Garden Court Chambers is praised as ‘the go-to set for quality advice and representation in immigration law’. The set fields expertise in the full range of claimant-side immigration work including asylum and international protection, human rights, trafficking, family and children and business immigration, including appearing in front of all courts such as the Court of Appeal, the Supreme Court and the European Court of Human Rights. Multiple barristers have notable capabilities handling national security cases before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission. Sonali Naik KC led Mark Symes, Eva Doerr, Isaac Ricca-Richardson, Adrian Berry and Ella Gunn in AAA and others v SSHD, the high-profile challenge to the previous government’s policy of transferring irregular arrivals to Rwanda, in which Ali Bandegani and Raza Halim were also involved in separate teams. Stephanie Harrison KC, Gordon Lee and Alex Schymyck were recently involved in the Brook House Inquiry looking into the mistreatment and abuse of detainees at Brook House Immigration Removal Centre. With extensive experience in cases relating to the Afghanistan Relocation and Assistance Programme, Nicola Braganza KC and Maria Moodie acted for a senior Supreme Court judge (prior to the Taliban’s takeover of the country) in Afghanistan in a judicial review of the refusal to grant settlement under the scheme, and Duran Seddon KC is also active in this space. Gemma Loughran, as was, is now an Upper Tribunal judge.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • 'Harriet Massie and Lisa O'Leary are fantastic - personable, efficient and understanding of what solicitors require from chambers.'
  • 'Clerks are excellent, very responsive and always available to assist. I would give particular recommendation to Harriet Massie, who has been invaluable at finding counsel to assist at short notice.'
  • 'The clerks are brilliant - always available at a moment's notice to speak.'
  • 'Garden Court is, and always has been, the go-to set for quality advice and representation in immigration law.'
  • 'They are the best in immigration, asylum and human rights law.'
  • 'Strong range and depth of experience on immigration matters.'
  • 'Garden Court are excellent at detention work.'
  • 'Garden Court are probably the leading human rights set, particularly in the field of immigration law.'

Silks

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.
3
Bojana Asanovic
Garden Court Chambers
3
Ubah Dirie
Garden Court Chambers
'Ubah is an extraordinarily persuasive advocate. Her advocacy is very clear and precise and she effectively guides judges through the issues in the case.'
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.
Eva Doerr
Garden Court Chambers
‘Eva is extremely knowledgeable, and always thinks outside the box. She has a wealth of experience across a broad range of immigration and public law areas.'
Isaac Ricca-Richardson
Garden Court Chambers
‘Very thorough and always able to advise on steps to be taken by instructing solicitors which may assist a case.'
Alex Schmyck
Garden Court Chambers
'Alex is a diligent, extremely intelligent and talented advocate, who is able to think on his feet. He is also extremely adaptable and able think creatively in finding solutions to difficult legal arguments.'