6KBW College Hill

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

• 'Lizzie Labrum is one of the best clerks in the game. She is so proactive and is like a little busy bee making sure matters are covered, liaising with courts in the background and always going above and beyond to accommodate instructing solicitors. She is an absolute asset to 6KBW College Hill.'
• 'Mark Essex and Andrew Barnes form an exceptional clerking duo at the set. They demonstrate a strong commercial acumen, responsiveness, and are a delight to work with.'
• 'Mark Essex is a delight to work with and Andrew Barnes is arguably the most talented clerk in this field.'
• 'Andrew Barnes, Mark Essex, Richard Summerscales and Lizzie Labrum are a formidable team.'
• 'The best set of criminal chambers in the county with excellent barristers across the board.'
• '6KBW College Hill continues to be the best crime set in the country.'
• '6KBW is one of the pre-eminent sets at the criminal Bar especially when it comes to prosecution.'
• '6KBW College Hill is one one of the very best criminal sets. The silks are extremely respected and the juniors are outstanding. They are hugely respected by solicitors, other barristers and judiciary.'

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.

1

Duncan Atkinson KC

6KBW College Hill

 ‘Duncan is a top class advocate, strategist and lawyer. He is formidable in argument on paper; he is greatly admired by judges in legal argument orally; and he is a dangerously fair cross-examiner of defendants in the witness box. He has grown to be one of the most senior and effective prosecution advocates in the land, trusted with the most sensitive and complex prosecutions.’

1

Sasha Wass KC

6KBW College Hill

‘Sasha has a really excellent manner with clients – she is reassuring and explains things very clearly. Clients feel that she is fighting their corner. Her tactical advice is superb and she commands real respect in the courtroom.’

2

Simon Denison KC

6KBW College Hill

‘Simon is an astute prosecutor and does not take bad points. His cross-examination is always well judged and to the point. One could not ask for a fairer prosecutor.'

2

Alison Morgan KC

6KBW College Hill

2

John Ryder KC

6KBW College Hill

2

Annabel Darlow KC

6KBW College Hill

 ‘Annabel stands up to judges with confidence and clarity. If her argument is dismissed she will clearly tell a judge that she disagrees and explain why. At the end of that process the judge often changes his or her mind. She is forensic in cross-examination and uses all of the material at hand to present a complex case in a wonderfully simple manner.’

2

Duncan Penny KC

6KBW College Hill

‘Duncan is a man who knows criminal law inside out but can importantly assess the likely actions of the investigating and prosecuting authorities and anticipate them. He has crystalline clarity in his approach and analysis.’

3

Jacob Hallam KC

6KBW College Hill

 ‘Jacob is always across the detail of his cases. Judges trust him and his style is very jury friendly in that it is understated and always reasonable in a way which only serves to emphasise any good points he has to make.'

3

Gareth Patterson KC

6KBW College Hill

‘The way Gareth marshals and presents vast amounts of sensitive material is truly impressive. There is probably no harder working silk at the criminal bar. He is a first-choice silk for large, fact-heavy or evidence-dense cases as he can wade through oceans of material, and not miss a word.'

3

Louis Mably KC

6KBW College Hill

 ‘Louis is very a experienced and professional prosecutor who is always on top of the detail in his cases. He is able to present the case in a very jury friendly manner and is also a pleasure to deal with when discussing jury directions to form part of the summing up.'

3

Aftab Jafferjee KC

6KBW College Hill

‘Aftab cross-examines with flair and authority. He makes excellent legal submissions, takes good points and is a very attractive advocate.'

3

Tony Badenoch KC

6KBW College Hill

‘Tony is a very impressive advocate with sound judgement and a great work ethic. He is polite in the extreme, a commodity that isn’t always found in advocates these days, and his advocacy on legal matters is extremely impressive.’

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.

1

Alistair Richardson

6KBW College Hill

‘Alistair has rightly been appointed recently as junior Treasury Counsel, which reflects the serious work he undertakes and the skill with which he does it. He is respected by judges and his peers alike and it is only a matter of time until he is appointed KC. He is a stand-out practitioner.'

1

Peter Ratliff

6KBW College Hill

 ‘Peter is a totally class act and a pleasure to work with. He is fair but effective as Treasury Counsel as he will no doubt be in silk. He is direct and down to earth in his style which is particularly effective with juries.'

1

Paul Jarvis

6KBW College Hill

 ‘Paul is an exceptional barrister. He is highly intelligent and has a genuine academic interest in the law. His legal arguments are therefore invariably well-researched and profound. As an advocate he is calm and measured. His submissions are so much more effective for this. He has the total respect of judges and fellow professionals.'

2

Ben Lloyd

6KBW College Hill

‘Ben is calm and clever,  firm but fair. He is the perfect prosecutor.'

2

Denis Barry

6KBW College Hill

‘Denis is one of the gentlemen of the criminal Bar. He is intellectual, persuasive, and has a glorious manner with juries.’

3

Simon Ray

6KBW College Hill

 ‘Simon is extremely calm and unflappable. He is very good with clients. His trial and tactical judgement is superb. He acts in the most serious and complex of cases and is a go-to senior junior.'

3

Esther Schutzer-Weissmann

6KBW College Hill

‘Esther is a superb lawyer, known for her thoughtful, strategic, and resilient approach. With extensive experience and technical expertise, she remains composed and strategic in her dealings.'

3

Adam Payter

6KBW College Hill

‘Adam is very bright and hard-working and is also very engaging as an advocate. His written legal arguments are clear and well researched and his jury presentation is also excellent. He is a fierce cross-examiner.'

3

Lucy Organ

6KBW College Hill

‘Lucy is first-rate barrister. She is fair and pragmatic as a prosecutor, but with a forensic attention to detail. Her advocacy is persuasive, but always calm and controlled.'

4

Thomas Williams

6KBW College Hill

'Tom is a walking encyclopaedia when it comes to matters of criminal law. His knowledge is phenomenal, especially when it comes to developments in the law and case law.'

4

Lyndon Harris

6KBW College Hill

'Lyndon is calm in his delivery but incredibly bright so his legal arguments and general criminal knowledge of procedure is brilliant. His sentencing knowledge is unrivalled and he is well respected by judges. Clients like him as well.'

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.

Alex Du Sautoy

6KBW College Hill

‘Alex is fiercely intelligent, with a calm and composed oral advocacy style. He drafts comprehensive and persuasive written submissions, and has a very good forensic approach to both the law and the facts in a case.’