Chambers Review
Provided by Chambers
Employment - Northern (Bar)
What the Team is Known For
St John's Buildings impresses with its barristers' strong advocacy when representing either employees or employers at all levels of the judicial system. Members are experienced in defending claims for whistle-blowing, discrimination and harassment, and unfair dismissal. The set also hosts barristers who are familiar with High Court team move and restraint of trade cases. Recent highlights include Mrs. E Bell v Pier Limited, concerning harassment and disability discrimination in a toxic workplace over multiple days. One interviewee sums up the offering as follows: "There is a wide range of expertise and personalities on offer at St John's Buildings, which makes the instructing lawyer trust that there will be an advocate suitable for their client."
Rob Lang is the assistant senior clerk for employment.
Strengths
St John's Buildings have a strong clerking team who are efficient and knowledgeable and can recommend barristers based on your needs.
Some of the most proactive and responsive clerks in any chambers!
Notable practitioners
Annette Gumbs' background in personal injury and negligence cases means she is particularly esteemed for her knowledge of discrimination claims. She is also adept at handling issues involving restrictive covenants and other employment cases with a commercial element. She is further noted for her work with police forces and clients in the education sector.
Annette P Gumbs' is meticulous in preparation and presentation of cases, and thoroughly reliable.
She was thorough and clear in her approach at the hearing and dealt with unexpected changes in the case with ease and conviction.
Ghazan Mahmood acts for both respondents and claimants, specialising in regulatory work and discrimination law. He regularly appears in the Employment Tribunal and the Employment Appeal Tribunal, often working on cases involving the medical profession. He acts for medical and other professionals in disciplinary proceedings and in whistle-blowing cases. He is additionally experienced in High Court restrictive covenant cases.
Ghazan provides clear advice in High Court matters. He is also excellent with clients, instils confidence and is very pleasant to work with.
Well versed in handling very high-profile employment cases, Jason Searle frequently appears in the Employment Tribunal, Employment Appeal Tribunal and High Court. Within his wider employment law practice, he has considerable expertise in discrimination claims.
Jason is my go-to barrister, he is extremely knowledgeable, a great cross-examiner, personable and puts clients at ease from the outset.
Jason Searle is excellent at seeing the bigger picture and brilliant with clients.
Jason is always dependable, invested in his clients and cases. An all-round excellent barrister.
Jamie Jenkins is well established for employment in the Northern Bar. He focuses on constructive dismissal and unfair dismissal claims, particularly in the education sector.
Tom Wood has established a strong reputation in the Northern Bar. He frequently appears in the Employment Tribunal, representing both claimants and respondents in disability TUPE, discrimination and whistle-blowing cases.
He gets stuck into the detail but is calm and clear with difficult litigants.
Tom is a very good advocate, goes above and beyond and has a good rapport with clients.
Laura Halsall is developing a promising practice in employment work, regularly representing both claimants and respondents in the ET.
A highly skilled advocate with a great eye for detail, Laura is very approachable and can explain highly technical legal issues with a down to earth manner.
Laura has a firm and no nonsense approach to advocacy, standing firm for her client whilst being sensitive and kind with clients. Her client care and commitment is second to none.
Laura is straight to the point, effective and concise in cross-examination. She gets straight to the heart of the issues in the case and has an intense focus on those issues.