Maurice O'Carroll

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Introduction

Maurice has over 25 years’ advocacy experience, having called to the Bar in Scotland 1995.  He has been dual qualified since March 2019 when he also called to the Bar of England and Wales.  He is Public Access registered and may accordingly accept instructions directly from members of the public in appropriate cases.

His principal areas of practice are:

-          Employment Law

-          Town and Country Planning

-          Administrative Law

-          Regulatory and

-          Commercial Law

Maurice is ranked in Chambers and Partners UK Bar Directory 2022 for Planning and Environmental Law, as he was in for 2021 also.  He is also ranked as a leading junior counsel for Employment Law in the 2022 edition of the Legal 500.

He has appeared before the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) and the SSSC, which is the body regulating social workers in Scotland.

Maurice has been a Legal Associate of the Royal Town Planning Institute since 1998.  He has conducted planning inquires for developers, objectors and local authorities in relation to a number of high-profile applications.  He has appeared on many occasions in the Scottish equivalent of the High Court and the Scottish Court of Appeal in relation to judicial review actions against planning authorities.

In August 2018, Maurice was admitted as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, having previously been a Member of that professional body, after passing the Fellowship Examination in Arbitral Practice and Procedure and Award Writing.

Maurice is ranked in the current Chambers and Partners UK Bar Directory 2022 for Planning and Environmental Law.  It describes him as a 'seasoned junior with a substantial background in planning and environmental law': "He is an able Counsel" (Chambers UK, 2022).

In the previous edition of Chambers and Partners UK Bar Directory, he was described as "very user-friendly" and "very experienced." (Chambers UK, 2021)

He is also ranked as a leading Junior for Employment and Property, Planning & Construction in the latest edition of the Legal 500, where he is described as "Very engaging and a proper team player." (Legal 500, 2022)

Maurice is a door tenant at 33 Bedford Row.

Direct Access

Maurice is accredited to accept work under the Direct Access Scheme, also known as the Public Access Scheme, in suitable cases.  In order to instruct Maurice on a Direct Access basis, contact the clerks on +44 (0) 20 7242 6476 or by emailing [email protected]

LLB (Hons) (2:1) University of Edinburgh 1988

Dip LP, University of Edinburgh 1989

Legal Associate of the Royal Town Planning Institute (LARTPI) 1998

Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (FCIArb) 2018

Awards & Prizes

Maurice O'Carroll's expertise has been recognised for many years in legal directories: the current Chambers and Partners UK Bar Guide 2021 describes him as a "Seasoned junior with a substantial background in planning and environmental law. Conducts planning inquiries, judicial reviews and appeals spanning various sectors including renewable energy and residential property development." and "very user-friendly." It goes on: "He is very experienced and doing a number of bigger inquiries". He has recently appeared on behalf of Argyll and Bute Council at the Blarghour wind farm inquiry to resist an application to develop 17 turbines on landscape and visual impact grounds."