About

Provided by New Park Court Chambers

New Park Court Chambers has a formidable national reputation for conducting substantial criminal cases, many of which are within the most significant high-profile legal cases to have taken place, attracting widespread media coverage.

Our team comprises of a mixture of heavyweight KCs and a large team of highly skilled and experienced junior advocates who focus on complex casework within the full spectrum of criminal proceedings and can offer advice at the investigatory stage through to Crown Court or Appeal Court proceedings. The team was strengthened in 2024 by the arrival of James Bourne-Arton KC, a recognised accomplished advocate with a strong practice in serious and organised crime, and Nick Murphy, a highly regarded criminal barrister. Tom Storey was appointed as King’s Counsel in January 2024, and Geraldine Kelly in March 2025. In addition, we also have 3 KCs and 3 experienced criminal junior barristers as door tenants.

In 2025, New Park Court Chambers was named 'Chambers of the Year’ at the LexisNexis Legal Awards 2025 and in 2024, the set was awarded 'Chambers of the Year' at The British Legal Awards and Northern Law Awards Crime & Regulatory Team of the Year.

Chambers Review

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Crime - North Eastern (Bar)

1
Band 1

What the Team is Known For

New Park Court Chambers is a well-regarded set on the North Eastern Circuit, noted for its expertise spanning the full range of serious criminal work. The set houses a "quality of counsel within this set which is second to none." Barristers are regularly instructed in high-profile homicides and sexual assault cases, and have considerable experience of acting for both the prosecution and defence. Additional areas of strength for the team include organised crime cases arising from gangland murders and drugs conspiracies, and terrorism offences. Members frequently appear before the Crown Courts and the Court of Appeal. Recent instructions have included R v Piran Ditta Khan concerning the historic murder of PC Sharon Beshenivsky.

Teresa Pugh is the practice director.

Strengths

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Notable Practitioners

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Paul Greaney
Star Individuals

Paul Greaney KC is an outstanding barrister who is routinely instructed in high-profile homicide and organised crime cases, and offers broader expertise in the areas of financial crime and inquests and public inquiries. He also has extensive experience in terrorism cases and regulatory crimes.

Paul Greaney is exceptional in his knowledge and skill set. He is a highly competent and able silk who is highly in demand.

Paul Greaney KC is excellent.

Robert Smith
Star Individuals

Robert Smith KC has significant expertise in homicide, corporate manslaughter, and health and safety cases. He is also particularly well versed in medico-legal matters and demonstrates deep knowledge of human rights issues. Smith is experienced in prosecuting and defending cases involving professional defendants.

Robert is superlative at every possible aspect of the job.

1
Adam Birkby
1
Band 1

Adam Birkby's practice encompasses the full range of serious criminal matters. He is regularly instructed in heavyweight crime such as homicide, drugs and sexual offences. He also boasts significant experience in dealing with young clients and defendants with mental health issues.

Adam has a lovely court manner. He is strong in his advice and impressive on his feet.

Adam Birkby is an excellent advocate and well respected by the judiciary and his professional colleagues.

1
Jason Pitter
1
Band 1

Jason Pitter KC routinely acts for both the defence and prosecution in a broad range of cases, including homicide, organised crime and fraud. He demonstrates particular skill when tackling drug importation cases. He accepts both publicly and privately funded instructions.

Juries love Jason.

Jason is fantastic.

Jason Pitter KC is an excellent KC.

1
Nicholas de la Poer
1
Band 1

Nicholas de la Poer KC is known for his expertise in serious fraud cases. He is also experienced in homicide, terrorism and sexual offence matters. He receives regular instructions from an array of regulatory bodies, including the HSE, Defra, the FCA and the Environment Agency.

Nicholas really is one of the stand out people in North England. He is highly intelligent, really lovely to work with, and very fair and personable. Judges love him and not a word is wasted.

Nicholas de la Poer KC is bright and great on his feet and in writing.

He is brilliant.

1
Nicholas Lumley
1
Band 1

Nicholas Lumley KC frequently handles serious criminal cases, including those concerning homicide, rape and drugs. He is particularly experienced in medico-legal matters. He accepts instruction on a private basis.

Nicholas is an incredible advocate, very personable and good with clients.

Nicholas is bright, his cross-examination is a delight to watch and his speeches always hit their mark with the jury.

Nicholas Lumley KC is an exceptionally calm head. He is outstanding in conference and has an unrivalled ability when cross-examining witnesses. He is a brilliant advocate and our go-to KC.

2
Alistair MacDonald
2
Band 2

Alistair MacDonald KC is an experienced criminal barrister who is well known for his time as chair of the Bar Council. He offers vast experience in complex homicide and major fraud matters, while his prior training as a biochemist only serves to strengthen his performance in matters containing a scientific element. He also often handles regulatory crime cases.

Alistair is excellent counsel. He is very strong in cross-examination. He is tactically astute.

2
Matthew Donkin
2
Band 2

Matthew Donkin is frequently instructed on complex crime cases. His practice spans a broad range of matters, including homicide and fraud offences.

Matthew Donkin is a very able and competent barrister who is knowledgeable and skilled, particularly in respect of complex and serious matters.

Matthew's professionalism is second to none. He was completely on top of the evidence and his speeches were a model of clarity for the jury.

Matthew is impressive.

2
Simon Kealey
2
Band 2

Simon Kealey KC is a respected practitioner who is highly regarded for his advocacy in serious criminal cases. He is especially familiar with cases involving murders, sexual offences, drugs conspiracy and people trafficking. He undertakes public and private cases.

Simon has a lovely, soothing manner in court and is a superb operator.

He is robust but mild-mannered and he takes good points. His advocacy is effective and clear, not showy.

3
Chloe Fairley
3
Band 3

Chloe Fairley is recognised for her wide-ranging general crime practice and excellent advocacy skills. She has a particular focus on defence work and is regularly instructed in cases involving sex crimes, violence and drugs offences.

Chloe had a beautiful advocacy style.

3
Tom Storey
3
Band 3

Tom Storey KC acts for both the defence and the prosecution in a broad range of general criminal cases. He specialises in large-scale, serious criminal matters and is well respected for his deft handling of highly sensitive cases. He is also noted for handling cases involving serious sexual offences.

Tom is a details man. He is very thorough and has got a really calm, assured and measured courtroom manner about him. He is very effective with juries.

Tom is extremely thorough in preparation, very sensible in his tactical decisions and a lovely advocate to watch.

Tom was superb, a truly excellent barrister. He was on every detail of the case and came across very well in his advocacy.

Geraldine Kelly
New Silks

Geraldine Kelly KC is an experienced criminal practitioner who attracts praise for the strength of her advocacy. She specialises in dealing with serious sexual offences.

Geraldine is very well prepared, strong at advice and pitches cases very nicely.

She is a very calm, measured advocate.

Ranked Barristers at
New Park Court Chambers

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Filter by
Band

Silks (KC)

North Eastern (Bar)

Crime

Paul Greaney KC
Star Individuals
Robert Smith KC
Star Individuals
1
Jason Pitter KC
1
Band 1
1
Nicholas de la Poer KC
1
Band 1
1
Nicholas Lumley KC
1
Band 1
2
Alistair MacDonald KC
2
Band 2
2
Simon Kealey KC
2
Band 2
3
Tom Storey KC
3
Band 3
Geraldine Kelly KC
New Silks

Juniors

North Eastern (Bar)

Crime

1
Adam Birkby
1
Band 1
2
Matthew Donkin
2
Band 2
3
Chloe Fairley
3
Band 3