Harley’s practice encompasses property, planning and environmental law. He is regularly instructed to appear as sole counsel in the FTT, the County Court and the High Court.

Harley’s practice covers all aspects of property, planning, and environmental law. He is regularly instructed to appear in the FTT, the County Court and the High Court for both claimants and defendants, and is particularly well-placed to act in cases where property and planning issues interact. He has a busy advisory practice across all aspects of the law relating to the use and development of land.

Harley’s notable work includes:

• Acting (with Justin Bates) in a “leapfrog” appeal to the Supreme Court concerning the right to manage

• Acting as sole counsel for a defendant in High Court injunction proceedings under s. 187B of the TCPA 1990

• Acting (with John Litton KC) for the appellant in planning inquiry for 150 homes

• Acting for the successful respondent at trial in a boundary dispute: Ali v Kamara-Abu & Navarskis [2023] UKFTT 00580 (PC)

• Acting (with Justin Bates) for the successful appellant a service charge in the Upper Tribunal: Orbit Housing Association Ltd v Robert Vernon [2023] UKUT 156 (LC)

• Acting for a respondent in a strike out application for non-compliance with a costs order. The case clarified the extent of the court’s power to do so.

Prior to coming to the Bar, Harley worked in legal research and law reform across property and planning law.

He was a Research Assistant in Law Commission’s Property, Family and Trusts team, where he worked on reforming the law of commonhold. Harley also worked at as a Research Assistant at the University of Oxford on a project exploring onerous obligations imposed by developers on new build estates, and as a Research Assistant at the University of Kent on a leasehold reform project for the Welsh Government. Harley also has first-hand experience of local government, working in the Urban and Social Regeneration department of a unitary authority.

Harley has a PhD in law which focused on property law and housing. While completing his doctoral research, Harley taught property law and equity and trusts to LLB and LLM students.

Harley is a member of the Attorney General’s “Junior Junior” scheme, and a member of Advocate’s panel of barristers.

Harley graduated top of his class in Law, and won a number of university awards for his performance in his final year exams. He received one of Gray’s Inn most prestigious Bar course scholarships (the Baroness Hale of Richmond Scholarship). He was also awarded a scholarship by the Erasmus Mundus Consortium to complete a Master’s degree in Urban Studies at the Universities of Brussels, Vienna, Copenhagen and Madrid.

Qualifications

• PhD in Law, Birkbeck, University of London

• Bar Vocational Studies, Distinction, City, University of London

• Master’s Degree in Urban Studies, Summa Cum Laude, Universities of Brussels, Vienna, Copenhagen and Madrid

• LLB, First Class, University of Kent

Awards

• Baroness Hale of Richmond Scholarship, Gray’s Inn – 2020

• City Law School Scholarship for Academic Excellence – 2020

• Ronnie Warrington Scholarship, Birkbeck, University of London – 2016

• Erasmus Mundus Scholarship – 2014Sweet and Maxwell Prize for Best Finalist, Kent Law School – 2014

• Edward A Lamb Prize – University of Kent

• Head of School’s Prize for Outstanding Student Work on Critical Legal Thought – Kent Law School 2014

• Hallett Prize for Best Dissertation, Kent Law School – 2014

• Incorporated Council of Law Reporting Prize for Best Overall Stage 3 Mooter, Kent Law School – 2014

• Incorporated Council of Law Reporting Prize for Best Weekly Moot, Kent Law School – 2014

• Special Award for Kent Law School Student Community Building, Kent Law School – 2014

Memberships

• Member of the Attorney General’s “Junior Junior” scheme

Publications

• (2022) (with Jenny Wigley KC), Managing empty property and/or uses that are not viable. Landmark Chambers Land Use Conference.

• (2020) (with Professor Nick Hopkins) ‘New ownership on the block’, News on the Block. Available here.

• (2019) ‘Wiltshire Council v Cooper Estates Strategic Land Ltd: Development plans and the restriction of town and village greens applications’, Modern Law Review, 82: 1146-1156.