David Edwards KC
He has very good judgement on what arguments will work before an arbitration panel and is very calm and collected when new points or new documents come up at a hearing. His advocacy is very clear and compelling.'
Known as the ‘go-to’ for insurance cases, 7 King’s Bench Walk brings ’unparalleled bench-strength for insurance and reinsurance expertise’. The set's members often act on a wide array of cases spanning the insurance and reinsurance field. For the past few years, the set has been involved in some of the leading COVID-19 business interruptions and Russian aviation cases. The Russian aircaft litigation had 29 members of chambers involved, with among others taking leading roles Gavin Kealey KC acting for AIG. In another matter, Peter MacDonald Eggers KC is appeared in Hamilton Corporate Member Ltd v Afghan Global Insurance Ltd, which concerns a claim under the War Risks Policy for deprivation of use of property, namely a warehouse used to distribute food for the US military in Afghanistan. David Edwards KC handles Bermuda Form cases, and Timothy Kenefick is a name to note for his work on the Greensill Bank AG v Zurich Insurance case, a case that involves fraud allegations, various coverage issues, and non-disclosure and misrepresentation. Jason Robinson KC took silk in March 2025
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- 'Under Greg Leyden's visionary leadership, the clerks' room is very strong. Trusted with solicitors and clients, it is a client-focused, commercially savvy clerks' room, where the objective is to deliver the service clients want. '
- 'Top of their field for insurance and reinsurance work, housing some real stars.'
- '7KBW remains a leading insurance specialist with very good strength in depth'
- 'A leader in the field. Impressive and thorough barristers who are hot on the law.'
- ' 7KBW has unparalleled bench-strength for insurance and reinsurance expertise. It's pleasing to see chambers members acting for the full range of insurance market participants.'
- 'An impressive insurance set, both at the Silk and senior junior levels.'
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.
Peter MacDonald Eggers KC
‘Knowledge of jurisdictional disputes and reinsurance, calm and gentle manner. Responsive. Very persuasive advocate. Excellent with clients.’
Jonathan Gaisman KC
Very detailed preparation; clear vision; very clear in expressing himself, whether in court or Consultation. Hardly needs references after so long at the top.’
Siobán Healy KC
Strong communicator, brilliant and commanding advocate. A real team player and a pleasure to work with.'
Stephen Hofmeyr KC
Gavin Kealey KC
‘Ruthless cross-examiner and possibly the most charismatic, effective advocate at the London Bar. Exceptional silk who you can rely on to get results, and is more creative in his legal arguments than most. Gavin is the best insurance silk at the bar who punches well above the mark.'
Dominic Kendrick KC
Rebecca Sabben-Clare KC
‘Rebecca is especially strong on attachment and aggregation insurance coverage disputes.'
Alistair Schaff KC
‘Great strength in depth. A force to be reckoned with.'
Andrew Wales KC
‘He is very thorough and well thought through. A man of great intelligence whose legal analysis is excellent. Never misses a point.'
Richard Waller KC
James Brocklebank KC
‘James is exceptional. He is a go-to for a tricky coverage instruction. Not only does he provide thorough and well-reasoned legal advice, but he is also extremely user-friendly.’
Adam Fenton KC
Adam is very bright and extremely hardworking; nothing is too much trouble for Adam, and he always delivers. Great judgement- knows the English Commercial Court bench very well. Understated but effective, because he reads the room very accurately.'
Jawdat Khurshid KC
‘He is extremely user-friendly and responsive, and an excellent advocate. He had a very impressive handle on the complex and detailed quantum arguments in the cases and made very compelling submissions.'
David Bailey KC
‘He’s a calm but effective advocate, with an encyclopedic brain of insurance case law. An extremely charming, intelligent and strategically acute KC. A go-to KC.
Josephine Higgs KC
Jo is incredibly detailed and thoughtful in her approach. Her written advice is first-rate, clear, and digestible even when dealing with complicated, multi-faceted issues. In consultation, she is engaging and takes the time to work through in a careful, considered manner.’
Michael Holmes KC
Michael has unbeatable knowledge of the insurance and reinsurance market. Consistently a go-to leader for tricky insurance issues. Gets stuck in and is great with clients.'
Richard Southern KC
‘Very good judgment, pleasant courtroom demeanour, and on top of the details.'
Stephen Kenny KC
'Stephen is a great mind and is so vastly experienced in the world of insurance and maritime law. His advice is clear and persuasive, and he is a pleasure to work with.'
Noel Casey KC
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.
Jason Robinson KC
‘Jason is very impressive. He is prompt to respond and turns things around quickly, he is commercially-minded and gives clear advice. His drafting is succinct and persuasive, and he is all-around great to work with.’
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.
Sushma Ananda
‘Sushma is quite simply the cleverest and hardest-working barrister. She is all over the details but able to see the big picture. She is excellent with clients and in consultation.'
Sandra Healy
‘Sandra is an excellent barrister; she works very hard, she is knowledgeable, she has very good judgment, and she has an attractive advocacy style.'
