Leon Glenister

Leon is ranked across Chambers and Partners and the Legal 500 in five areas: Administrative and Public Law, Education Law, Planning Law, Local Government and Social Housing Law. He is described as “incredibly bright”, an “impressive advocate”, “clear, succinct and persuasive”, “well-liked by clients”; and that it is “always reassuring to have Leon on your side rather than against you”.

Leon regularly acts in complex cases of a national profile, including in cases up to the Supreme Court and the European Court of Human Rights. His recent instructions include: challenges on the scope of the right to autonomy, the construction of HS2 on the basis of environmental concerns, the ownership transfer of GP surgeries to US-based companies, the EU Settlement Scheme, the COVID vaccination rollout and the appointment to the Charity Commission Chair. He has recently been instructed on significant planning cases including on the Silvertown Tunnel, PINS use of planning officers and the ‘bridge to nowhere’ case.

His previous cases have included the challenge to Ofqual’s grading system for the 2020 A-level exams, the Alfie Evans litigation, the challenge to the NHS Accountable Care Organisation contract and the challenge to the Yorkshire Ripper’s move from Broadmoor to prison.

Leon is a tutor in Administrative Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge. He is also a contributing author to both ‘Children’s Social Care Law’ (LAG, 2018) and ‘Adult Social Care Law’ (LAG, 2019). He is co-author of a comprehensive free guide to the law relating to special educational needs, the ‘Noddy Guide to SEN’.

Away from law, he is a Governor of Dr Challoner’s Grammar School.

He is proudly of mixed heritage, with a British father and Malaysian-Chinese mother.

Qualifications LLM (Master of Law) – Churchill College, University of Cambridge MA (Law) – Churchill College, University of Cambridge Scholarships Wolfson Scholarship (Lincoln’s Inn) Sir Thomas More Bursary (Lincoln’s Inn) Hardwicke Entrance Award (Lincoln’s Inn) Wright Rogers Scholarship (Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge) Churchill College Scholarship (Churchill College, University of Cambridge) Sir Judge David Stokes Scholarship (Churchill College, University of Cambridge)