‘A leading competition law set with superior skills through all levels of seniority’, Monckton Chambers operates at the forefront of high profile competition cases, including antitrust, class actions and public undertakings. Anneli Howard KC is ’considered one of the top silks at the competition Bar’ and has successfully represented Foundem against tech giant Google in multiple CMCs. George Peretz KC successfully acted on behalf of the Civil Aviation Authority concerning appeals regarding Heathrow Airport’s charges to airlines, while Josh Holmes KC defends Google in a £7bn collective action alleging anti-competitive practices in relation to mobile searches. In January 2024, Daniel Beard KC led Daisy Mackersie before the CAT in Le Patourel v BT, the first opt-out class action to reach trial and having potentially significant implications for the UK collective proceedings regime. Ronit Kreisberger KC acts for the claimant in Cabo v MGA, a complex abuse of dominance and collusion claim which raises difficult questions at the intersection of competition and IP law.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- 'The clerks at Monckton Chambers are excellent. They are always helpful and go the extra mile to assist you.'
- 'The clerks are second to none.'
- 'Chris O'Brien is commercial, diligent, responsive and ever helpful; you feel like a priority.'
- 'Clerks are approachable, helpful and commercial.'
- 'Monckton has consistently been a top flight set in competition law matters.'
- 'Monckton remains the go-to chambers for leading competition barristers across the call. They remain highly in demand in this space.'
- 'Monckton is excellent, with every barrister being at the cutting edge of their field, with in depth technical knowledge and tactical thought.'
- 'Mockton Chambers is one of the leading competition law sets. It has strength in depth and is an outstanding set.'
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.
Mark Brealey KC
‘Mark is undoubtedly at the top of the competition litigation Bar. His knowledge of the law is impressive, his written advocacy is straight forward and persuasive. Mark’s oral advocacy is understated but he has an uncanny ability to alight upon the most persuasive and important points.’
Paul Harris KC
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Josh Holmes KC
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Ronit Kreisberger KC
Ronit is a fantastic advocate, meticulously well prepared and knows everything there is to know about European and competition law. She holds her own at any level.'
Philip Moser KC
Meredith Pickford KC
Meredith is clear, persistent and a persuasive advocate. He is masterful on his feet, highly strategic, quick thinking and responsive.’
Jon Turner KC
‘Jon is second-to-none on his feet and works incredibly hard as hearings approach.’
Tim Ward KC
‘Tim is a sleeves rolled-up lawyer who gets stuck in to the detail of a case. He is effective, pragmatic and never loses sight of the overall commercial objectives. As an advocate he is persuasive and very effective.’
Michael Bowsher KC
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Gerry Facenna KC
‘Gerry is very user friendly, fearsomely clever and calm and confident even when under the most extraordinary pressure.’
George Peretz KC
‘He's great as a strategist, has a superb understanding of the law and fully reliable as an adviser on complex instructions. George is a go-to KC on complex subsidy control matters.'
Kassie Smith KC
‘Kassie is an understated but brutally effective advocate. She has a knack for finding the killer point.’
Anneli Howard KC
‘Anneli is rightfully considered one of the top silks at the competition Bar. She is a phenomenal advocate who understands competition law better than anyone, and is one of the hardest working and most charming silks to work with.’
Robert Palmer KC
‘Robert is a truly outstanding advocate who is able to quickly distil complex information into comprehensible points.’
Rob Williams KC
‘Rob has extremely strong strategic instincts, and a very subtle mind. He sees to the heart of issues and anticipates the court’s response very well. He is also an excellent advocate who presents very calmly and makes arguments which are difficult sound like simple common sense.’
2023 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.
Ben Lask KC
Ben has moved seamlessly into silk. His advocacy is a real iron fist in a velvet glove and he is also very collegiate. One to watch in this area for sure.'
2024 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.
Brendan McGurk KC
‘Brendan is very thorough knowledgeable of competition law; very strategic; extremely pragmatic and excellent with clients.’
Philip Woolfe KC
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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.
Alan Bates
Alan is concise, thorough, drafts well and is able to convey complex point in a clear and unassuming way. He is extremely knowledgeable and has a very practical and effective way of advising. He also has a great way with judges.'
James Bourke
Ben Rayment
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Anneliese Blackwood
'Excellent drafting, clearly cuts through complex issues, responsive and turns drafts quickly. Anneliese offers good strategic insights and is a pleasure to work with.'
Julian Gregory
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Nikolaus Grubeck
‘Nik combines the top-line technical expertise in competition which you would expect from Monckton, with deep experience and feel for public law issues. He is a future star, particularly in merger control cases, and great to work with.’
Laura Elizabeth John
Daisy Mackersie
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Julianne Kerr Morrison
Michael Armitage
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Fiona Banks
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Alison Berridge
‘Alison is an absolute go-to for anything competition-related. She is incredibly bright, and her strategic nous is second to none.'
David Gregory
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Stefan Kuppen
‘Stefan is an excellent barrister to work with. He is thoughtful in everything he does and his judgement on how things will end up is very strong. He is able break down complex issues so that they can be understood and dealt with. Absolutely someone who you want on your side.’
Alexandra Littlewood
‘Alexandra is delightful to work with – extremely conscientious and thorough, and drafts beautifully.’
Ciar McAndrew
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Conor McCarthy
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Ligia Osepciu
‘Ligia is a great team player - she works really well and collaboratively with the solicitor team; rolls her sleeves up and can work expertly through technical and dense information at speed, making judgment calls which demonstrate clarity of thought about the case strategy.’
Jack Williams
‘A first class junior - really takes ownership of the case and gives it his all. Powerful strategic judgement.’
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.
Antonia Fitzpatrick
Antonia is brilliant. She works exceptionally hard and drafts clear and compelling written submissions. She conducts a simply brilliant cross-examination of difficult witnesses with a skill that belies her recent call. She is a real star of the future.'
Will Perry
Will is a very strong advocate, who understands the technical and economic detail of complex competition matters, but is able to make it simple for the client and court.'