Chambers Review

Provided by Chambers

Financial Services - London (Bar)

1
Band 1

What the Team is Known For

Blackstone Chambers wins praise as “the go-to set for high-profile and complex investigations." Its formidable offering rests on the recognised regulatory expertise of its barristers, of whom several are considered counsel of choice for regulatory bodies both in the UK and internationally. Clients describe the team as having an “unparalleled technical expertise and commercial nous” and say that members of the set have an “in-depth knowledge of the practice area and provide quality advocacy.” Its members are also frequently instructed by major financial institutions on diverse and often highly significant mandates. Over the past 12 months, members of the chambers have appeared in FCA v BlueCrest Capital Management, the judgment of the Court of Appeal concerning a landmark case addressing the scope of the Upper Tribunal’s jurisdiction in financial services cases and the power of the FCA to impose redress requirements on individual firms.

Strengths

Provided by Chambers

Notable Practitioners

Provided by Chambers

Andrew George
Andrew George
Star Individuals

Andrew George KC is a recognised specialist in the financial services field, and particularly praised for his skill and expertise in dealing with the intricacies of the FCA investigation and enforcement process. He is experienced in the representation of individuals, as well as financial institutions.

Andrew is great with clients and is a standout advocate.

He is the most extraordinary barrister, incredibly responsive and has a fantastic demeanour. He is a practical and powerful advocate and has a brilliant legal mind.

He has a phenomenal ability to absorb all key information and is a very experienced advocate. Andrew is also extremely impressive in the way he finds all the right points to difficult questions.

He is an impressive advocate who uses his rapport with the court to enhance the effectiveness of his technical submissions. He balances a clear mastery of the technical aspects with wider objectives.

Andrew is a walking encyclopaedia.

Javan Herberg
Javan Herberg
Star Individuals

Javan Herberg KC is highly reputed in all aspects of regulatory and enforcement action, and much in demand as both an adviser and advocate. He has first-hand experience across a number of forums including the High Court, the Supreme Court and the Upper Tribunal.

Javan is a titan in the FCA regulatory world.

He is a first-rate silk in the regulatory field and his experience is second to none. He is an extremely good advocate and keeps commercial strategies and objectives in mind.

Javan has the excellent ability to leverage wide experience when advising on strategic approaches to managing financial services disputes.

He is an undisputed master. His written work is particularly excellent and his client advice is always pragmatic. He gets the job done and has in-depth knowledge of the market.

Javan is at the top of the league - he has a deep understanding of this space, is knowledgeable, thoughtful and analytical. He has a very strong style of advocacy and is very compelling in court.

Andrew Green
1
Andrew Green
1
Band 1

Andrew Green KC is a widely lauded adviser with extensive experience dealing with regulatory bodies, including the Financial Reporting Council and the Prudential Regulation Authority. In addition to acting in investigations and disciplinary proceedings, he has also been called upon to assess the scope of regulatory action itself.

Andrew is an excellent advocate who gives clear, concise and strategic advice. He is a favourite with both solicitors and clients alike.

Andrew is a real sage of the industry and a leader on FCA work.

Ben Jaffey
1
Ben Jaffey
1
Band 1

Ben Jaffey KC enjoys a stellar reputation for his command of the intersection of administrative and public law with financial services. He is a first choice for representation before a range of financial regulatory bodies and tribunals including the FCA, PRA and Upper Tribunal. Alongside working on disputes arising in the wholesale energy and forex markets, he has also been engaged in cases concerning accusations of financial misreporting.

He is an incredibly quick thinker and a very bright advocate. Ben has the ear of the court, presents arguments very persuasively and thinks strategically.

Ben is always our first choice. He is an outstanding advocate and is extremely knowledgeable.

He is exceptionally clever and persuasive. He is very technical and is the perfect balance for upper tribunals.

He is super-brainy and a go-to for anything in his specialisms.

Simon Pritchard
1
Simon Pritchard
1
Band 1

Simon Pritchard is a highly regarded junior who works on the full array of financial regulatory matters for both institutions and individuals, including collective investment schemes, market abuse and insider trading issues.

