Stars at the Bar 2025
The Chambers UK Bar team present the Stars at the Bar, all of whom have been researched and rank in the Chambers UK Bar guide 2025.
Who is a leading legal professional across the UK Bar?
The Stars at the Bar have proved their excellence across a range of practice areas as researched and ranked by the Chambers UK Bar team during their research for the Chambers UK Bar guide 2025.
Below are these top legal practitioners and the Chambers editorial for each, providing a true reflection of their work and services offered.
Jonathan Crow KC (4 Stone Buildings)
“He has great judgement, is extremely fast and naturally persuasive.” “He is undoubtedly excellent.” “He is amazing, a true star in the silks.” “He is a truly outstanding advocate.” “A true star performer who is brilliant at cross-examination.” “He is an extremely impressive courtroom performer.” “He is the embodiment of a super silk.” “He is an amazing advocate, a brilliant brain and has the respect of the judiciary.” “Jonathan is highly elegant and persuasive with a scalpel like intelligence.” “Jonathan’s sharpness of mind, charm and strategy is all top notch.”
Clare Montgomery KC (Matrix Chambers)
“Clare is authoritative in court, stands her ground and wins.” “She is a very experienced silk.” “Clare is one of the best KCs at the bar, outstandingly clever and has absolutely superb knowledge.” “Her abilities are stellar.” “Clare is an intellectual powerhouse and is well respected by the courts.” “She has a wealth of knowledge and is an attractive advocate.” “She displays sharp intellect with excellent knowledge of criminal law and its application in a public law context.” “Clare is the absolute doyen when it comes to extradition cases.” “She has exceptionally good, balanced judgement.”
Mark Howard KC (Brick Court Chambers)
“Mark is a fearsome cross-examiner who really has the ear of the court.” “An incredibly strategic thinker and incredibly powerful advocate.” “Mark is a go-to for complex legal appeals.” “He is a stellar name at the commercial bar.” “Mark is probably the most prominent advocate at the English bar.” “He lives up to his stellar reputation in many ways. He has a good courtroom presence and he radiates the pre-eminence he has.”
Bankim Thanki KC (Fountain Court Chambers)
“Bankim is excellent and incredibly clever.” “He is really experienced with a cool, calm head.” “He is wonderfully impressive and judges listen to him.” “One of the pre-eminent lawyers of the bar whilst also being extremely courteous and a real pleasure to deal with.” “A consummate professional. There isn’t a commercial case he couldn’t take on.” “A laser-focused and powerful barrister.” “He is an absolutely brilliant and well rounded advocate.” “Bankim is extremely knowledgeable, is quick to identify the key issues and is adept at advising on what will or won’t work in front of a tribunal.” “A class act, bright and has the ability to pick things up very quickly.” “Bankim is wholly trusted by clients and provides authoritative strategic advice.”
Paul Chaisty KC (Kings Chambers)
“Paul is an excellent strategist who gets on top of important and complex details extremely quickly.” “He is very skilful in cross examination and is a compelling advocate.” “Paul is very persuasive.” “His ability to digest and decipher complex information is second to none.” “His trial preparation and cross examination skills are great.” “He has an incredible eye for detail.”
Joe Smouha KC (Essex Court)
“One of the best advocates at the bar.” “He has got one of the sharpest and fastest brains.” “An excellent trial advocate who can manage, identify and address all of the angles in a complex trial scenario.” “He is a class apart at the top of the commercial bar.” “He is incredibly smooth.”
Anneliese Day KC (Fountain Court Chambers)
“One of the most formidable commercial barristers in the world.” “She is excellent with clients.” “She is very commercial and sees the bigger picture.” “Her advocacy style is very formidable and very authoritative.” “Anneliese is a lovely person to work with, very supportive and really instilled confidence in the team.” “Anneliese Day is outstanding; a really sensible arbitrator and very good, measured advocate.” “Her strategic mind is exceptional.” “You feel enormously supported and empowered when Anneliese rolls her sleeves up for you.” “She is an engaged silk who is always willing to work with the client’s aims and objectives without compromising the high quality of her work.”
