Set Profile > Cornerstone Barristers > Birmingham, England
Cornerstone Barristers Offices
12-22 Newhall Street
BIRMINGHAM
B3 3EW
England
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Cornerstone Barristers > The Legal 500 Rankings
Licensing Tier 1
A go-to set for complex or precedent-setting licensing cases, Cornerstone Barristers' team of clerks is also highlighted for being ‘one of the best’ for client service. The set handles cases nationally from those involving the taxi trade, alcohol and gambling to music and other entertainment venues or festivals. ‘Arguably the country’s leading licensing silk’, Philip Kolvin QC's cases include success on behalf of Uber London Ltd in its well-publicised licensing appeal. James Findlay QC and Ranjit Bhose QC each have wide-ranging experience of licensing issues in the private hire/ taxi services and night club sectors. Asitha Ranatunga acted for The London Borough of Haringey in defending its decision to refuse a new premises licence for an adult gaming centre, while the 'persuasive' and 'engaging' Josef Cannon frequently deals with cases involving a serious criminal element.
Leading Silks
Leading Juniors
Local government (including rating law) Tier 1
Cornerstone Barristers is 'a great set to work with and has the range of barristers to cover the whole local government spectrum', with areas of expertise including local governance, public space protection orders and matters at the intersection of local government powers and social housing. Ranjit Bhose QC and Kuljit Bhogal represented the defendant in Dulgheriu v Ealing LBC concerning the council's imposition of a public spaces protection order to mitigate an anti-abortion picket of the Marie Stopes West London Centre; Bhose QC also represented the claimants in RB Kingston upon Thames v Moss, concerning the terms on which local authorities supply water to secure tenants. Robin Green represented Britwell Parish Council in a challenge to Slough Borough Council's decision to abolish it. Matthew Lewin has a niche practice in local government standards work, and also represented the defendant in Panton v Denchworth Parish Trustees, a case over the ownership of a village hall concluded by the Chancery division issuing Extended Civil Restraint Orders against the parish's former chairman and treasurer.
Rising stars
Leading Silks
Leading Juniors
Social housing Tier 1
Cornerstone Barristers has an outstanding track record representing housing associations and local authorities in groundbreaking cases that often involve an interplay between housing law and related areas, such as the Children Act, immigration rights, adult social care, among others. In 2019, Kelvin Rutledge QC and Andrew Lane represented the local authority at the Court of Appeal in R(Gullu) v London Borough of Hillingdon, which was a test case involving a challenge to Hillingdon's ten-year residency requirement in order to join its housing waiting list. Also notable was that Ranjit Bhose QC and Ruchi Parekh represented circa 20 local housing authorities (through the Local Government Association) at the High Court in RB Kingston-upon-Thames v Moss, which was a water re-selling test case the implications of which could mean that many housing associations and local authorities have to reimburse tenants for overcharges for the supply of water; the matter is now pending before the Court of Appeal.
Rising stars
Leading Silks
Leading Juniors
Agriculture
Leading Juniors
Data protection
Leading Silks
Leading Juniors
Environment Tier 3
Cornerstone Barristers has 'particular expertise in prosecutions for local authorities of environmental offences and planning prosecutions', and clients remark that it is 'an excellent set with strong and well-established teams in planning and environmental law'. Members have significant expertise in environmental matters, particularly those concerning renewable energy development, strategic environmental assessments, environmental impact assessments, and habitats regulations. Its junior ranks are particularly strong and Estelle Dehon is well known for judicial reviews and inquiries challenging fracking, coal mining, oil drilling and gas acidisation projects. Her recent work includes a challenge to the controversial development of four poultry buildings to house more than 1.5 million chickens per year. Clients also remark on the set's 'helpful and responsive set of clerks'.
Leading Silks
Leading Juniors
Property litigation
Leading Silks
Leading Juniors
Court of Protection and community care
Leading Silks
Leading Juniors
Zoë Whittington - Cornerstone Barristers ‘Always approachable, makes contact quickly and keeps you up to date with how things are progressing. Advocacy is excellent and has superb knowledge of the subject matter.’
