Thomas de la Mare KC
Blackstone Chambers 'Tom is innovative, forceful, good on his feet, humorous and a pleasure to work with.'
Blackstone Chambers is ‘one of the best-regarded sets at the Bar’, with members regularly representing regulators and challenging applicants in complex enforcement cases before the CAT. Hanif Mussa KC acted for the defendants in Granville Technology Group & Ors v LG Display, a follow-on damages claim brought by a group of computer retailers that saw only the third ever cartel damages judgment given by a UK court. Brian Kennelly KC, Tristan Jones KC and Jason Pobjoy all appeared in Volkswagen AG & BMW v CMA, with the High Court’s judgment in favour of the car manufacturers regarding the extraterritorial scope of the Competition Act 1998 being overturned by the Court of Appeal in January.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- 'The clerks are always easy to reach and helpful. Dean Tolman in particular is always very helpful.'
- 'The clerking team epitomise professionalism.'
- 'The clerks are friendly, responsive and deliver a professional service.'
- 'The clerks are helpful and responsive when needed, and flexible with providing availabilities on short notice.'
- 'Super set of chambers, one of the best. They have a deep bench of brilliant silks and juniors.'
- 'Blackstone have a strong cadre of competition silks and juniors, but the greater diversity of the practice areas as against certain other chambers in this area means its members often have a wider skill set, and stronger advocacy skills, that they can bring to bear.'
- 'Blackstone is undoubtedly one of the top sets for complex commercial litigation and increasingly is seen as a go to set for competition litigation.'
- 'Blackstone is a first rate set generally and for competition in particular.'
Silks
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.
Brian Kennelly KC
Blackstone Chambers ‘Brian is right at the top of the competition Bar. He is a tremendous advocate who combines for precision, authority and charm brilliantly. He is the most client-friendly silk in this area.’
Kieron Beal KC
Blackstone Chambers ‘Kieron is a full package – he is a stellar advocate, very hard working and is across all of the detail. He is a team player who encourages juniors to share the advocacy with him, excellent with clients and highly commercial.’
James Segan KC
Blackstone Chambers ‘James has a huge depth of experience and encyclopaedic knowledge of the application of competition law.’
Hanif Mussa KC
Blackstone Chambers ‘Hanif has an excellent ability to cut through to the most important issues in the case. He will prioritise – ruthlessly if needs be – to ensure that the points most in need of airtime get the exposition that they deserve. His advocacy style is clear, measured, and inspires confidence in the correctness of his position.’
2024 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.
Tristan Jones KC
Blackstone Chambers ‘Tristan is very bright and personable, an excellent lawyer and draftsman with a particularly high attention to detail. He will undoubtedly be one of the best of the new silks specialising in competition law.’
Juniors
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.
Paul Luckhurst
Blackstone Chambers 'Paul has a formidable intellect. His written work is crisp and persuasive and he is excellent at rapidly digesting complex problems, and providing well-reasoned, commercial advice. He is superb with clients.'
Emily Neill
Blackstone Chambers ‘Emily’s expertise in competition law is truly remarkable. Her diligence is unparalleled, and her advice consistently reflects a deep and thoughtful understanding of the subject matter. As an advocate, she exudes a compelling and commanding presence, conveying a sense of wisdom and maturity that surpasses her years of experience.’
Naina Patel
Blackstone Chambers 'Naina's advocacy is measured, persuasive and highly effective. She is an excellent lawyer, very analytical and a pleasure to work with.'
Tom Coates
Blackstone Chambers ‘Tom is an incredibly thoughtful barrister and gives careful consideration to all aspects of the instruction. His written advocacy is always of an excellent standard and he clearly understands and is across all aspects of his cases. He performs well on his feet against KCs with significantly more experience.’
Rising stars
Rising stars at the Bar are defined as barristers between four and eight years’ call who are seen as up-and-coming members of the Bar in their respective practice areas by clients and peers alike. They will already be instructed in high-profile, complex, and high-value contentious and non-contentious matters, working with and opposite more experienced leading counsel.
Isabel Buchanan
Blackstone Chambers ‘Isabel is a fantastic junior to have on the team. She is commercially driven and understands what is important to the client. She is technically excellent and detail orientated. Her oral advocacy is succinct and effective.’