Simon is always on top of the case and really understands the intricacies of the law. He turns written work around quickly and to a very high quality.

Simon is knowledgeable and adds immense value. He has sound judgment, is very responsive and a go-to junior.

Simon provides excellent strategic advice on complex financial services enforcement cases.

His knowledge of regulations is encyclopaedic and he is the go-to barrister for any litigation that has a financial services regulatory angle.

He is technically very good and an extension of our team. He puts in a phenomenal amount of effort for our clients and provides very clear advice.

Ajay Ratan
2
Ajay Ratan
2
Band 2

Ajay Ratan is a strong choice for the FCA in matters including judicial reviews and enforcement actions. Meanwhile, he is additionally called upon by clients to go against regulators in proceedings.

Ajay is incredibly bright and a pleasure to work with; he has really good drafting skills and maintains a commercial, strategic perspective.

Ajay is referred to as the human supercomputer.

He is friendly, helpful and extremely responsive.

Ajay delivers advice on complex matters that is both technically sound and alive to wider objectives. He also inspires confidence in his advice.

Monica Carss-Frisk
2
Monica Carss-Frisk
2
Band 2

Monica Carss-Frisk KC is renowned for her prowess throughout public and regulatory law, turning her hand successfully to the regulatory provisions governing financial services. She is frequently sought out by the FCA for counsel in high-stakes matters, including appellate work and judicial review.

Monica is a well-known barrister and features on strong cases.

Daniel Burgess
3
Daniel Burgess
3
Band 3

Daniel Burgess has a strong financial services practice and is considered a go-to junior in the space. He acts on behalf of defendants in complex FCA enforcement cases and is regularly before the Upper Tribunal.

He is very sharp and technically minded.

Daniel is all over the detail, good on strategy and thinks outside the box. He has an excellent manner with clients and is very reassuring.

He is very hard-wording and quick to assimilate new information.

Daniel is extremely client-friendly, very clever and a hard worker. His appearance in court is insightful, succinct and persuasive.

Harry Adamson
3
Harry Adamson
3
Band 3

Harry Adamson has a very active financial services practice and is particularly noted for FCA-related matters. He is often before the Upper Tribunal and acts in judicial reviews.

He is very calm, patient and methodical. Harry offers brilliant leadership, excellent advocacy and writes incredibly well.

Harry has a brilliant drafting style and is incredibly clever and collaborative. He is very good with clients and handles sensitive matters.

Harry is an exceptional junior, phenomenally bright and wonderfully personable.

Paul Luckhurst
3
Paul Luckhurst
3
Band 3

Paul Luckhurst enjoys a varied practice, advising on both contentious and non-contentious financial services matters. As well as acting for and against UK and overseas financial service regulators, he also has experience of commercial litigation in the financial services arena.

Paul is a safe pair of hands, he is very helpful and trustworthy. He works on complex matters and his analysis is reliable. He is also very work-driven and responsive.

He is very clear and concise and thinks carefully about issues.

He is a terrific barrister, very sensible and good at drafting.

Ranked Barristers at
Blackstone Chambers

Provided by Chambers
Filter by
Band

Silks (KC)

London (Bar)

Financial Services

Andrew George KC
Andrew George KC
Star Individuals
Javan Herberg KC
Javan Herberg KC
Star Individuals
Andrew Green KC
1
Andrew Green KC
1
Band 1
Ben Jaffey KC
1
Ben Jaffey KC
1
Band 1
Monica Carss-Frisk KC
2
Monica Carss-Frisk KC
2
Band 2

Juniors

London (Bar)

Financial Services

Simon Pritchard
1
Simon Pritchard
1
Band 1
Ajay Ratan
2
Ajay Ratan
2
Band 2
Daniel Burgess
3
Daniel Burgess
3
Band 3
Harry Adamson
3
Harry Adamson
3
Band 3
Paul Luckhurst
3
Paul Luckhurst
3
Band 3