Alex Rooke > Chambers of David Josse KC > London, England > Barrister Profile

Alex Rooke

+44 (0) 207 332 5400 clerks@5sah.co.uk View profile

Work Department

• Alex practises in all areas of crime and asset recovery & confiscation.

Position

For 20 years, Alex maintained a busy 50/50 defence and prosecution practice, and believes this is the best way of learning and retaining the skills needed to be an effective criminal barrister.  This has ranged from prosecuting complex Flying Squad and NCA investigations, through the prosecution and defence of all manner of violence, fraud and sexual offending, to defending in heavyweight, and especially Turkish, gang matters.

Currently, he principally defends, deploying this wide experience of cases involving serious violence, grave sexual offending, fraud and organised crime. He is currently instructed to defend in a number of “Encrochat” cases and is fully up to speed with recent developments.  He also has two murder cases for the defence on his case-list as of May 2023

He often appears alone against King’s Counsel, and is respected for his ability to deal sensitively with clients and witnesses who are having difficulty with the experience of the court process, be that because of vulnerability, cultural difference or simply what is at stake.

Solicitors and judges have commented favourably on his ability to pick up complex cases, to master large amounts of information, and to cut to the chase in a very short time.

He has particular expertise in cross-border smuggling cases, and in confiscation and asset forfeiture matters under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and its predecessor legislation.  He is currently instructed to defend in a number of “Encrochat” cases and is fully up to speed with recent developments.

Alex has advised upon and successfully defended many Road Traffic Act (RTA) matters, and accepts Direct Public Access instructions for this.

He has recently been privately instructed in several Indecent Images cases, obtaining good results for the clients.

• Alex accepts direct access instructions.

Career

• Alex was called to the Bar in 2001.
• Grade 3 Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) Prosecutor.
• Appointed to the CPS specialist crime, POCA (Grade 2), and fraud panels (Grade 3).

Asset Recovery, Civil Fraud & Confiscation

Alex is regularly instructed in Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 matters, often where other lawyers have defended at trial or taken the plea but lack the experience of complex confiscation cases.

He was instructed in 2010 by the Registrar of Criminal Appeals to handle a batch of resurrected tobacco duty evasion cases, successfully reducing a number of confiscation orders or eliminating them altogether.

He is often briefed in cash seizure and forfeiture matters by both state agencies and private individuals.

Criminal Defence

Alex is an experienced criminal barrister and is instructed to defend in serious and complex criminal cases, involving offences of murder and manslaughter, rape and serious sexual assault, frauds, drug importations, money laundering and confiscation cases.

Criminal Prosecutions – Private & Public

Alex is a highly experienced prosecutor.  He is a grade 3 Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) Prosecutor and he is also appointed to the CPS specialist crime, rape and fraud panels.

Alex is instructed in serious and complex criminal cases, involving offences of murder and manslaughter, rape and serious sexual assault, frauds, drug importations, money laundering and confiscation cases.

Languages

Prior to coming to the Bar, Alex worked in Turkey for seven years as a university teacher.

His spoken Turkish is near fluent, and he also has a decent command of French.

Memberships

• Proceeds of Crime Lawyers Association.
• Fraud Lawyers Association.
• South East Circuit.

Education

• Bar Vocational Course 2001.
• Walter Wrigglesworth Scholar, Lincoln’s Inn 2001.
• Postgraduate Diploma in Law, 2000.
• M.Sc. (International Relations), Middle East Technical University, Turkey, 1996.
• B.A. Hons (History and Politics), Keele University, 1991.