Mark Garside > Chambers of Richard Pratt KC > Liverpool, England > Barrister Profile

Mark Garside

Work Department

Civil and Family Departments

Career

Call: 1993

Membership: Family Law Bar Association

Practice Areas

 

Family

Mr Garside represents Local Authorities, parents and children in child care cases. He has been involved in cases involving long standing neglect, serious NAI and sexual abuse including multi week cases.

Mr Garside has practiced in all aspects of family law relating to children, both public law and private law proceedings. For his entire career both in Liverpool and previously at St Philips Chambers in Birmingham where he was a colleague of both David Hershman QC and McDonald J, Mr Garside has mostly been instructed by Local Authorities but  also represents parents and children.

Mr Garside also acts in Private Law Children work including all types of section 8 applications, international child abduction, lengthy fact finding hearings. Whilst at his previous chambers he was regularly instructed by NYAS in private law proceedings.

Mr Garside has particular experience in dealing with cases involving non accidental injuries and has appeared before the high court as well as at Circuit and District Judge level.

 

 

Civil

Personal Injury primarily RTA and EL cases both fast track and multi track and also Stage 3 hearings.

Mr Garside has some experience of industrial disease cases.

He has appeared in all courts up to and including the Court of Appeal .

Mr Garside primarily acts for defendants but he does act for claimants and is prepared to accept CFA work.

Mr Garside is a good communicator, both approachable and helpful in all his dealings with any instructing solicitor and this is the approach that he intends to maintain. He is confident that the Judges feel they can rely on him to conduct himself as an advocate appearing before them and believes he is an approachable advocate. He has regularly lectured on family law particularly when he was a member of the Midland Circuit.

 

Notable cases

 

• LCC -V- T and A. This was a fact of finding hearing into allegations of historic sex abuse against the father with only one alleged victim prepared to give evidence. All findings were proved.

 

• LCC -V- R. This is an on going salt poisoning case which should be listed for hearing before the end of the year.

 

•  LCC -V-R and M. This case involved a young baby who had suffered fractures to her clavicle, severable ribs, bilateral subdural haemorrhages and a torn frenulum. Both parents were in the frame. Mr Garside was instructed to seek findings preferably  against the father. All injuries were found to have been caused by the father. The mother was exonerated.

 

• Mr Garside was instructed by another local authority in a four week fact find. Findings were made against the mother and her boyfriend at the conclusion of proceedings .

 

•  LCC -v- C, F and K. This was a particularly testing case conducted in front of Russell J. Care orders were made in relation to all children as well as a deprivation of liberty order in relation to the eldest child.

 

• A local authority v W. An application for anticipatory declaratory relief in the Hight Court relating to an unborn child.