Francis Hoar > Chambers of John Critchley > London, England > Barrister Profile

Francis Hoar

020 7405 6114 clerks@fieldcourt.co.uk

Position

Francis Hoar is a top rated public lawyer and election lawyer who also acts in employment, commercial and property law.

In 2015 Francis, appearing against two Queen’s Counsel and following the longest election petition trial for a century, secured a High Court judgment that voided the election of Lutfur Rahman as Mayor of Tower Hamlets and found him and his election agent guilty of corrupt and illegal practices. Francis regularly appears in election petitions and in related proceedings, including political reputation management, and has a considerable advisory practice. He acted successfully for Craig Mackinlay MP (in a criminal prosecution) and Darren Grimes (in an appeal against the Electoral Commission) and acted for the petitioner in an election petition challenging the result of the by-election in Peterborough in 2019.

Francis acted for the claimant in the judicial review challenging the lawfulness of the original (March 2020) ‘lockdown’ regulations imposed as a result of the coronavirus epidemic, the landmark case of R (Dolan) v Secretary of State that was decided in the Court of Appeal in December 2020 – a case largely based on Francis’s legal opinion published (before the claim was brought) in April 2020.  He has since acted in judicial reviews of regulations imposing travel regulations and mandatory vaccination of care home and (now) NHS workers and of the lawfulness of child vaccination policies; and in a successful High Court appeal against the GMC’s restriction of the freedom of expression of a GP.  In 2019, Francis acted in two constitutional cases, challenging the lawfulness of the government’s initial decision not to hold European Parliamentary elections and of the first extension of the period for leaving the European Union under Article 50.

Francis was in a shortlist of eight (and the only junior) for The Lawyer magazine’s ‘barrister of the year’ award, 2016. In May 2015, Francis was The Times Lawyer of the Week.

Francis is ranked by the Legal 500, in Band 1, as one of the top 10 leading juniors in Administrative and Public Law; and, by Chambers and Partners, in Band 1 as one of only four juniors ranked in Election Law.

‘A complete tour de force… worthy of the admiration of the Court’. Commissioner Richard Mawrey, QC (Erlam & Others v Rahman & Another (2) [2015] EWHC 1215 (QB))

‘Impressive’ Mrs Justice Lang (R (Story) v Riordan (Returning Officer for the Yorkshire and Humber Region for elections to the European Parliament) [2016] EWHC 3490 (Admin).)

Made ‘well reasoned’ submissions and ‘compelling analysis’. Mr Justice Jay (Baxter v Fear & Others [2015] EWHC 3136 (QB) (Divisional Court)).

Career

Call: 2001

Memberships

• ALBA
• Employment Law Bar Association

Education

• LLB. (Bristol): Law (2:1 (Hons))
• John Colston Award for international debating, Bristol University (2000)
• Hardwicke Scholar, Lincoln’s  Inn (2000)
• Thomas More Bursar, Lincoln’s Inn (2000)
• Pupillage Scholar, Lincoln’s Inn (2001)