Planning Tier 3
Cornerstone Barristers has 'a good range of practitioners who are experienced in local authority work', with 'strength and depth at all levels and covering all of the key areas of planning and infrastructure work'. Richard Ground QC represented Tendring District Council in an enforcement case against over 50 inhabitants of chalets, all of whom were litigants in person, who occupied them all year despite a ban on them staying for extended periods in the winter months. Also of note, Ground QC, along with rising star Ben Du Feu, secured an injunction to stop a referendum on a neighbourhood plan in the Mendips. Unled, Robin Green represented the claimant in R (McLennan) v Medway Council, in which the High Court found that the local authority was irrational to have ignored that a development would obstruct a neighbour's solar panels, while Edward Grant successfully represented the London Borough of Hounslow in defeating a proposal by the Duke of Northumberland to build on existing allotments and replace them over a Grade 1-listed Capability Brown landscape in Syon Park.
Rising stars
Leading Silks
Leading Juniors
Administrative and public law (including elections) Tier 4
Members of Cornerstone Barristers are 'experts in judicial review because of the broad local government practices that many barristers have', and also handles a broader range of public law work away from its local government connections, such as election law. Philip Coppel QC represented the Electoral Commission in defending judicial reviews concerning alleged breaches of spending rules on the part of Vote Leave and Darren Grimes – the first brought by the Good Law Project (an organisation founded by Jolyon Maugham QC) concerning the commission's decision not to launch an investigation; the second brought by Grimes and Vote Leave, concerning the commission's decision to announce its investigation.
Leading Silks
Leading Juniors
Aviation
Leading Silks
Commercial litigation
Leading Juniors
Set overviews: England and Wales
Cornerstone Barristers has offices in London, Birmingham, and Cardiff, offering expertise in licensing, local government, and social housing, to name but a few. In recent news, the set has announced the launch of a new arbitration service, Kuljit Bhogal was appointed a Recorder of the Crown Court, and Matthew Feldman who joins the set from 42 Bedford Row.Clerks:
Testimonials
Clerks:
‘Clerks at Cornerstone are personable and pleasant to talk to. They are reliable and offer strong client care. Elliot Langdorf leads the clerks’ room and does a sterling job and Sam Collins is certainly on his way.’
‘Clerks at Cornerstone are very helpful and consistently go the extra mile to assist.’
‘Elliot Langdorf is very helpful and responsive and takes a realistic approach to fees. The clerks generally are excellent in my experience.’
‘I have found all clerks to be approachable and very helpful, also very willing to assist where an urgent instruction might be required.’
‘Sam Collins is excellent: friendly, responsive and understands client needs.’
‘Service from the clerking team (led by the fantastic senior clerk Elliot) is brilliant. Every single one of them is friendly, knowledgeable and always able to deal with any queries I have. In particular, I would like to mention team leaders Sam Collins and Daniel Gatt, who are incredible at their job and who have gone out of their way to assist on many occasions. They are friendly, accommodating and have a deep knowledge of Chambers’ practice areas.Elliot is exactly what I would expect and want from a Senior Clerk in Chambers. Professional with personality, he has the knack of being able to match the right barrister to any case. In my view, the standard of Clerking has only improved under his leadership.’
‘The clerks are extremely professional in the telephone manner but also easy to talk to on any matter and they all complement each other, Elliot Landorff, Chelsea Thomas, Daniel Gatt, Justin Cunningham, George Regan, Issac Maynard-Smith, have been extremely helpful when Ive been looking for an advocate to present my work.’
Set:
‘Between them, the members of the housing team form an impressive arsenal of skill, knowledge and expertise.’
‘Cornerstone are an excellent set with many barristers very experienced in public law.’
