Western Circuit
Pump Court Chambers has ‘a strong criminal team on the Western Circuit, with strength across all levels of call’. Sarah Jones KC represented a former Mayor of Winchester, who was acquitted of attempted murder after admitting to smothering his 92-year-old terminally ill mother on a telephone call to the emergency services. Rebecca Fairbairn who is ’a highly articulate and hard-working advocate’, successfully prosecuted a historic case of involving rape and sexual abuse of a child, with charges for offences both before and after the 2003 Sexual Offences Act 2003, securing a conviction and a 21-year sentence. Mark Ruffell has prosecuted a number of cases regarding organised crime in Portsmouth.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Mentions
Profile
Position
Mark Ruffell is a very experienced leading junior. His expertise covers three main areas: regulatory and disciplinary work; fraud and complex crime; and ecclesiastical law.
Mark Ruffell is head of chambers Regulatory & Disciplinary team. Mark’s broad regulatory expertise includes cases of director disqualification, planning enforcement, breaches of environmental legislation, licensing appeals, public inquiries before Traffic Commissioners and cases involving care homes before the Care Standards Tribunal. Mark’s broad disciplinary expertise includes appearing before major regulators of professional discipline and conduct. He is a legal adviser to the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC), the General Chiropractic Council (GCC) and the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CiLEX). He is a Disciplinary Panel member of the Taxation and Disciplinary Board.
He is regularly instructed in heavy weight criminal defence work and is also regularly instructed by the CPS as a grade 4 advocate. He has been instructed as Independent Counsel by the Serious Fraud Office.
Mark is instructed to represent Petitioners and Parties Opponent in Ecclesiastical Law cases. Mark is Deputy Chancellor of the Diocese of Winchester.
Career
Call 1992
Former member of a Licensing Authority’s Licensing Committee.
Member of Local authority crime and disorder panel from 2002-5.
Advisor to the Shadow Parliamentary Front Bench on Home Affairs from 1999-2001 (Mode of Trial Bill and Private Security Industry Bill).
Member of Local authority internal employment tribunal chairman from 1993-4.
Memberships
- Association of Regulatory and Disciplinary Lawyers
- Association of Road Transport Lawyers
- Criminal Bar Association
- Ecclesiastical Judges Association
- Ecclesiastical Law Society
- Western Circuit
Education
- Diploma in Law, University of Westminster
- Bachelor of Divinity (Hons), King’s College, London
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Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- ‘Pump Court Chambers has an efficient clerking team.'
- 'The clerks are very helpful and are approachable, which makes working with them a pleasure.'
- ‘Pump Court Chambers is the go-to set for a variety of clients.’
- ‘Pump Court Chambers is a friendly local set which provides a good service to the local CPS and defence solicitors.’
- ‘Pump Court Chambers is a well-known and respected set on the western circuit.’
- ‘Pump Court Chambers is a top quality and go-to set.’