Chambers Review

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Crime - London (Bar)

2
Band 2

What the Team is Known For

5KBW is home to "barristers of the highest quality, who deal with high-profile cases on a regular basis." Indeed, they handle criminal cases of any type, whatever the level of seriousness. Major matters relating to organised crime, murder and terrorism are undertaken amidst the usual diet of general crime, and members boast further skill in commercial criminal cases and regulatory work. They have particular expertise in sexual offences cases, including historic sex crimes. Their recent matters include the prosecution of Daniel Khalife, who was convicted of espionage and terrorism offences.

Strengths

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Notable Practitioners

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Mark A. Heywood
Mark A. Heywood
Star Individuals

Esteemed former First Senior Treasury Counsel Mark Heywood KC maintains a standout criminal practice and is expert in terrorism, homicide and organised crime cases, to name but a few. He is no stranger to the most serious, highly publicised cases of the day and is a man of great experience.

Mark Heywood is one of the best lawyers in the field.

He is a tremendous barrister.

He is in the absolute upper echelon of silks. You walk into a courtroom with him and people think they need to think four times before opening their mouths.

Heywood is superb.

He got a great result and the client loved him. He is a superstar, he is seriously smart.

Sarah Forshaw
Sarah Forshaw
Star Individuals

Sarah Forshaw KC is a dedicated silk who has acted in all manner of serious cases including those relating to murders and drug importation offences. She is especially renowned for her expertise in defending those charged with sexual offences, in particular historic sexual offences. Forshaw also regularly defends high-net-worth individuals.

Forshaw has the perfect blend of legal excellence, first-class advocacy and tactical genius with timeless elegance.

She is simply the best KC at the Bar for a sexual offence case.

Sarah Forshaw KC can achieve outcomes others can only dream of.

She is persuasive on her feet.

Sarah is an excellent cross-examiner, really good on the law and an excellent tactician.

Louise Oakley
1
Louise Oakley
1
Band 1

Louise Oakley regularly prosecutes serious criminal cases at the Old Bailey as Senior Treasury Counsel. She has a wealth of experience handling the full spectrum of criminal offences, including murder and sex crimes.

Louise Oakley has a great reputation at the criminal Bar and is known for dealing with heavyweight and complex cases.

Her strategy was just second to none. She is hugely impressive too.

Oakley does an amazing level of preparation and is really good in court. She is in a league of her own.

Anthony Orchard
2
Anthony Orchard
2
Band 2

Anthony Orchard KC specialises in prosecuting criminal cases and is a regular at the Old Bailey. He has particular expertise in cases involving organised crime and homicide.

Anthony Orchard has a stellar reputation.

Anthony is a class act to watch.

He is very much at the top of his game.

Catherine Pattison
2
Catherine Pattison
2
Band 2

Junior Treasury Counsel Catherine Pattison is a well-reputed practitioner with a varied body of criminal work. She has noteworthy experience in serious and complex cases, which often relate to murder, sexual offences and organised crime.

It is hard to find someone who works harder. Her level of preparation is phenomenal.

She is a powerhouse.

Pattison does great and high-quality work.

Jonathan Higgs
2
Jonathan Higgs
2
Band 2

Jonathan Higgs KC is an established criminal silk who specialises in offences of homicide, serious and organised criminal activity and cases that involve serious fraud, money-laundering and tax evasion. He has extensive experience appearing before the appellate courts and is regularly instructed in high-profile criminal trials, including cases concerning multi-defendant homicide and gang murder.

Intelligent, methodical and fearless.

Charlotte Newell
3
Charlotte Newell
3
Band 3

She is very good at the helm of large prosecution cases.

Newell is very proactive. She has a lovely manner with clients and is great in court.

She is a fair and formidable opponent, with a nice, pleasant style of advocacy. She is really impressive.

Charlotte is very thorough, very firm and is very disarming in her cross-examining. She is very effective.

Danny Robinson
3
Danny Robinson
3
Band 3

Danny is down to earth and clever. He gets to the point really quickly. Judges like him.

William Davis
3
William Davis
3
Band 3

He has great advocacy and is very well prepared. He works so hard.

William Davis is a formidable opponent. He is diligent, skilful, determined and scrupulously fair.

He has gravitas and he is unfazed by anything.

