Francis Taylor Building

Conor accepts instructions across Chambers’ specialisms in planning, environmental, and public law.  He is ranked by Legal 500 as a rising star in planning,  environmental, and administrative law and human rights (2024).  Conor has also been recognised in Planning Magazine as one of the top rated planning juniors under the age of 35 (2023).  He acts for a wide range of clients including central and local government, utility companies, national interest groups and charities, developers and landowners, and local residents.  He is widely sought after for strategic advice and representation on planning and environmental matters.  Conor also has a busy judicial review practice and is frequently instructed to appear as sole counsel both on behalf of claimants and on behalf of defendants

He has particular expertise in the agricultural, residential, energy, renewables, and retail sectors.  He has rapidly established a busy local plan practice.  Over the last twelve months alone has promoted three local plans at independent examination and advised six other councils on their emerging local plans.  He is particularly sought after for his judicial review work and has appeared twice before the Court of Appeal and once before the Supreme Court over the last twelve months in high profile judicial reviews.

Conor is also called to the Bar of Northern Ireland.  Details of his experience in Northern Ireland can be found below and on the Bar Library website.

Notable examples of his recent and ongoing work include:

Judicial Review

• acting as junior counsel on behalf of the successful respondents in a claim challenging the decision of the United Kingdom Government to provide export finance in relation to the Area 1 liquefied natural gas facility  in Mozambique (R (Friends of the Earth) v Secretary of State for International Trade and Ors [2023] EWCA Civ 14);
• acting as junior counsel on behalf of the appellant in the challenge to the Natural England nitrate neutrality guidance (R (Wyatt) v Fareham Borough Council [2022] EWCA Civ 983);
• acting as sole counsel in a number of planning challenges including for an interested party developer to defend a judicial review against the grant of planning permission for a mixed-use, residential-led development in a World Heritage Site (R (Walker) v Bath and North East Somerset Council [2020] EWHC 1836 (Admin)) and for the claimant in an ongoing challenge to a storage and distribution facility in the open countryside (R (Gendy) v Central Bedfordshire Council (CO/2077/2022));
• acting as junior counsel on wider public law matters including a challenge to a street trading policy (R (Poole) v Birmingham City Council [2021] EWHC 1198 (Admin) and a challenge to the lawfulness of guidance issued by the Parole Board (R (Pearce) v Parole Board [2022] EWCA Civ 4).

Inquiries and Hearings

• acting as sole counsel promoting three local development plans at independent examination over the last twelve months;
• acting as sole counsel for the developer securing planning permission for a paragraph 79 inspired dwelling in the New Forest on appeal (APP/B9506/W/19/3242767);
• acting as sole counsel on behalf of a third party objector group during the latest public inquiry into the A5 Western Transport Corridor (the largest infrastructure public in Northern Ireland at an estimate cost of over £1 billion);
• acting as sole counsel successfully resisting an appeal against the refusal of planning permission for 100 residential units on habitats grounds related to increased nitrates in the Solent (APP/A1720/W/19/3225866);
• acting as sole counsel successfully resisting an appeal against the refusal of planning permission for residential development on grounds relating to design, impact on character, and impact on a heritage asset  (APP/Y3615/W/20/3265828);
• acting as sole counsel for a developer in an ongoing appeal against the refusal of planning permission and listed building consent for residential development in London raising issues of heritage impact and viability (APP/A5270/W/3300120).