‘Cornerstone Barristers as a whole are one of the best sets I have ever worked with in my legal career. They offer excellent training courses (including useful and very relevant webinars during the Covid-19 Pandemic), the quality of barristers and the work they produce is outstanding. There has always been counsel available to talk to me on matters, even when I haven’t instructed. They are my go to set with any issues which require counsel and I have recommended them to others.’
‘Cornerstone Chambers is an excellent set. They have been able to provide good counsel at short notice on complex matters. There hasn’t yet been a social housing matter that, as a set, they have not been able to respond to and provide an excellent service.’
‘Cornerstone have a great depth of knowledge and provide great resources and training for us, as well as very professional and able legal services.’
‘Good strength-in-depth in the area of private sector housing and licensing litigation with a range of Counsels available to take on cases of varying complexity.’
‘I have worked both with and against barristers at Cornerstone for many years. They are strongly and diversely represented at all levels of practice.’
‘I have worked with many barristers at Cornerstone over the years covering a whole and wide range of civil and commercial litigation and property matters. Chambers has a great reputation and I never hesitate to recommend.’
‘The leading licensing set in the country, with an extremely personable set of legal professionals.’
‘The set is very good in the local government field and has some excellent junior barristers coming through.’
‘Very professional, very personable and a pleasure to work with. Very good at advising on the best strategy for a case, and honest and candid about the likelihood of success and the weaknesses in any case.’
Cornerstone Barristers > Set Profile
Leading chambers in which excellence is achieved across a range of practice areas broadly related to public law and property, and through professional client service. With more than 50 barristers and offices in London, Birmingham and Cardiff, Cornerstone Barristers provides advice and representation in areas including administrative and public law, planning, property, housing, licensing, data protection, Court of Protection, health and social care, commercial and regulatory law. Clients include companies, central and local government, private developers, public development agencies and individuals.
The set: Chambers offers expertise at all levels of seniority, from QCs to newly qualified barristers, and at all levels of the court system, from County Court to the Supreme Court. Members are highly regarded and often involved in ground-breaking cases. They are not just legal experts but sector specialists, meaning that clients receive advice from, and are represented by, people who understand their perspective, their business and their challenges.
Types of work undertaken: The set’s expertise takes in the most lengthy, complex and high-profile cases, as well as more routine matters.
Planning and environment: As one of the leading planning sets, Cornerstone Barristers handles the full range of issues including high-profile infrastructure and other nationally important projects involving property, public and environmental law, compulsory purchase and compensation, minerals and waste, rights of way, highways, village greens and commons. Members handle major inquiries and advise on prominent developments, statutory challenges and judicial review.
Social housing: The set is well known for landlord and tenant law, homelessness, asylum, housing benefit fraud, possession claims, contested succession, unlawful subletting, anti-social behaviour and disrepair. Property: As well as advising and representing private and public-sector clients in relation to commercial and residential property, members act as mediators and arbitrators.
Public law and Judicial Review: The set defends and challenges public law decisions in many areas including planning, housing, highways, health and social care, Court of Protection, immigration, human rights, education and employment. Members take part in the most prominent public inquiries and inquests.
Licensing: The set drives professional development in this area by advising, training and educating across the whole field, including alcohol, entertainment, gambling and taxis, on behalf of licensing authorities, police, leading industry operators, trade associations and campaign and community groups.
Information law: The team has particular expertise in profiling, big data and Al, and brings both legal and technical knowledge to advising clients.
Health and social care: Members represent clients in the Court of Protection, the Administrative Court and the Supreme Court across the full spectrum of health and social care matters, including adult and child social care, mental capacity and mental health law.
Commercial: The set includes barristers with domestic business law practices encompassing contentious and non-contentious commercial and corporate work.
Regulatory law: In conjunction with a leading reputation in corporate manslaughter, the set provides a comprehensive service in consumer protection, trading standards, health and safety and environmental regulation.
