The Bar - Regional Bar • Midland Circuit
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Clinical negligence

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No5 Barristers' Chambers

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Recognised by clients as ‘the leader in the field of clinical negligence in the Midlands’, No5 Barristers’ Chambers fields a strong team of specialists with wide experience ranging from brain and spinal injury cases to dental negligence matters. The ’extremely personable’ Gemma Roberts is particularly strong handling gynaecological, oncological, orthopaedic, and birth injury cases. Mamta Gupta specialises in mental health suicide cases as well as birth injury cases. Neil Shastri-Hurst is now Member of Parliament for Solihull West and Shirley. Karl Hirst left practice in August 2024.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • 'Will Theaker is a brilliant clerk and a pleasure to deal with.'
  • 'The clerks provide an excellent service, they are all extremely approachable and try to find practical solutions to timetabling issues. Will Theaker, Pete Mottram and Tracey Witherford are very good.'
  • 'No 5 is an excellent set from a clinical negligence point of view. They have a number of highly experienced and skilled counsel.
  • 'No 5 Chambers is the leader in the field in the Midlands. The breadth of specialists on offer is formidable.'
  • 'One of the very best chambers for clinical negligence work. Clerks are really helpful and on the very odd occasion your choice of barrister is not available they always find a suitable alternative. They offer great training and networking events provide opportunities to meet the next generation of counsel, providing options in lower value cases.'
  • 'No 5 are without doubt a stellar set in the Midlands with a broad Clinical Negligence offering. They offer regular training opportunities and the recent more junior additions to the team further enhances their service and ensures that the appropriate level of counsel (both in terms of fees and experience) are allocated to cases.'

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.
John Coughlan KC
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
 ‘John is a brilliant barrister and one of the best around. He is exceptional with clients and deals with complex issues with ease. He is the go-to barrister on all clinical negligence cases and a real pleasure to work with.'
David Tyack KC
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
'David is extremely approachable, easy to work with and very intelligent. He puts clients at ease and explains legal concepts to them in a way that is easy for them to follow, but not condescending. He is empathetic in the way that he deals with clients and is a highly experienced advocate.'
Chris Bright KC
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
‘Chris is very experienced and is an expert in the field. He puts clients at ease and is very thorough and thoughtful. He scrutinises evidence to ensure maximum benefit to cases and has a collegiate approach to progressing cases as well.'
Jonathan Jones KC
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
 ‘Jonathan is an excellent barrister with a forensic approach who quickly identifies the crux of a case. He is very approachable and builds great rapport with clients and medical experts. He has strong advocacy skills and is excellent in negotiations, achieving the best outcome for his clients.'
Henry Pitchers KC
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
 ‘Henry is one of the strongest silks around. He approaches his work with energy, intellect, attention to detail, pragmatism, and clarity. Clients respond very well to him and he gets the best from experts.'
Paul Bleasdale KC
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
‘Paul’s experience in the catastrophic injury field is second-to-none. He will fight even the most difficult of cases and is usually successful. His strong relationship with the judiciary is a real asset in his advocacy – judges trust him. His sense of humour and relaxed approach with clients means that they can engage fully with Paul and their case is presented more effectively as a result.’

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.
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Esther Gamble
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
 ‘Esther is an exceptionally intelligent barrister with very high levels of attention to detail. She is thorough, detailed and impressive on paper, in conference, and in court.  She has a wonderful manner with clients, who are often very vulnerable, and she is able to carefully and methodically unpick cases.'
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Jamie Gamble
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
 ‘Jamie is methodical, pragmatic and empathetic with excellent attention to detail and bedside manners. He is able to drill down into the issues of a case and strike a balance between client care and narrowing the case with experts. His advocacy skills are exemplary.'
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Richard Grimshaw
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
'Richard has an exceptionally keen eye for detail. His thorough approach and dedication to getting the best outcome comes through in everything he does. He cares deeply about clients and keeps them at the heart of every case. He is always approachable. He takes the time to talk through cases and is an excellent listener.'
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Gemma Roberts
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
 ‘Gemma is an incredible barrister. She is approachable and accessible. She is thorough with a keen eye for detail and gets to grips with cases with ease. She also has an excellent way of dealing with experts and clients really like her. Gemma is a very safe pair of hands her judgement and advice can be trust completely. She is a go-to barrister.'
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Mamta Gupta
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
‘Mamta is exceptionally strong on the details of a case and meticulous in her preparation. She also has a lovely manner with clients and experts alike. She is a go-to barrister.'
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Stephen Goodfellow
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
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Jodie Kembery
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
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Rebecca Livesey
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
 ‘Rebecca is a great junior barrister and a pleasure to work with. She is able to hold her own on complex cases and has a brilliant manner with clients. Her team leading is very strong and her written work is concise and to the point.’
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Teresa Hargreaves
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
‘Teresa is approachable and down-to-earth. She is easy to work with and is technically strong. She has good client care skills but can be forthright in her advice when required.’
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.
Thomas Beasley
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
‘Tom is a really promising junior. His drafting, ability to question experts and client care is impressive. He has the ability to read a room very well and is very knowledgeable and through when it comes to providing advice. Tom is always very well-prepared in conference and that shows in his advocacy.’
Louisa Sherlock
No5 Barristers’ Chambers
‘Louisa’s background in dentistry provides invaluable insights in relation to dental negligence claims. She is excellent in conference and forensic in her approach as well as an excellent advocate who gets to grips with issues very quickly. She is also compassionate with clients who are facing very difficult and sensitive issues.’