Region Area

Barristers

Claire Physsas

Claire Physsas

Work Department

Personal ImmigrationBusiness ImmigrationPublic LawModern Slavery & Trafficking Team

Direct Access

Position

Call: 2004

Career

Claire specialises in Immigration, Public Law, Community Care, Modern Slavery and Trafficking. She is currently ranked in Legal 500 as a leading junior immigration practitioner. She has been “Recommended for trafficking cases”. She is instructed at all levels of the immigration and asylum process and in judicial review proceedings.

Claire regularly appears before the Administrative Court, and the First-Tier and Upper Tribunals of the Immigration and Asylum Chamber and the Court of Appeal. Claire often advises at the initial stages of cases in respect of applications made to the Secretary of State.

She is highly experienced in representing asylum-seekers and victims of Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking. She has been involved in a number of test cases and obtained positive outcomes for her clients. Claire is committed to representing vulnerable clients and often acts in cases involving individuals with mental health issues and children.

She advises on accommodation and support issues on behalf of immigrants, asylum-seekers, refugees and victims of trafficking, including children.

She provides expert immigration advice in proceedings before the Family courts.

She has an established practice in challenging as unlawful detention by the Secretary of State and in claiming damages before the County Court.

Claire has considerable expertise in Family Immigration cases. She regularly represents EEA nationals and their family members.

Claire has experience in Business Immigration and is able to provide specialist advice to solicitors, businesses and workers.

Alongside her practice, Claire works as a Training Consultant for the Anti-Trafficking and Labour Exploitation Unit (ATLEU) delivering training on the legal rights and entitlements of victims of modern slavery: https://atleu.org.uk/who-we-are

Claire has been involved in international work, representing asylum-seekers and refugees, including children, residing in the UK’s Sovereign Base Areas (“SBAs”) in the Republic of Cyprus. In 2011 she appeared before the Appeal Court of the SBAs.

She has an extensive background in Human Rights Law. Prior to practising at the Bar, she completed a ‘stage’ at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg in 2005. She undertook internships at the International Criminal Court in the Hague in 2004 and at the NGOs Justice and Redress in London in 2003.

She also worked as a paralegal on Criminal and Terrorism cases, in particular the 21/07/2005 Terrorism Case. At the Bar she has extensive experience in Deportation and other immigration cases involving a cross-over with Crime.

Languages

Greek (fluent), French (intermediate) and Italian (basic)

Memberships

ILPA Electronic Immigration Network Human Rights Lawyers Association Bar Human Rights Committee

Education

LLM in Human Rights Law King’s College London 2004-2005 LLB King’s College London 2000-2003

Scholarships: Peter Duffy Scholarship for a ‘stage’ at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg Lincoln’s Inn 2005 Hardwicke Scholarship Lincoln’s Inn 2003-2004

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