‘Excellent in terms of administrative and human rights law’ 39 Essex Chambers has a range of ’extremely committed and clever counsel’ at the silk and junior level, and are regularly instructed in major administrative law matters. ‘The best of the best when it comes to judicial review’, Jenni Richards KC represented the claimant in R (Clifford) v SSWP, a challenge to the consultation process on changes to the Work Capability Assessment, and Katherine Apps KC recently led for the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers in a challenge to the introduction of sub-six-figure personal injury and clinical negligence claims – the matter settled. Emily Wilsdon undertook oral advocacy as part of the government team in the aforementioned Clifford v DWP case. Saara Idelbi and Sam Fowles joined the team in August 2025.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

'Chambers are responsive, welcoming and very easy to work with. Chambers are flexible and attentive when considering requests for counsel and training. '
'The chambers are excellent in terms of administrative and human rights law. The availability of high quality counsel is always excellent.'

Lawyers

Leading Silks

KCs at the very top of their field, with a long-established record of market-defining cases, and widespread endorsement from clients and peers. All silks appointed in the last two rounds are listed further below.

Jenni Richards KC

‘Jenni is a complete superstar. Written advice is brilliant. She is an extremely well prepared advocate with a thoroughly and detailed understanding of the medical profession and the regulatory context in which it operates. This preparation makes her an outstanding advocate.’

Alan Payne KC

‘An outstanding counsel who know this area of law inside out and who has an excellent manner with clients.’

Vikram Sachdeva KC

'Vikram is a tenacious and effective advocate who has a deep interest in administrative and public law, and is always up-to-date with recent developments.'

2024 Silks

Colin Thomann KC

2026 Silks

Rose Grogan KC

Leading Juniors

Leading juniors are those with significant experience of key cases, strong market recognition from both peers and clients, and are seen as future candidates for silk.

Katherine Barnes

'Katherine has a refreshingly ordered approach to her work, which is a blessing in urgent judicial reviews. She's able to grapple with novel and complex issues as and when they arise and appears unflappable in the face of challenging cases.'

Stephanie David

‘Stephanie has an incredible attention to detail and a first rate legal brain, which is a powerful combination, especially on complex public law cases. She is a brilliant junior in that she takes work off the silk and produces pleadings and advice which need little review.’

Arianna Kelly

‘Responsive, sensitive to client’s needs, understands how judges and tribunals think, and anticipates the issues. Written advocacy is clear and persuasive, and her manner with the client and opponents, including difficult opposing parties, is excellent.’

Scarlett Milligan

'Scarlett is a talented public lawyer. She is hard working and detail oriented. She is able to get on top of large volumes of material very quickly and to cut through to the heart of an issue. Her submissions are persuasive, well-structured and comprehensive, and she has a fantastic manner with judges.'

Tom Tabori

‘Tom is really enthusiastic and extremely intelligent. He is not afraid of working on unusual cases. His written work is exceptional, his oral submissions powerful and he is really easy to work with.’

Benjamin Tankel

‘Benjamin is an extremely hard-working advocate who quickly gets to the heart of matters and drills down into key issues very quickly. He is exceedingly easy to work with and communicates well with all clients. Ben’s advocacy is very skilled, drawing the judge into the arguments without dramatics or repetition.’

Emily Wilsdon

‘Emily is a true public lawyer. She is clever, conscientious and really cares about what she does. She has a fantastic manner with clients and judges really listen to her. She has a wealth of experience in public law. She will undoubtedly be a future leader of the public law Bar.’

Adam Boukraa

‘Perceptive, conscientious, and quick. Detailed research. Quick to spot and resolve issues.’

Ruth Keating

‘Ruth is simply fantastic, she is wonderful to work with, incredibly proactive and goes above and beyond in terms of providing support to her instructing solicitors. Her legal analysis is exemplary, she is incisive and gets to the heart of the issue quickly and clearly. She is also pragmatic in her advice, demonstrating a clear understanding of the client’s objectives and using that to guide her advice.’

Nicola Kohn

Saara Idelbi

‘Her approach to documents is forensic, her advice is technical but straightforward, clients love her robust approach to their cases and her advocacy is a master class in quiet preparation. A truly class act.’

Sam Fowles

‘Sam is very quick on his feet, putting his points in a clear, structured, impactful way that carries considerable force. His insights go to the core of the issues, which is also greatly appreciated by those who instruct him. He impressively balances being an objective advisor with passionate advocacy.’

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39 Essex Chambers

England - London Bar

Administrative law and human rights