Wilberforce Chambers‘ team continues to act on a broad range of property disputes, with mortgage litigation, commercial and residential landlord and tenant issues and development disputes being prominent in the group’s recent workload. Joanne Wicks KC and Daniel Petrides are acting in R (Annington Property Ltd & ors) v The Secretary of State for Defence, which is due to be heard by the Court of Appeal, concerning whether the MoD can reacquire a significant portfolio of properties via enfranchisement law. Jonathan Seitler KC and Alice Hawker appeared in Jalla v Shell, a Supreme Court case clarifying what constitutes a continuing nuisance following a major oil spill off the coast of Nigeria that damaged the appellant’s land. Jonathan Davey KC is highly regarded for his expertise in advising on property disputes involving tax issues. In July 2023 Mark Wonnacott KC retired from practice.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- 'Danny Smillie is the very best.'
- 'Andrew Barnes and Fraser Geddes are both top clerks with an excellent grasp of the markets within which they operate.'
- 'Wilberforce is an excellent property set with great quality barristers at all levels.'
- 'Wilberforce is an outstanding property set.'
- 'One of the best clerks' rooms out there. Efficient, clear, responsive.'
- 'Excellent real estate specialists.'
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.
Jonathan Seitler KC
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Jonathan is incredibly bright, astute, pragmatic and prudent.'
Joanne Wicks KC
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Joanne is at the top of the tree. She is excellent in every aspect.'
Martin Hutchings KC
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Martin is a first-rate advocate and the barrister you want in your corner on a big complex case. He has a reassuring presence and a calm advocacy style.'
Jonathan Davey KC
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Jonathan is everything one expects from a leading silk: he has impressive knowledge of numerous areas of law and a powerful court presence.’
Tiffany Scott KC
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Tiffany has a meticulous eye for detail, and her advice is comprehensible, practical and technical, ensuring clients are properly prepared to bring or defend a claim.’
Thomas Grant KC
Wilberforce Chambers
Julian Greenhill KC
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Julian has an excellent legal mind. He is a calm, measured and very effective advocate who carefully reads the room. He has a wonderful ability to dismantle and analyse legal concepts.'
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.
Emer Murphy
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Emer is a cut above. She slices through knotty issues like butter. She is refreshingly no-nonsense and her advice is measured and clear.'
Benjamin Faulkner
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Ben is technically brilliant, grasping complex issues with ease. He has very strong advocacy skills and can articulate arguments confidently, clearly and succinctly and doesn’t get fazed in difficult hearings.’
Harriet Holmes
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Her analysis of complex legal issues is clear and concise and she inspires confidence in clients. In court she is calm, confident and persuasive.’
James McCreath
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Very intelligent and responsive, a real team player and brilliant to work with. Strong on paper and his feet. More than a match for many KCs.'
Jonathan Chew
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Jonathan is a star junior. He is a property expert who comes up with clever solutions and robust strategies for cases. He is most impressive on his feet and an expert cross examiner.'
Alice Hawker
Wilberforce Chambers ‘A go-to junior for cases that straddle property and economic torts.’
Simon Atkinson
Wilberforce Chambers 'Simon's technical knowledge and grasp of the law is impressive. His advice always demonstrates both that and his keen attention to detail.'
Joseph Steadman
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Joe is extremely bright and very easy to work with. He combines an incisive intellect with an easy-going manner in conference.'
Daniel Petrides
Wilberforce Chambers ‘Daniel is personable and hardworking. A highly regarded junior.’