Richard Lissack KC (Fountain Court Chambers)
“Richard is hugely experienced in the banking litigation and white collar crime fields.” “Richard is excellent with clients and charming in court.” “He is a very forceful and polished advocate.” “A superb oral advocate in every forum.” “He is smart, committed, experienced and has a mastery of the courtroom.” “He is a rare bird for taking on criminal and civil work; he brings the civil commercial barrister’s intellectual rigour and approach to criminal cases.” “A powerful advocate that is always very well prepared for court and stands his ground before the court on tough questions.” “Richard handles clients like a dream – always on hand to provide sage advice and reassurance.”
David Perry KC (6 KBW College Hill)
“He combines the highest level of advocacy with enormous intellectual ability.” “No one compares to him when it comes to his knowledge of criminal law interweaved with public law.” “He just instils confidence.” “David Perry has a huge amount of experience.” “David is, quite simply, an icon of the industry, with unparalleled experience gained over decades of practice.” “He is a consummate all rounder and his knowledge of the law is second to none.” “David exhibits phenomenal judgement.” “He is a superb strategist.” “David Perry doesn’t need an explanation his name speaks for itself, he is great at advocating for difficult cases.”
Laurence Rabinowitz KC (One Essex Court)
“An excellent advocate who is very strong on strategy and a genius in understanding cases.” “One of the absolute heavyweights of the commercial bar.” “He wears his extraordinary talent lightly and is a team player.” “Laurence is an absolute delight. He was responsive, marvellous with the clients and a very thoughtful advocate in court.” “He is a go-to for the very large cases.” “Laurence Rabinowitz is very kind and generous with his time.” “Laurence is a titan in what he does.” “Clients think he is magic – he makes the extraordinarily complex simple.”
Hugh Sims KC (Guildhall Chambers)
“Hugh Sims is exceptional in every way and is particularly calm and effective in court.” “Simply excellent both in legal knowledge and in dealings with solicitors, clients and witnesses.” “He is like a chess player thinking five or six steps ahead.” “Hugh is very proactive and on top of the facts.” “Hugh has a very strong reputation for his stand out appellate advocacy.” “He tirelessly reviews and considers all aspects and angles of a case and is able to manoeuvre a client into a favourable position.” “Whilst being intelligent and commercially savvy, Hugh has an air of sophistication and charm which works wonders in the courtroom.”
Edward Craven (Matrix Chambers)
“Edward Craven is one of the best juniors and writes beautifully.” “He is phenomenally hard working, leaves no stone unturned and sees the points others miss.” “Edward produces work instantly and to an extremely high standard.” “He is brilliant to work with – his brain is always fizzing with novel ideas to strengthen and progress claims.” “He is probably one of the best juniors. Edward bends over backwards and is amazing in terms of effort and energy.” “He is phenomenal at digesting factual and legal issues and distilling those into helpful advice.” “Edward has a first class mind and is great on his feet. His drafting is exceptional and I have no doubt he will be a KC very soon.”
Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC (Doughty Street Chambers)
“A world class advocate and defender of human rights.” “She puts her whole heart and soul into the case and works incredibly hard.” “Caoilfhionn is really good on the strategy, not only the legal strategy, but also how to ensure wider implementation of client needs beyond the courtroom.” “A leading and visionary barrister with incredible passion for her clients and cases.” “Caoilfhionn has an encyclopaedic knowledge of international and domestic systems.” “She is an outstanding advocate with clear strategic vision and is able to navigate the most complex cases.” “Caoilfhionn is a supremely intelligent and impressive lawyer and it is a privilege to work with her on international human rights matters.”
