Sarah Clarke KC

Practice Areas

Sarah’s practice spans financial services enforcement investigations, disciplinary proceedings, civil and criminal litigation, FOS matters and judicial review. She is a recognised specialist in market abuse and author of the leading textbook Insider Dealing: Law and Practice (2nd ed., OUP). She regularly advises on and litigates insider dealing, market manipulation and misleading-the-market cases for corporates, individuals, the FCA and regulators including OFGEM and the Dubai FSA.

She also has significant expertise in financial fraud, including money laundering, AML issues, account and crypto freezing and forfeiture orders, investment fraud and tax-related disputes.

In the police law field, Sarah acts for Chief Constables, senior officers and the AA in disciplinary matters. She frequently represents police forces in judicial review proceedings, particularly those involving sensitive material, public interest immunity and complex operational issues. She also advises individuals and financial services institutions on judicial review challenges.

Sarah is highly experienced in regulatory and disciplinary proceedings, acting in sensitive and complex matters brought by the SRA, BSB, GMC, CQC, HSA, universities and other regulators.

Across all areas, Sarah applies deep cross-disciplinary knowledge to complex cases and is known for her meticulous preparation, mastery of technical issues and sharp cross-examination. She was shortlisted for Financial Services and Insurance Silk of the Year at The Legal 500 Bar Awards in 2022, 2023 and 2024. At the Women in Law and Diversity Awards 2023, she won Responsible Leader of the Year, and she was recently named Business Crime Defence Barrister at the 2025 Lexology Client Choice Awards.