Main Contacts
Department | Name | Telephone | |
---|---|---|---|
CEO | Clare Bello | cbello@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Senior Clerk | Elliot Langdorf | elangdorf@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Joint Head of Chambers | COPPEL QC, Philip (1994) | philipc@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Joint Head of Chambers | COSGROVE QC, Thomas (1994) | tomc@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | LOWE QC, Mark (1972) | markl@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | UNDERWOOD QC, Ashley (1976) | aunderwood@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | FINDLAY QC, James (1984) | jamesf@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | GASZTOWICZ QC, Steven (1981) | sg@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | KOLVIN QC, Philip (1985) | philipk@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | FORLIN QC, Gerard (1984) | gerardf@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | BHOSE QC, Ranjit (1989) | ranjitb@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | RUTLEDGE QC, Kelvin (1989) | kelvinr@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | BEDFORD QC, Michael (1985) | michaelb@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | GROUND QC, Richard (1994) | richardg@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | BUSCH QC, Lisa (2000) | lbusch@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | SHADAREVIAN QC, Paul (1984) | ps@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | HUTCHINGS QC, Matt (1993) | matth@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | STOKER, Graham (1977) | grahams@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | ALBUTT, Ian (1981) | iana@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | CLAY, Jonathan (1990) | jclay@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | HOLBROOK, Jon (1991) | jonh@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | MARSHALL, Paul (1991) | paulm@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | GREEN, Robin (1992) | rgreen@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | GRANT, Edward (1994) | egrant@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | EDWARDS, Martin (1995) | medwards@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | PAGET, Michael (1995) | michaelp@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | LINTOTT, David (1996) | dlintott@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | BEGLAN, Wayne (1996) | wayneb@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | TOWNSEND, Harriet (1992) | htownsend@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | ROWLANDS, Catherine (1992) | catheriner@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | BEGLAN, Wayne (1996) | wayneb@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | BHOGAL, Kuljit (1999) | kuljitb@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | LANE, Andrew (1999) | andrewl@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | DATTA, Shomik (2000) | shomikd@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | RANATUNGA, Asitha (2001) | ar@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | WELFARE, Damien (2001) | damienw@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | ETIEBET, Peggy (2001) | peggye@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | UNDERWOOD, Dean (2002) | deanu@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | CANNON, Josef (2002) | jcannon@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | LAMBERT, Emmaline (2003) | elambert@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | PARRY, Clare (2005) | clarep@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | PARKHILL, Lee (2005) | ||
Member of Chambers | DEHON, Estelle (2006) | estelled@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | OSCROFT, Jennifer (2006) | jennyo@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | KOHLI, Ryan (2006) | ryank@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | WILLIAMS, Robert (2008) | robertw@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | DRING, Emma (2009) | emmad@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | WHITTINGTON, Zoe (2009) | zoew@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | PAREKH, Ruchi (2010) | ruchip@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | PARKER, Jack (2011) | jackp@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | HANSTOCK, Richard (2012) | richardh@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | DR BOWES, Ashley (2013) | ashleyb@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | CALZAVARA, Riccardo (2013) | rcalzavara@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | DU FEU, Ben (2013) | bend@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | LEWIN, Matt (2013) | matthewl@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | O'LEARY, Tara (2014) | tarao@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | FITZSIMONS, John (2016) | johnf@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | Dr FOWLES, Sam (2017) | sfowles@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | Dr WILLIAMS, Alex (2017) | awilliams@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | BUONO, Isabella | ibuono@cornerstonebarristers.com | |
Member of Chambers | CLAPP, Rowan | rclapp@cornerstonebarristers.com |
XTop Tier Set Rankings
Set Rankings
- London Bar Agriculture
- London Bar Data protection
- London Bar Environment
- London Bar Property litigation
- London Bar Court of Protection and community care
- London Bar Planning
- London Bar Administrative and public law (including elections)
- London Bar Aviation
- London Bar Commercial litigation
- Regional Bar Set overviews: England and Wales
- London Bar Set overviews: England and Wales