Denise Breen-Lawton KC > St Pauls Chambers > Leeds, England > Barrister Profile
St Pauls Chambers Offices
Park Row House, 19-20 Park Row
LEEDS
LS1 5JF
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Denise Breen-Lawton KC
Work Department
Head of Chambers
Position
Denise Breen-Lawton KC is an experienced terrorism, homicide, fraud and organised crime Barrister, and acts both for the Defence and Prosecution in cases of the most complex and serious nature.
Denise was elected Joint Head of Chambers in September 2022, alongside Sam Green KC. She is the first ever female head of chambers at St Pauls. She is also the first ever female criminal silk to come from St Pauls Chambers. Coming from a humble background and state school educated, she was the first in her family to attend university and can therefore easily communicate with, and relate to, people from all backgrounds. She was the only person on her Business Management degree to achieve a First Class Honours and was made a Master of the Bench at Gray’s Inn before taking silk. She is on the management, elections, and equality and diversity committees in her role as a Bencher and is Master of the library.
Lawyer Rankings
Regional Bar > North Eastern Circuit > Crime (general and fraud)
(2024 Silks)Ranked: Tier 1Denise Breen-Lawton KC – St Paul’s Chambers ‘Denise is a truly exceptional advocate. Her mastery of complex and vast cases is second only to her ability to convey the same to a jury in a clear, digestible and persuasive manner. She is a dogged defender; you would want her in your corner if you were in trouble.’
St Pauls Chambers is ‘a very experienced criminal law chambers with significant talent at every level‘. In a prominent work highlight, Nick Worsley KC successfully defended a man who was acquitted of both murder and attempted murder after his brother-in-law was stabbed; the defendant had been jointly charged with his father. Sam Green KC‘s recent caseload includes prosecuting in high-profile murders; he acts as joint head of chambers with newly appointed silk Denise Breen-Lawton KC, who is ‘extremely impressive‘ and has an excellent reputation for handling complex fraud work, terrorism cases, and serious sexual offences, to name a few areas. Helen Chapman is ‘very poised‘ and ‘a great trial tactician‘. The senior end of the team was also bolstered by the elevation of James Bourne-Arton KC to silk in the 2024 round.