Chambers and Partners
Home to some "extraordinarily bright people," this is one of the most highly respected public law sets in the country, and a go-to destination for a variety of central and local government matters. It is especially well regarded for its health work and has an excellent reputation in community care, catastrophic injury and industrial disease cases. Ever anxious to extend its profile, it further involves itself in matters as diverse as insurance, product liability, planning and environmental law, and has had success in establishing a high-profile, commercially focused construction team. Civil liberties/human rights and costs are also important parts of the offering.
Sources praise the nationally inclusive nature of the practice, observing: "They take the trouble to visit the regions, giving seminars and presentations and getting to know our teams better." They also commented on the increasing international strength of the practice, especially in construction. One recurring note was the set's strong service ethos: "The practice is run in an unstuffy and businesslike way that makes instructing counsel painless," say solicitors. Many respondents went out of their way to flag up the work of Director of Clerking David Barnes, who is "brilliant at matching our needs to available counsel and looking after us and our clients throughout the process."
Chambers fields a number of high flyers. The "intelligent, experienced and charming" Nigel Pleming QC is "the silk you need in a heavy-weight public law battle." He is also ubiquitous in civil liberties, environment, professional discipline and more. Edwin Glasgow QC is another giant in public law and a regular in commercial disputes, while "there's no one better on their feet in a real fight" than construction expert Stuart Catchpole QC. The set also has in Stephen Tromans QC one of the very best in the business when it comes to environmental law.