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David Allison KC
South Square ‘David is a phenomenal advocate who instantly commands the respect of the bench. He masters the details but never fails to see the bigger picture.’
For the members of South Square, offshore mandates surrounding the financial services, insolvency and company law, and fraud-related disputes are key pillars of practice. The set boasts a strong bench of reputable silks, including David Allison KC, who is representing Aston Martin in a case surrounding a just and equitable winding up petition in the Jersey courts. Barry Isaacs KC has substantial knowledge of insolvency and banking and finance work, while Tom Smith KC is a specialist in offshore and funds work in the Cayman Islands; he acted for the claimants in Primeo Fund v HSBC, a $2bn claim regarding allegations of fraud and negligence against a former administrator and custodian. Felicity Toube KC has expertise in international proceedings and is especially experienced in major corporate restructurings. David Alexander KC is skilled in civil fraud cases, Glen Davis KC has notable expertise in litigation proceedings arising out of Gibraltar, and Richard Fisher KC frequently handles insolvency and commercial matters in the BVI, Cayman Islands, and Channel Islands. Jeremy Goldring KC is another key silk at the set handling banking and finance and company law matters. Making silk in the 2024 round, Adam Al-Attar KC is a key name to note in the insolvency and restructuring space. Amongst the set’s juniors, Clara Johnson has a particular strength in disputes with cross-border elements, especially those involving injunctive relief. She represented the joint liquidators in a case surrounding the collapse of a global construction company that had debts of $2bn (Joannou and Paraskevaides (Overseas) Limited (In Liquidation) v Dakis Joannou and others).
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- 'Dylan Playfoot is probably the best clerk in the business.'
- 'South Square's clerks are always easy to deal with and highly commercial; particular shout out to Tom Gibbons.'
- 'I have worked with Luke Barefoot for a number of years. He is very responsive and pleasant.'
- 'South Square's clerks are always easy to deal with and highly commercial; particular shout out to Luke Clark.'
- 'Excellent service. Luke Clark and Lewis Madle are very efficient and quick to respond.'
- 'Since I started to work with South Square, the set has grown considerably, but the level of service that you receive from the clerks, Dylan Playfoot in particular, has never faltered.'
- 'The South Square clerk team, lead by Dylan Playfoot, is very knowledgeable, professional and easy to deal with.'
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.
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Barry Isaacs KC
South Square ‘Barry is second-to-none at dealing with technical financial issues, particularly in respect of complex business valuations. His cross-examination is superbly incisive, and his written and oral advocacy is always perfectly measured and to the point.’
1
Tom Smith KC
South Square ‘One of the leading insolvency-focused silks. He’s responsive, commercial, thoughtful and strategic in his thinking.’
2
David Alexander KC
South Square ‘David is personable, very responsive and a favourite with clients. He is bright and prepared and a real team player, and he responds well on his feet.’
2
Felicity Toube KC
South Square ‘You cannot say enough good things about Felicity. She is exceptionally sharp, quick-witted, and responsive, and her writing and advocacy style is clear, forceful, and succinct.'
3
Aidan Casey KC
South Square ‘Aidan has an excellent communication style, providing clients with not only outstanding advice but in a manner which is easily understandable. Always calm and very quick to spot options in difficult situations.’
3
Richard Fisher KC
South Square ‘Richard’s strengths include well-structured submissions and clarity of advocacy, good at thinking on his feet, and reads the court well. He is treated with respect by judges and opponents.’
4
Daniel Bayfield KC
South Square ‘Daniel has an enviable ability to communicate complex legal and factual arguments in an engaging and pithy manner. He is also extremely charming and a pleasure to work with.’
4
Glen Davis KC
South Square ‘Glen is extremely bright, very pleasant to work with, extremely hands-on and detail-oriented, and very user friendly.’
4
Jeremy Goldring KC
South Square ‘Jeremy is a compelling advocate who builds an excellent rapport with the judge.’
4
Mark Phillips KC
South Square ‘Mark is a heavy-hitting and persuasive advocate, and really gets stuck in to a case.’
2024 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.
Adam Al-Attar KC
South Square ‘Adam has encyclopaedic knowledge of restructuring cases. He inspires absolute confidence in his reasoning and is a very persuasive advocate.’
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
Robert Amey
South Square ‘Robert is a dedicated and skilled barrister, who can quickly analyse large and complex sets of information and turn it into razor sharp commercial advice.'
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Toby Brown
South Square ‘Toby is the quintessential team player, and a very clever and diligent lawyer. He scours the haystack to find the winning argument needle.’
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Marcus Haywood
South Square ‘Marcus is very clear and methodical, both on his feet and in his written work. Extremely user-friendly, commercial and pragmatic, he combines technical ability and commercial nous.’
3
Clara Johnson
South Square ‘Clara is the best team member you could ever hope to add to your dispute. She is supremely capable, knows the law inside and out, has excellent judgement and is a pleasure to work with.’
3
Edoardo Lupi
South Square ‘Edoardo is incredibly hard working. He has an ability well beyond his years of experience to grab and understand the important points in a case, and is very client friendly.’
3
Henry Phillips
South Square ‘Henry is an exceptional advocate. He is incredibly intelligent and lightning-fast with his analytical skills, his advice is always first rate and expressed with tremendous care, and he is particularly good at breaking down very technical problems and producing a straightforward commercial strategy.’