William Davis knows his brief and did a very good job. He cross-examined very capably.

David Osborne
4
David Osborne
4
Band 4

David Osborne is strategically astute and has a captivating presence in the courtroom.

He is very strong all round.

Osborne has huge experience, great judgement and is a great advocate. He knows how to prepare a case. He is a one-stop shop and can do it all.

Natasha Wong
4
Natasha Wong
4
Band 4

Calm and polite, yet also steely, she is hugely effective. She has a lovely manner with juries and judges really trust her.

Rupert Kent
4
Rupert Kent
4
Band 4

He has top communication skills, is very persuasive and excellent with juries, clients and judges.

Kent is very calm, very smooth and well thought through, which are very attractive to the jury. He works incredibly hard and is really effective.

Rupert Kent was seriously impressive with his performance in front of the jury.

He is a very high-level prosecutor.

4
Valeria Swift
4
Band 4

She is fantastic and someone who has a serious criminal practice.

Swift is great, impressive and assimilates the information very well.

Valeria gets really good results for us. She is really good with clients and makes them feel very confident about the advice they are receiving.

She is very good with vulnerable witnesses.

Ben Holt
5
Ben Holt
5
Band 5

Ben Holt is an excellent lawyer; he has got a smoothness to him and is very impressive.

Ben is very good with juries, charming to work with and a very determined and effective barrister.

He is an excellent all-round performer. He is calm and consummate.

Frederick Hookway
5
Frederick Hookway
5
Band 5

He is hard-working, focused and extremely pleasant to deal with.

He is the consummate barrister. He is always well prepared. He is a real class act.

He is an excellent barrister.

He is a fabulous junior and barrister who cares hard. He is very determined.

Paul Taylor
5
Paul Taylor
5
Band 5

His practice reflects the great traditions of the English Bar. He can distil complex legal arguments into understandable submissions.

Working with Paul is delightful.

Paul Taylor is a standout barrister for appellate work. He knows all about appeals and he can still have that sensitivity with the client.

Catherine Farrelly
6
Catherine Farrelly
6
Band 6

She has a complete grasp of the entire case. Catherine is a forensic cross-examiner.

Farrelly is exemplary, calm and very good with vulnerable witnesses.

She is very well prepared. She knows what her target is and can get it done well.

She is excellent and very strong.

Charlotte Hole
6
Charlotte Hole
6
Band 6

Charlotte Hole is a tough opponent and is my standard bearer for a fierce prosecutor.

She is very hard-working and very good.

She is a walking encyclopaedia and very good with police teams.

Charlotte Hole is formidable.

Phoebe Bragg
6
Phoebe Bragg
6
Band 6

Phoebe is a very hard-working junior who is responsive, on top of the details and a joy to work with.

She has the most natural and easy charm, charisma and a fierce intellect behind a light touch. She inspires confidence.

Ranked Barristers at
5 King's Bench Walk

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Filter by
Band

Silks (KC)

London (Bar)

Crime

Mark A. Heywood KC
Mark A. Heywood KC
Star Individuals
Sarah Forshaw KC
Sarah Forshaw KC
Star Individuals
Anthony Orchard KC
2
Anthony Orchard KC
2
Band 2
Jonathan Higgs KC
2
Jonathan Higgs KC
2
Band 2
Charlotte Newell KC
3
Charlotte Newell KC
3
Band 3
Danny Robinson KC
3
Danny Robinson KC
3
Band 3
Natasha Wong KC
4
Natasha Wong KC
4
Band 4
Paul Taylor KC
5
Paul Taylor KC
5
Band 5
Catherine Farrelly KC
6
Catherine Farrelly KC
6
Band 6

Juniors

London (Bar)

Crime

Louise Oakley
1
Louise Oakley
1
Band 1
Catherine Pattison
2
Catherine Pattison
2
Band 2
William Davis
3
William Davis
3
Band 3
David Osborne
4
David Osborne
4
Band 4
Rupert Kent
4
Rupert Kent
4
Band 4
4
Valeria Swift
4
Band 4
Ben Holt
5
Ben Holt
5
Band 5
Frederick Hookway
5
Frederick Hookway
5
Band 5
Charlotte Hole
6
Charlotte Hole
6
Band 6
Phoebe Bragg
6
Phoebe Bragg
6
Band 6