What we do
Crime – Immigration – General civil
Our strength lies in our diversity: we are a common law set of chambers in the truest sense of that term, and deliberately so. It is our experience that real cases very often do not observe the fine niceties of the distinctions that are frequently drawn between different areas of legal practice, so that true proficiency in one area requires sound knowledge (and often experience) of others. For example, some members of chambers are regularly briefed in cases involving immigration-related crime, combining two superficially distinct areas of practice in which we have particular expertise. There are also, of course, many cases where the involvement of multiple areas of law is not apparent until after counsel is instructed. Additionally, for our more junior members who practise in civil law, their criminal practices expose them to far greater experience of live advocacy than barristers of equivalent seniority who practise civil law exclusively.
We are not, however, a set of Jacks-of-all-trades: more senior members of chambers invariably develop particular expertise in certain areas, whilst often still maintaining a broader general practice. For example, two members of chambers are leading specialists in prosecuting drink-drive cases in which the defence challenge the reliability of the breath-testing equipment, whilst each retaining a busy general practice. Even those members who do practise in a narrower field have available to in chambers them a wealth of knowledge from those who practise in other areas.
Those areas in which we have particular expertise are:
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Crime Members of chambers prosecute and defend in all kinds of criminal cases, from road traffic offences in Magistrates' Courts to serious sexual and violent offences in the Crown Court. A number of members of chambers also have expertise in criminal appeals. |
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Immigration Members of chambers regularly appear before adjudicators and the Immigration Appeals Tribunal, and are often briefed in the higher courts. We have experience in both entry-clearance and asylum cases, as well as in addressing the human rights issues that such cases tend often to raise. |
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General (civil) common law Our common law work includes personal injury, housing (both public and private), consumer and personal contract, holiday law, road traffic/credit hire and miscellaneous torts. Some members of chambers have particular expertise in civil cases involving allegations of criminality. |
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In addition to our principal areas of expertise, individual members of chambers also practise in: family; employment; public law; criminal injuries; and licensing.