Ms Hannah Phoenix > Chambers of Richard Chapman KC > Manchester, England > Barrister Profile

Ms Hannah Phoenix

0161 278 1800 family@18sjs.com

Position

Hannah joined Chambers in September 2017 having successfully completed a family law pupillage under the supervision of Rehana Begum. She swiftly built a thriving practice in Public and Private Law. In 2018 Hannah took a sabbatical from Chambers to work as a Judicial Assistant in the Court of Appeal for 10 months.

Public Law

Hannah has a busy Public Law practice. She has represented parents, Local Authorities and children at all stages of public law proceedings. She has become accustomed to advising Local Authorities from the pre-proceedings stage through to the issuing of proceedings, including drafting threshold documents and case summaries. She has been instructed to act in multi-day hearings for parents and Local Authorities, including those involving non-accidental injury, domestic violence, substance misuse, and those in which both interpreters and intermediaries are required.

Private Law

Hannah has also gained experience in Private Law proceedings and applications under the Family Law Act 1996. She has represented both Applicants and Respondents in such proceedings, as well as the children, including those in which there are serious allegations made against one or more parties.

Background and other experience

Prior to joining Chambers, Hannah worked at a magic circle law firm as a paralegal. She worked on a number of large commercial transactions undertaking tasks such as due diligence and document review. In particular she became experienced in the drafting and reviewing of non-disclosure agreements and undertook a client secondment. Further to this, Hannah gained family law experience and through her time spent outdoor clerking for a firm of Lancashire solicitors.

More recently Hannah has taken a sabbatical from Chambers to spend 10 months working in the Court of Appeal as a Judicial Assistant. During this time she was stationed at the Royal Courts of Justice and assigned to the President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane and Lord Justice Peter Jackson. Her role involved assisting with the preparation of cases both in the High Court and the Court of Appeal, through analysis of case papers, conducting legal research and drafting case summaries. She has also had the opportunity of observing appeals and hearings, thus gaining experience of high quality advocacy, as well as an in depth knowledge of the appellate system. Further to this, Hannah also provided some secretariat assistance to the Private Law Working Group chaired by Mr Justice Cobb.