schemes, insolvency and professional negligence.

Chambers’ consumer work spans the full range of both the civil and criminal tribunals. Whilst chambers handles the day-to-day litigation encountered in these areas of law, it is also involved in advising business clients more specifically, including due diligence on acquisitions, how to conduct their business so that they can obtain and keep any necessary licences, how to ensure the enforceability of contracts, and how to avoid or handle the attention of regulatory authorities (such as environmental health officers, trading standards departments and the Financial Conduct Authority). For example, chambers has particular experience appearing in consumer credit licensing matters. This consumer work can also involve advising clients on the drafting of consumer contracts, notices, policy documents, procedure manuals and advising whether or not advertising and sales techniques are legitimate.

Members of chambers also regularly act for and advise central and local government enforcement agencies.

Department	Name	Email	Telephone
Senior clerk	Bob Weekes
Members of Chambers	DE HAAN KC, Kevin (1976) (2000)
Members of Chambers	TRAVERS KC, David (1981) (2010)
Members of Chambers	KIRK KC, Jonathan (1995) (2010)
Members of Chambers	PHILPOTT, Fred (1974)
Members of Chambers	SAYER, Peter (1975)*
Members of Chambers	ANDREWS, Claire (1979)
Members of Chambers	HAYES, Josephine (1980)
Members of Chambers	BARNETT, Jeremy (1980)
Members of Chambers	GOULDING, Jonathan (1984)
Members of Chambers	NEVILLE, Stephen (1986)
Members of Chambers	GUN CUNINGHAME, Julian (1989)
Members of Chambers	SAY, Bradley (1993)
Members of Chambers	CLEGG, Sebastian (1994)
Members of Chambers	SPICER, Jo (1995)
Members of Chambers	MACDONALD, Iain (1996)
Members of Chambers	POPPLEWELL, Simon (2000)
Members of Chambers	CROWE, Cameron (2002)
Members of Chambers	URELL, Kate (2002)
Members of Chambers	REYNOLDS, Lee (2002)
Members of Chambers	GREENWOOD, Alex (2002)
Members of Chambers	HOWELLS, Prof Geraint (2002)*
Members of Chambers	LAMBERT, Alison (2005)
Members of Chambers	ROSS, James (2006)
Members of Chambers	BALA, Ruth (2006)
Members of Chambers	ROBERTS, Richard (2006)
Members of Chambers	MEDVINSKAIA, Anna (2008)
Members of Chambers	PHILLIPS, Laura (2009)
Members of Chambers	FINCH, Lee (2010)
Members of Chambers	BRAYLEY, Daniel (2011)
Members of Chambers	COLEY, Michael (2011)
Members of Chambers	HOLLIS, Alison (2012)
Members of Chambers	KINGHAM, Robin (2013)
Members of Chambers	GOODCHILD, Sabrina (2017)
Members of Chambers	LEWIN (MBE), Brian*
Members of Chambers	SPENCE-JONES, George (2017)
Members of Chambers	O'NEIL, Ann-Marie (2020)
	* Non-practising door tenants

Name	Position	Profile
Claire Andrews	Barrister and ADR practitioner specialising in consumer and regulatory law with a…	View Profile
Daniel Brayley	Daniel accepts instructions for advisory, drafting and court work in all of…	View Profile
Michael Coley		View Profile
Cameron Crowe	Cameron specialises in regulatory law with an emphasis on consumer law, associated…	View Profile
Lee Finch	Barrister specialising in financial services, consumer and regulatory law. Lee has specific…	View Profile
Sabrina Goodchild	Barrister specialising in financial services, general regulatory/consumer law and regulatory crime. Contributing editor…	View Profile
Jonathan Goulding		View Profile
Julian Gun Cuninghame	Barrister specialising in banking, consumer credit, property, professional negligence and disciplinary; employment. Julian acts…	View Profile
Josephine Hayes	Barrister specialising in property litigation and general Chancery. Represents and advises both…	View Profile
Alison Hollis		View Profile
Mr Stuart Jessop	Stuart is a specialist regulatory and public law barrister. He is well-known…	View Profile
Robin Kingham	Specialist regulatory barrister with particular experience of Consumer and Trading Standards Law…	View Profile
Jonathan Kirk		View Profile
Alison Lambert		View Profile
Iain MacDonald		View Profile
Anna Medvinskaia	Anna practises in all areas of consumer and regulatory law.	View Profile
Stephen Neville	Stephen Neville has specialised in Financial Services Law for over 25 years.He…	View Profile
Ann-Marie O'Neil		View Profile
Ms Laura Phillips	Laura Phillips (2009) is a specialist regulatory lawyer with a particular interest…	View Profile
Fred Philpott		View Profile
Simon Popplewell	Barrister specialising in consumer credit, financial services, consumer and regulatory law.	View Profile
James Ross	Barrister specialising in financial services, consumer credit, consumer and regulatory law. James…	View Profile
Mr Bradley Say	Barrister specialising in consumer and regulatory law with a bias towards consumer…	View Profile
George Spence-Jones		View Profile
Mr David Travers	Regulatory law (including regulatory crime), public law and associated areas including corporate…	View Profile
Mr David Travers	Regulatory law (including regulatory crime), public law and associated areas including corporate…	View Profile
Kate Urell	Barrister specialising in consumer and regulatory law, in particular financial services.	View Profile
Kevin de Haan		View Profile