Department profile
Essex Court Chambers

Chancery: Commercial

UK Bar Guide 2026 : London (Bar)


Essex Court Chambers

Rankings

Chambers Review

Provided by Chambers

Chancery: Commercial - London (Bar)

Band 2

Band 2


What the Team is Known For

This set's barristers are noted for their expert handling of complex and high-profile commercial chancery disputes, with the team offering significant strength in civil fraud and banking litigation. Members receive regular instructions to handle cases in offshore jurisdictions, and frequently undertake complex shareholder disputes involving the Far East and the CIS. Regularly instructed on both sides of major commercial chancery disputes, barristers here have been involved in some of the most celebrated cases of recent years, including the USD5 billion NMC Healthcare PLC & Ors v Dr Bavaguthu Raghuram Shetty & Ors proceedings, the Supreme Court case of Invest Bank v El-Husseini and others, and the USD2 billion oil and gas contracts case of Crescent Petroleum v National Iranian Oil Company. Joe Ferrigno is the senior clerk.

Strengths

Provided by Chambers

  • The clerks are very collaborative and very helpful in managing the client relationship.

    Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • The clerks are very good at liaising with the court.

    Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • Team leader Katie Myles is fantastic and adopts a sensible approach to everything. She is the next generation of clerks, where everything is properly documented and on time.

    Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • The clerks are commercial, quite innovative in their approach and people who appreciate the need to build a two-way relationship with solicitors.

    Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • Senior clerk Joe Ferrigno is a cut above the rest. He's really commercial.

    Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar

Notable Practitioners

Provided by Chambers

  • Band 1Joe Smouha
    Band 1Joe Smouha

    Joe Smouha

    • Joe is very commercial in what he does and very smooth in court.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Joe is a very good cross-examiner. He comes across as hugely authoritative in the courtroom.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Joe is well regarded and works really hard.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • Band 1Paul McGrath
    Band 1Paul McGrath

    Paul McGrath

    • Paul is one of the brightest at the Bar. His oral presentations are pitched perfectly.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Paul is a walking textbook on freezing orders and that kind of stuff. You can see that the judge knows his reputation and believes everything he says.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Paul is one of the super silks in the fraud space. He is strategically flawless and very clear in terms of his legal advice.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Paul is extremely bright and also fabulously unpretentious and unfussy. The good thing about him is that the judiciary like him as he delivers in a user-friendly way.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Paul is probably the leading KC for commercial fraud and complex matters at the Bar. He is very user friendly and masterful when it comes to tactical considerations.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • Band 1Richard Millett
    Band 1Richard Millett

    Richard Millett

    • Richard has a command and presence in the room because of who he is. Delightful to watch, he makes incredibly powerful submissions and gives immense confidence to the client.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Richard is a great advocate. He is extremely effective.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Richard is really, really smart and very intellectually able in coming up with creative solutions. He's certainly a fighter for his clients.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • Band 2Christopher Lloyd
    Band 2Christopher Lloyd

    Christopher Lloyd

    • Christopher Lloyd is phenomenally clever, into the detail and very user-friendly.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Christopher is the complete package. His analysis, advocacy and written work are all extremely good.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Chris is a clever junior and very good to work with in terms of his responsiveness and work ethic.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • Band 3James Willan
    Band 3James Willan

    James Willan

    • Give James any legal problem and he will help you out.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • James is both remarkable and very accessible.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • James is a very cerebral barrister who is all over the detail.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • James is so impressive in written and oral submissions. He is exceptional.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • Band 3Tim Akkouh
    Band 3Tim Akkouh

    Tim Akkouh

    • Tim is fantastic, really insightful and an excellent advocate.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Tim Akkouh is very good on his feet and is also fantastic in terms of his written advocacy. An extremely intelligent man, he is creative and dynamic in his problem-solving.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • Band 4David Peters
    Band 4David Peters

    David Peters

    • David is wonderful. He's all over the case and a really nice guy to work with. I think his reputation is going from strength to strength.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • Band 4James Sheehan
    Band 4James Sheehan

    James Sheehan

    • An excellent advocate who is very hard-working and all over the detail in a case. He is particularly good at getting on top of complicated material and delivering his points in a compelling way.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • James is extremely bright but humble with it. I trust his judgement.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • James is a seriously good counsel who ticks all the boxes. He delivers very well on both the law and the facts, and is good on his feet.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • Band 4Louise Hutton
    Band 4Louise Hutton

    Louise Hutton

    • Louise is considerate and has great instincts.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Louise is extremely bright and fantastic in court. She's good at taking senior judges through difficult points of law and is someone who argues incredibly well.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Louise has a very thoughtful approach and understands our client base well. She is very good on the technical points of a case.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • Band 4Ruth den Besten
    Band 4Ruth den Besten

    Ruth den Besten

    • Ruth is very engaging and has a good manner when dealing with judges. They like her because she is concise in her submissions, both written and oral.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Ruth is user-friendly and good on her feet. She's really strong and very good.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
  • New SilksCiaran Keller
    New SilksCiaran Keller

    Ciaran Keller

    • Ciaran is fantastic. His written work is first rate, and he's super thorough. He leaves no stone unturned.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Ciaran is a barrister with laser-sharp intelligence who is well prepared and across all the detail in a case. He is able to run rings around barristers who are far senior to him.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar
    • Ciaran has really good feel and instinct. He has good judgement about the right strategy and is great both on paper and in cross-examination.

      Chancery: Commercial respondentUK Bar

Ranked Barristers at Essex Court Chambers (11)

London (Bar)

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