Keir Howie
Timothy Kenefick
‘ Tim is an intelligent barrister who has very good judgement. Tim demonstrates an assured understanding of the issues in a case.'
Simon Kerr
‘A detail-oriented and forensic operator, Simon's written work is consistently excellent.'
Alexander MacDonald
Undoubtedly, Alex is the most capable senior junior to work with. His intelligence, clear communication skills, commitment and approachability are second to none, making him a go-to barrister for any complex insurance litigation. Alex has consistently demonstrated strong advocacy, both in written and oral form, and his contribution is highly sought and valued by all who work with him.’
Marcus Mander
Well-versed in handling complex insurance-related matters, including Bermuda Form disputes. Incredibly bright and creative in his legal analysis and thinking. Practical, efficient and a pleasure to work with. Marcus is a silk in the making!'
Benjamin Parker
‘Ben is super bright, has great attention to detail, and is collaborative.’
Jocelin Gale
‘Jocelin is highly knowledgeable of general insurance and reinsurance principles and practices and, importantly, very quick to understand and absorb particular and complex issues. He communicates very effectively and listens well when in discussion on technical subjects, essential when considering the application of related legal aspects and when pursuing persuasive legal arguments to a successful outcome.’
Anna Gotts
‘Anna is an extremely bright and capable barrister, with extensive knowledge and experience of insurance and reinsurance matters. Not only is she exceptionally good at identifying points that will appeal to the court, she is also able to deliver them in an easy, authoritative and persuasive way. Highly regarded and in demand, Anna works equally well on her own and as part of a larger team.’
Tim Jenns
‘He has an exceptional ability to quickly get on top of voluminous and complex material. He is extremely bright. He has great recall. He has a huge appetite for hard-work. He has first-class legal knowledge. He is also a good oral advocate, whether in making submissions or cross-examining witnesses.’
Elizabeth Lindesay
‘Liz is one of the very best insurance and reinsurance barristers. Her attention to detail and thoroughness are phenomenal, and her drafting is impeccable. She is incredibly bright and has a searching, forensic approach which produces excellent results. She is a pleasure to work with.'
Sarah Martin
‘A star at the bar. Exceptionally bright, detail-oriented, hard-working and practical. Great grasp of complex insurance issues and an absolute delight to work with. Well-liked by clients.'
Henry Moore
‘Henry's advocacy is very calm. He has a phenomenal memory, which makes him stand apart from his peers, especially on his feet. His written work is equally as good, concise and persuasive.'
Michael Ryan
Michael is technically excellent and has also first-rate judgment. He is also a compelling advocate and an excellent cross-examiner.'
Jessica Sutherland
'Excellent drafting, Great manner in court - judge's listen to her, A delight to work with, very bright.'
Harry Wright
'Harry is absolutely excellent, very responsive and great at cutting through complex areas.'
Clara Benn
‘Exceptional judgement and real common sense, combined with an acute legal mind. A fantastic team player and valuable support. Her written advocacy is clear, focused and effective.’
Daniel Corteville
‘Daniel is a very good and effective junior. He is intelligent, hard-working and delivers work of an excellent standard. He takes ownership of any task that is assigned to him, and his contributions are valued by more senior members of the counsel team.'
Stephen Du
‘Tremendously responsive and helpful with fine attention to detail. Extremely good.'
Emma Hilliard
‘Emma is incredibly bright and identifies the issues swiftly. She is very responsive and a pleasure to work with.'
Rebecca Jacobs
‘Rebecca is very responsive and approachable – it is very easy to establish a good working relationship. She provides good advice on tricky and novel areas of law, particularly orally.’
Richard Sarll
Frederick Alliott
Fred is intelligent, hard-working and easy to work with. His written work is of a very good standard, and he communicates clearly and confidently.'
John Bignall
Sarah Cowey
‘Intellectually strong, practical in advising, highly responsive and pleasant to work with.'
Douglas Grant
‘Doug is proactive, polite and sharp. He handled advocacy with unpretentious charm and confidence even when the cards were stacked against him.'
Ralph Morley
‘Ralph has encyclopedic knowledge of not only legal principles and developments, but also factual matters that inevitably bear on disputes. He has a keen sense for distilling key legal and factual points and honing in on the strengths of the relevant arguments. He is also extremely diligent and accessible, making him a pleasure to work with. He is a true star.'
Adam Turner
‘He is superb in every way, his written submissions are elegant, his advocacy is measured, to the point and persuasive, and he is brilliant at working with solicitors and other professionals. The best insurance junior at the bar.'
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.
James Bailey
‘James is very responsive and provided effective and meaningful support to leading counsel.’
Julia Gibbon
‘Julia demonstrates impressive legal insight and professionalism in every aspect of her work. Her thorough understanding of insurance law, combined with clear communication and a pragmatic approach, adds real value to every case. Sharp, responsive, and diligent, Julia is my go-to junior counsel for insurance-related instructions.'