Insolvency

South Square

Noted as being one of the ‘leading restructuring and insolvency sets,’ South Square barristers specialise in high-profile matters, with experience both in domestic and cross-border cases across a range of services including litigation, special administration and restructuring plans. Mark Phillips KC has appeared on numerous cross-border cases including Nuoxi Capital Lt v Peking University Founder Group, which saw him act for the liquidator of Nuoxi Capital and argued that the liabilities under the Keepwell deeds are contractual liabilities, giving rise to a right to prove in PUFG’s reorganisation. Felicity Toube KC appears regularly in restructuring and litigation cases in the Cayman Islands, BVI, Bermuda and ADGM, and Georgina Peters acts on high value schemes of arrangement and restructuring plans. Charlotte Cooke is noted for her cross-border practice, with expertise of financial services issues arising in insolvencies. Adam Al Attar KC was appointed silk earlier in 2024, while Joseph Curl KC and Rory Brown joined the set from 9 Stone Buildings, prior to that set’s collapse.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

'South Square are the leading restructuring and insolvency set. They have terrific quality across the board in that area.'
'The clerks are extremely helpful, and always willing to listen to clients' views.'
'Marco Malatesta is dependable, supportive to the set\'s clients and a great leader of the clerks' room.'
'The Clerks are terrific and responsive. Dylan Playfoot is great to deal with and runs a very tight ship.'
'Very helpful clerks room.'

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.

David Allison KC

South Square

‘David is the most experienced barrister in the market when it comes to schemes/restructuring plans. He is a leading authority and his views carry real weight in the courtroom. He combines his terrific legal brain with a very amenable personality and commercial mindset, which makes him very user-friendly.’

‘Mark is at the top of the list for court-based complex work. He is an exceptional advocate with a great instinct of how to present a case to the court. He works well with a good junior and his honing into the issues and mind for solutions are first rate. He knows what a court wants to hear about a case and, more importantly, what it doesn’t.’

David Alexander KC

South Square

‘David is the perfect choice for contentious insolvency and fraud: he has all of the technical knowledge, but also has the robustness required for a serious fight.'

Daniel Bayfield KC

South Square

‘Daniel is excellent and is the obvious go-to KC for investment bank insolvencies and schemes of arrangement with anything unusual or difficult about them. He is an excellent advocate and can deal with whatever is thrown at him.’

Richard Fisher KC

South Square

‘A very impressive silk: Richard is very bright and knows insolvency like the back of his hand. An excellent choice for anything with a financial services angle, in particular.’

Tom Smith KC

South Square

‘The best restructuring and insolvency silk by some distance. Excellent advocate, excellent technical and tactical advice. Always available. Top class.’

Mark Arnold KC

South Square

‘Mark is excellent and is one of my go-to barristers for insolvency and company work. He has an incredible knowledge of insolvency and company law and conveys a calm authority in the courtroom that gives the judge confidence in his submissions and in his client’s position.’

Glen Davis KC

South Square

‘Literally wrote the book. Authoritative, friendly, a first choice for insolvency.’

Barry Isaacs KC

South Square

‘Barry is methodical in his preparation and analysis of all facets of the case, identifying potential issues before they arise and mitigating effectively with excellent commercial awareness to ensure the best outcome for the client.’

Joseph Curl KC

South Square

‘Joe is an outstanding chancery barrister, his expertise is second to none, his written work is of the highest quality and his advocacy skills are exceptional, both in cross-examination and when making legal submissions.’

‘Stephen is incredibly clever and able to absorb huge amounts of information in very short periods and deliver analysis that is pithy, solves problems and is commercially astute. Stephen is a brilliant tactician and excellent on his feet; setting traps for the unwary opponent.’

2024 Silks

Adam Al-Attar KC

South Square

‘Adam has an excellent knowledge of restructuring law and very deep experience of investment bank insolvencies and schemes of arrangement. Taking silk this year is a natural next step in the progress of this star of the insolvency Bar.’

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.

William Willson

South Square

‘William is passionate about his work and is extremely engaging to work with. He helped us achieve great results in difficult circumstances.’

Georgina Peters

South Square

‘Georgina is a very capable junior. She is really clever and thorough.’

Henry Phillips

South Square

'Henry is a brilliantly technical lawyer; he understands all of the detail and nuances of an issue and is able to distil complex analysis in a way that is easily communicated to clients.'

Marcus Haywood

South Square

‘Marcus is extremely bright, user-friendly, personable and commercial. Marcus also has a calm and methodical manner when on his feet.’

Matthew Abraham

South Square

‘Matthew is an excellent barrister with strong analytical skills, deep knowledge of restructuring and insolvency law and calm and composed manner. He is excellent in court, quick-witted and commands the respect of the judge as well as opposing counsel. A KC in the making.’

Robert Amey

South Square

‘Robert is calm, bright, well-prepared and tenacious. He lends his experience to situations well and is a barrister to whom a client listens (which is more rare than you would expect).’

Charlotte Cooke

South Square

‘Charlotte is an extremely competent and reliable senior junior. She has a calm and authoritative manner and is never wrong. Judges like her understated yet firm style.’

Clara Johnson

South Square

‘Clara is a specialist in world-class drafting. She routinely turns in word-perfect briefs that balance comprehensiveness and conciseness. She also boasts an impressively strategic mind.’

Edoardo Lupi

South Square

‘Edoardo is a pleasure to work with, produces consistently excellent work and is a brilliant addition to any counsel team. He is a star of the future.’

Lloyd Tamlyn

South Square

‘Lloyd is a very technical barrister, with a very detailed knowledge of insolvency and associated law. He drafts well and is clear and concise in his advice. He wins his cases by being brighter and more knowledgeable than his opponents. His advocacy is convincing.’

Oliver Hyams

South Square

‘Engaging and approachable with a technical eye for detail while aware of the overall strategic objectives of a case.’

Andrew Shaw

South Square

‘Andrew is a great team player and always makes himself available to discuss the many and various issues that arise.’

‘Hannah is a strong tactician who pro-actively manages the case each step of the way through to the final hearing. She complements her forensic advocacy with strategic advice in case management.’

Philip Judd

South Square

‘Very user-friendly and an expert in insolvency.’

Rory Brown

South Square

‘Very user-friendly. Able to turn to matters quickly. Great manner with judges. Very helpful, commercial strategic input.’

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.

Daniel Judd

South Square

‘Daniel is very bright. His written work is very good. He is nice to deal with.’

Rabin Kok

South Square

‘Rabin is simply a remarkable junior. He is extremely accurate, sensible and hard-working.’