Guy Williams KC


Guy specialises in planning, environmental, transport and infrastructure, compulsory purchase and rating law. Prior to taking silk, Guy was a member of the Attorney General’s “A” Panel of junior counsel. Guy won the award for ‘Planning and Land Use Junior of the Year’ at the 2022 Legal 500 UK Bar Awards.


Guy appears very regularly at planning inquiries in relation to all kinds of development. He acts for developers, local authorities, public bodies and interest groups and has a wide experience of appeals, called-in applications, enforcement matters and compulsory purchase inquiries. This year he has appeared at numerous housing inquiries for local authorities and developers. These focused on issues as to housing land supply and the consequences for development plan policies, OAN, countryside and strategic gap policies, transport and sustainability impacts, and Green Belt. He also promoted the Brent Cross CPOs. Other inquiries this year include the promotion of a new school in the Green Belt, gypsy and traveller sites, and enabling development proposals in the setting of grade 1 listed buildings.


Guy also specialises in judicial review and statutory challenges relating to planning and local government in the higher courts.


Guy has an extensive practice in all matters relating to compulsory purchase, from advising acquiring authorities and developers on strategy and promoting CPOS, to all matters of compensation arising from compulsory acquisition.


Guy is also a member of the panel of counsel appointed to advise GLAl/TfL on matters of compulsory purchase and compensation.


Guy is a member of the Planning and Environmental Bar Association (PEBA), the Compulsory Purchase Association (CPA) and the United Kingdom Environmental Law Association (UKELA).


He is an assistant editor of the Encyclopedia of Planning Law.


Alex Goodman KC


Alex’s expertise is wide-ranging encompassing planning, environment, local government, human rights, and immigration; as well as specialising in a number of areas including village greens, trafficking, social security, discrimination, constitutional law and civil claims for damages. He acts for claimants, local and central government; developers, NGOs.


Alex has been a member of the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s ‘A’ panel since May 2019. He wrote the Atkins Court Forms edition on Common Land and Village Greens. Alex helped found Rights: Community: Action a campaign group concerned with Climate Change. Medical Justice, a charity working with immigration detainees (of which he was chair for five years) and a human rights NGO Kindred which he helped establish initially to organise advice to migrants in Northern France during a career break 2015-2018. Alex is a former councillor at the London Borough of Camden. Alex was awarded the Outstanding Achievement award at the 2021 Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year. The Brook House Inquiry, which Alex had a significant involvement in, was awarded as ‘Highly Commended’ for the Halsbury Rule of Law Award at the LexisNexis UK 2023 Awards.


Regarding planning and environmental law, examples of his recent inquiry work include acting for a local authority in a local plan inquiry, on a planning appeal for the Department of Education and for a hotel developer. Alex has acted in relation to numerous major infrastructure projects concerning rail, road and energy, and has extensive experience in the higher courts. He has also been involved in notable recent cases related to climate change.


Alex specialises in all aspects of local government law, including some niches such as elections, village greens, information law and footpaths.


Alex has a broad practice encompassing all aspects of public law, human rights, immigration law, civil liberties, refugee law, trafficking, deportation, detention, human rights, asylum support and benefits. Alex has acted in leading cases on immigration law, particularly in test cases challenging government policies. His work often relates to civil and human rights of immigrants and minorities; to social security; and discrimination. He has acted in some of the most significant test cases over the past few years, such as R (ST and VW) v SSHD [2021] 1 W.L.R. 6047; R (AB) v SSHD [2022] EWHC 1524 (Admin); and R (DMA and Others) v SSHD [2021] 2 W.L.R. 2374. Morever, Alex acted as adviser to the production of The Real Mo Farah in relation to the complex issues around trafficking and immigration law.