‘A “go to” set for complex commercial disputes’, 3 Verulam Buildings‘ members continue to act in complex, high-value cases across multiple jurisdictions, appearing before all levels of the English courts and international tribunals. Ewan McQuater KC is ’an expert cross-examiner‘ with established expertise in handling banking litigation, which is also a key area of strength for Adrian Beltrami KC. Among the juniors, Richard Hanke is ’technically superb‘, with an excellent track record in handling a broad spectrum of commercial disputes, and Can Yeğinsu’s ‘knowledge of commercial law is both broad and deep; what truly distinguishes him is his extraordinary talent for litigation strategy’. William Edwards KC took silk in March 2025, and Timothy Killen joined the team in October 2025.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • 'Stuart Pullum is very experienced. He understands the market inside out, is solutions oriented and runs an incredible practice.'
  • 'Joe Brown and Stuart Pullum are excellent. They are consistently responsive, helpful, and highly competent. '
  • 'Joe Brown and Stuart Pullum provide instrumental assistance and are highly accommodating of clients requests.'
  • 'The service provided by the clerks’ room is consistently excellent.'
  • 'Exceptional in the field of commercial litigation.'
  • 'The set is outstanding in every respect, remarkable strength in depth, consistently high-calibre counsel, and a well-earned reputation for excellence in complex commercial and international disputes.'

Lawyers

Leading Silks

KCs at the very top of their field, with a long-established record of market-defining cases, and widespread endorsement from clients and peers. All silks appointed in the last two rounds are listed further below.

1
Adrian Beltrami KC
‘Adrian is a highly intelligent, deeply impressive lawyer, who has the ear of Commercial Court judges. He is always well-prepared and has a calm, assured demeanour in court.’
1
Ali Malek KC
‘Ali’s written and oral advocacy is devastatingly effective and persuasive.' 
1
Ewan McQuater KC
‘Ewan is extremely hard working and dedicated to the case. His unflappable demeanour and calm advice make him a pleasure to work with.'
2
Andrew Onslow KC
‘A titan of the commercial Bar.’
3
Jonathan Davies-Jones KC
‘Jonathan is measured, calm, assertive and sure-footed. He has particular strength in complex financial analyses and presentation.'
3
Peter De Verneuil Smith KC
‘Very persuasive as advocate, nimble to answer questions, guides the judge through the material.’
3
David Head KC
‘David is excellent in court and with clients. Gives very sensible advice and a powerful advocate.’
3
Hodge Malek KC
‘A first-class black-letter lawyer, combined with a profound understanding of international business and excellent strategic vision.'
3
Jonathan Nash KC
‘Jonathan combines advocacy excellence with an ability to manage the diverse demands outside court in class actions.’
3
David Quest KC
3
Richard Salter KC
'Very effective advice.'
4
John Jarvis KC
4
Andrew Sutcliffe KC
‘Andrew combines impressive intelligence and expertise with a very friendly and collaborative approach. His advocacy is charming and persuasive.'
5
Matthew Hardwick KC
‘Clear, commercial, pragmatic advice.  Fantastic advocate.'
5
Adam Kramer KC
‘An outstanding silk who has a demonstrated track record of success and should be considered for any heavyweight matter.’
5
Rajesh Pillai KC
‘Responsive, commercial, user-friendly. Graceful and persuasive style without pomposity.’
6
Nicholas Craig KC
'
6
Andrew Fletcher KC
'Measured and commercially astute advice. He is able to distil complicated issues down to understandable concepts.'
6
Christopher Harris KC
‘Excellent advocate, clear and intelligent.'  
6
Farhaz Khan KC
  'User-friendly, willing to roll his sleeves up, pragmatic and strategic. '
6
Matthew Parker KC
  'Very personable, good at explaining things to us and the client. Matt has a charming and personable manner. His written style is clear and importantly he is a fearless advocate who is also not afraid to give negative advice if required.'
6
Jamie Riley KC
‘Jamie is excellent on his feet, and his written advocacy is impeccable. He explains complex concepts so clearly and adeptly.'

2025 Silks

KCs at the very top of their field, with a long-established record of market-defining cases, and widespread endorsement from clients and peers. All silks appointed in the last two rounds are listed further below.

1
William Edwards KC
‘William is incredibly bright and is very quick to get on top of any issue thrown at him.’

Leading Juniors

Leading juniors are those with significant experience of key cases, strong market recognition from both peers and clients, and are seen as future candidates for silk.