John Randall KC (St Philips Chambers)
“John’s preparation and attention to detail is second to none. Even judges listen like attentive students.” “A barrister who has a keen understanding of the issues at hand and how to resolve them.” “John has a great deal of gravitas, knows the law and the judges.” “An exceptional advocate, when he speaks everyone listens.” “He is exceptionally thorough, always well-prepared and always gets into the details.” “One of the go-to barristers for the more complex and high value claims for housebuilder clients.”
Lesley Anderson KC (Kings Chambers)
“Lesley is quick on her feet, knowledgeable, as well as being approachable and sensitive.” “Lesley is a client and firm favourite.” “She is fantastic on her feet, in writing and in conference. Lesley is very user friendly and reassuring with clients.” “Lesley gets to grips with the facts and legal issues quickly along with providing prompt and pragmatic advice.” “At the very top of her game.” “An approachable and robust counsel, with both commerciality and imagination when facing challenging problems,”
Mark Harper KC (Kings Chambers)
“Mark Harper is always excellent, very responsive and great with clients.” “Mark is very approachable, user friendly and shows no pomposity.” “Mark is an impressive advocate with a commanding court presence.” “He has an ability to get into the details that amazes me. He doesn’t miss a beat.” “Mark Harper is an outstanding advocate who is also commercially minded.” “He is very creative in terms of framing difficult legal submissions in a way that is attractive to the court.”
Thomas de la Mare KC (Blackstone Chambers)
“Tom is an excellent advocate who has a very good manner both with clients and the court.” “Thomas de la Mare is a very strategic thinker.” “He is extremely hard working and produces engaging advocacy.” “Tom is highly intelligent, very quick to come up with effective strategies in complex cases and he is also incredibly generous with his time.” “He has the capacity to think in ways other barristers don’t when it comes to litigation strategy, he approaches problems in a different way that serves clients very well.” “A hugely impressive and persuasive advocate at the top of his game who quickly distils complex cases into cogent and compelling arguments.” “Tom has a genuine enthusiasm and passion for the cases he works on, and always brings a fresh perspective to the table.”
Roger Stewart KC (4 New Square Chambers)
“Roger is absolutely on top of his game. He is a go-to for every kind of dispute.” “He is a class act who is very calm, reassuring and very impressive.” “Roger is a legend. He is the gold standard for construction negligence advice whenever you want the inside track or to push boundaries.” “Roger has provided first class advice throughout matters, from both technical and commercial perspectives. The tone of his advocacy is pitch perfect.” “He is a very commercial silk and great at taking a step back and seeing the bigger picture.” “Roger Stewart has excellent advocacy skills.”
Jonathan Laidlaw KC (2 Hare Court)
“He is the Rolls Royce of the criminal bar.” “Jonathan is a charming and intelligent advocate.” “He is a go-to barrister for complex financial crime cases. Jonathan has unparalleled expertise in this area.” “He is meticulous in his preparation and a strong performer.” “An excellent all round barrister.” “Jonathan has a strength in cross examination, is very bright and charismatic.”
Patrick Gibbs KC (3 Raymond Buildings)
“A sharp mind, who can assimilate evidence with care and speed. He is a calming influence with stressful clients and is focused on getting the absolute best for them.” “His advocacy is outstanding.” “He is a beautifully smooth, polished and consummate advocate.” “Patrick Gibbs has fantastic judgement and is extremely bright.” “Patrick is a real class act.” “He is a quintessential jury advocate.” “He is an outstanding tactician.”
Edward Fitzgerald KC (Doughty Street Chambers)
“Edward is a legend in public law and very hard to beat.” “Edward Fitzgerald is a force to be reckoned with. He thinks outside the box.” “He remains unparalleled in his commitment, attention to detail and the sophistication of his arguments.” “Edward is absolutely brilliant and works full steam.” “The outstanding criminal silk for appeals.” “Edward knows how to pull a rabbit out of a hat in the most impossible situations.” “A great legal brain.” “His expertise and experience are simply remarkable.”
