Edmund Beever
‘Ed is calm and always prepared. He grasps the issues and deals with curve balls too. Ed is also measured, tenacious and effective in terms of his advocacy style.’
St Philips Chambers is widely praised as ‘a strong chambers with good availability at both senior and junior levels’ in respect of employment law specialists. The team, led by Edmund Beever, has considerable combined experience representing large private employers, private individuals, and public sectors clients like NHS trusts and local authorities. Beever’s recent highlights include his representation of Nottinghamshire County Council in connection with a claim for religious discrimination by a Christian teacher dismissed for accessing a gender-questioning child's safeguarding report. Sophie Garner, ‘an excellent lawyer with a very personable and positive approach’, has a strong track record handling discrimination and whistleblowing cases. Anthony Johnston is known for his ‘sharp and methodical’ advocacy style. He recently acted for the respondent in Pipe v Coventry University Higher Education in relation to a claim of age and disability discrimination brought by an individual with ADHD and insomnia, a former BBC journalist teaching at the university but without a PhD, who alleged that the university’s framework for academic progression unlawfully discriminated against neurodivergent and/or older applicants.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- 'Janita Patel is always very helpful and goes out of her way to assist.'
- 'The clerks' room gets an 11 out of 10 - the clerks are always available to help reserve a barrister and/or put you in touch with a barrister if you want to sense check.'
- 'The clerks are fantastic! Nothing is ever too much trouble for them. They have an impressive ability to deliver quick, efficient, and responsive emails. They always respond promptly to instructions, very often being able to successfully accommodate very last minute requests.'
- 'St Philips is brilliant - a go-to set. The clerks are also very accessible.'
- 'This chambers is responsive and competitive with a selection of highly skilled barristers.'
- 'St Philips is a strong chambers with good availability at both senior and junior levels. It is also competitively priced.'
Lawyers
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.
Sophie Garner
‘Sophie knows the law inside out, is very well organised and focuses on the key points, to ensure the best possible outcome. Sophie’s advocacy is excellent. Sophie often comes up against KCs and is perfectly at ease responding to the points raised and matches them easily in skill and gravitas.’
Elizabeth Hodgetts
Patrick Keith
‘Patrick is excellent at plainly summarising complex legal issues and cutting to the heart of claims. He is also excellent at making both oral and written submissions and in his client manner.’
Mirza Ahmad
‘Mirza has a sound grasp of the facts in complex cases as well as strong advocacy skills.’
Julie Duane
‘Julie is very client friendly and provides advice in a concise and succinct manner, making it easy for individual clients to understand. She is accomplished in managing client expectations and is a very capable advocate before employment judges.’
Anthony Johnston
‘Anthony is excellent with clients and has an easy manner generally. His advocacy is top class and is sharp and methodical.’
Alexander Rozycki
‘Alexander does a great job on complex matters, cutting through to the key issues in his written submissions. He is responsive and proactive in advising on how best to manage cases and prepare for the final hearing.’
Petar Starcevic
Colin Baran
‘Colin is an exceptional advocate with particular strength at cross-examination. He is very adept at picking holes in witness testimony.’
Jonathan Heard
Paul Wilson
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.
Francis Mortin
‘Francis always provides a first-class service. He goes above and beyond the call of duty to assist solicitors and their clients. Francis demonstrates professionalism, expertise, attention to detail and unwavering dedication to clients. He is also highly knowledgeable, quick to grasp the facts and has the ability to see solutions.'