Prashant Popat KC > Chambers of Charles Gibson KC > London, England > Barrister Profile
Henderson Chambers Offices
Henderson Chambers
2 HARCOURT BUILDINGS, TEMPLE
LONDON
EC4Y 9DB
England
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Prashant Popat KC
Work Department
Product liability, negligence, contract, health and safety, inquests/inquiries.
Position
Prashant’s product liability and group action expertise encompasses many of the largest, most involved and high-profile cases of the past 20 years. These include litigation concerning: VW NOx emissions, Metal-on Metal hip implants, PIP breast implants, Seroxat, MMR, Sabril, Benzodiazepines and Norplant. His commercial product liability practice includes Commercial Court and QB litigation and arbitrations and non-contentious advisory work concerning a variety of products, including gastric bands, fire appliances, mobile phones, motor vehicles and electronic devices. Prashant has been involved in some of the leading reported cases in this field, including Court of Appeal decisions on the substitution of parties after the expiry of the 10 year long stop provided by the Product Liability Directive (Re: Horne Roberts) and the seminal costs sharing appeal (Sayers v Smith Kline Beecham) and the European Court of Justice and House of Lords/Supreme Court decisions in O’Byrne v Sanofi-Aventis.
Prashant has been instructed by defendants in many of the largest, high profile health and safety cases (and associated inquiries and inquests) of recent times. These have included corporate and individual manslaughter prosecutionssuch as R v Hawkins (Eastbourne Pier fall), R v MNS (Glesion mine flooding), R v Woodward(Atherstone warehouse fire), R v Ward (demolition collapse), R v CAV (collapse of aviation materials), R v. Network Rail (Hatfield rail disaster) and R v Railtrack (Slade Lane disaster).Prashant’s work for defendants charged with breaches of HSWA 1974 has included hundreds of cases including R v Rogers (Hanover Square window frame collapse), R v Falcon Cranes (crane collapse), R v HOSL (Buncefield fire), R v Network Rail (Ladbroke Grove, Potters Bar, Grayrigg and Southall disasters) and R v Davison (mine poisoning). His work has encompassed incidents in industries including construction, transport, retail, oil and gas, manufacturing and, mining. His list of clients includes BT, BP, Laing O’Rourke, Network Rail, McCain, Berkeley Group, Thames Water and Tarmac. He is also instructed in a relation to a number of ongoing investigations including those following the Grenfell fire and the Didcot Power Station collapse. In addition to private sector companies, his public sector clients have included HertfordshireFire Service and the Metropolitan Police Authority. Prashant has twice been awarded the title of Health and Safety Silk of the year by Chambers & Partners and been nominated on two other occasions. He was a founding and committee member of the Health & Safety Lawyers’ Association.
Career
Called 1992; Silk 2008; Bencher of Gray’s Inn; University scholar, Baker and McKenzie international scholar; Gray’s Inn scholar; judicial assistant to the Master of the Rolls; publications: ‘Civil Advocacy: A Practical Guide’ (Cavendish Publishing Ltd); contributing editor ‘Halsbury’s Laws Civil Procedure’; ‘International Product Law Manual’ (Kluwer).
Memberships
Health and Safety Lawyers Association; COMBAR.
Education
Oxford (1990 MA First Class Honours).
Lawyer Rankings
London Bar > Health and safety
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 1Prashant Popat KC –Henderson Chambers ‘The leading most impressive advocate for health and safety, public inquiries, and inquests. Head and shoulders above all contemporaries.‘
London Bar > Environment
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 3Prashant Popat KC – Henderson Chambers ‘Prashant is excellent at condensing complex technical matters into straightforward advice.’
Henderson Chambers has particular expertise in handling environmental litigation. Multiple members of the set continue to act for various parties in the high-profile Volkswagen emissions litigation, alongside advising on complex environmental damage claims arising from pollution and large-scale oil spills. Oliver Campbell KC is ‘incredibly approachable‘ and ‘adept at advising on complex group litigation matters‘. Prashant Popat KC is sought after for his strength in handling regulatory issues in the environmental arena. The senior end of the team was bolstered by the elevation of Kathleen Donnelly KC to silk in March 2023.
London Bar > Personal injury, industrial disease and insurance fraud
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 4Prashant Popat KC – Henderson Chambers ‘Prashant has an excellent ability to go through large amounts of technical data and condense the information into clear advice.’
London Bar > Group litigation
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 2Reputed as ‘go-to set for group litigation’, members of Henderson Chambers‘ areas of expertise include product liability, environmental, consumer and financial group actions, as well as handling claims arising from injuries, death or human rights abuse. A number of the set’s barristers, including Charles Gibson KC, Prashant Popat KC, Geraint Webb KC, Kathleen Donnelly KC and Lucy McCormick , continue to represent members of the Volkswagen Group in the ongoing group actions regarding the emissions of their diesel cars. Leading Adam Heppinstall KC, Oliver Campbell KC is acting as opposing counsel for claimants in these high-profile cases. At the same time, Campbell KC handles a group action by over 30,000 claimants against Easyjet in relation to a mass data breach involving financial and other data. Malcolm Sheehan KC represents Mercedes-Benz in other “dieselgate” litigation. Toby Riley-Smith KC is acting for Bayer plc in over a hundred claims being brought under the Consumer Protection Act 1987, alleging that the permanent contraceptive device Essure has caused them a range of different personal injuries.
London Bar > Product liability
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 1Prashant Popat KC –Henderson Chambers ‘Prashant is superb and nothing puts him off his stride. He is first class with clients who love his considered and measured style.’
Henderson Chambers is recognised as one of the pre-eminent sets in product liability claims and multi-party litigation. The chamber is experienced in leading unitary claims and group actions for injuries and losses caused by defective products such as PIP breast implants and metal on metal hips. Charles Gibson KC acts on major pharmaceutical cases, while Prashant Popat KC, Geraint Webb KC, Oliver Campbell KC and Malcolm Sheehan KC are other silks in chambers who are notable in group actions in this space.
London Bar > Inquests and inquiries
(Leading Silks)Ranked: Tier 2Prashant Popat KC – Henderson Chambers ‘A leading advocate for inquests and inquiries. He pays extraordinary attention to detail and is an expert in his field.’
Henderson Chambers is a ‘go-to set for inquests and inquiries‘. Members are well known for representing clients from the transport, manufacturing and construction sectors, to name a few areas. Prashant Popat KC is currently acting for Studio E Architects in the Grenfell Tower Inquiry; Oliver Campbell KC represented cladding manufacturer Siderise. Junior James Purnell represented BMW UK in an inquest into the death of a police officer whose car caught fire due to an engine fault. Abigail Cohen‘s practice includes cases touching on health and social care.