2
Richard Hanke
‘Richard is one of the very best juniors. He has excellent analytical skills, he is a superb draftsman, and his work is of the very highest standard.'
2
George McPherson
‘George is an outstanding barrister, he is calm under pressure and is brilliant with clients.'
2
Can Yeginsu
‘Can has a stellar reputation and is held in high esteem in the community. He has an impressive combination of true public international law expertise and commercial nous that make him a versatile and persuasive advocate.’
3
Philip Hinks
‘Philip has amazing attention to detail, his advice is always clear and precise and he is very responsive and user-friendly. He is a great senior junior.'
3
Timothy Killen
‘Timothy is extremely knowledgeable about the law, as well as being excellent at thinking through problems and providing sensible solutions.’
3
Lisa Lacob
‘It is a revelation working with Lisa – she is everything you would look for in a commercial barrister.’
3
James McWilliams
‘James has a robust, compelling and succinct style, and a level of gravitas and authority beyond his years of call.'
4
Anne Jeavons
‘Anne is a first rate junior. She is very hard working, with good legal knowledge and excellent judgement.'
4
Hannah Glover
Hannah is an excellent lawyer with a strongly analytical approach. Her written advocacy is clear and compelling.’
5
Chloë Bell
5
Yash Bheeroo
‘Excellent advocate, clear and intelligent.'
5
Christopher Bond
‘Chris has a great thoughtful attitude, and is excellent with clients and witnesses.'
5
Christopher Burdin
‘Christopher is truly exceptional, an outstanding lawyer and phenomenally hard-working.'
5
Cleon Catsambis
‘Cleon is incredibly personable and easy to work with. His flexible commercial approach reflects client needs.'
5
Georges Chalfoun
‘A superb barrister, far beyond his call, with an enormous capacity for factual analysis.’
5
William Day
‘Will is a pleasure to work with due to his commercial focused advice and drafting.'
5
Charlotte Eborall
‘She combines her excellent legal analysis and attention to detail to give clients sensible commercial advice.'
5
Ryan Ferro
Ryan is an excellent commercial litigator - his legal analysis is meticulous, and he is a natural strategist - always three steps ahead. His advocacy is incisive and masterful - an absolute treat to watch on his feet. Most of all, Ryan is a gentleman and a scholar - he is user-friendly, approachable, and really puts clients at ease.'
5
Judy Fu
‘She is brilliant, supportive and just a fantastic junior.’
5
Kate Holderness
‘Kate is very diligent, and is an impressive advocate.'
5
Ravi Jackson
Ravi is an up-and-coming junior of outstanding potential. Quietly superb, he is a delight to work with – extremely hard-working, fiercely intelligent, brilliant on paper and a polished advocate.’
5
Dominic Kennelly
Dominic is collected, committed and extremely hard working. His grasp of detail is immense and he has an excellent feel for complex issues and how to handle them.'
5
Alexia Knight
‘Alexia is a superb advocate and her advice is always clear, robust and commercial.'
5
Liisa Lahti
‘Liisa is a superb junior. Extremely clever, and is a fearless advocate to be reckoned with.'
5
Ian McDonald
‘Ian is going from strength to strength at the Bar and is quickly establishing himself as one of the best juniors. His written style is clear and to-the-point, as is his treatment and assessment of the evidence.’
5
Anthony Pavlovich
'Brilliant intellect and attention to detail. Forceful advocate.'
5
James Potts
‘Excellent—clever, diligent, good-humoured, quick and reliable. An exceptional junior.'
5
Saaman Pourghadiri
‘An excellent junior for the most technically demanding cases. He is a strong advocate, with a good courtroom manner and a very strong sense of when to press a point and when to move on.’
5
Peter Ratcliffe
‘Peter has an incredible attention to detail, and was able to effectively absorb a huge amount of documents and information in a very short amount of time. He is excellent at managing difficult client and solicitor demands in challenging circumstances.'
5
Emmanuel Sheppard
‘A very creative junior who is able to approach a problem from angles others wouldn't consider.'
5
Victor Steinmetz
 'Very able, talented and strategic junior who is both hardworking and multi-lingual. Has international experience both in Europe, the Middle East and the Far East.'
5
Mark Wassouf
‘Mark is incredibly intelligent, diligent and an excellent cross-examiner. He is also very personable and focused on delivering the best outcome for his clients.'
5
Rebecca Zaman
‘Rebecca is excellent. She is extremely clever and has an extraordinary ability to come up with creative solutions to the most difficult problems and a knack of finding the killer point.'

Rising stars

Rising stars at the Bar are defined as barristers between four and eight years’ call who are seen as up-and-coming members of the Bar in their respective practice areas by clients and peers alike. They will already be instructed in high-profile, complex, and high-value contentious and non-contentious matters, working with and opposite more experienced leading counsel.

1
Emma Hughes
‘She is incredibly detailed in her analysis and has a cool and calm style that is great with clients and assists in the resolution of disputes..’
1
Clarissa Jones
‘Clarissa is great to work with, she's incredibly bright and able to delve into the detail of a case without losing sight of the big picture. .’
1
Chinmayi Sharma
 'Chinmayi's legal analysis is exceptional, but what stands out is her ability to apply that expertise practically, with full appreciation of the commercial context and the client's goals. She works flawlessly as part of a team, but has no hesitation in advocating for her independent views,