Garden Court is recognised as one of the leading chambers in the UK specialising in civil liberties and human rights. We are highly ranked in both the Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners for our expertise in this area of law and we have a large number of individual barrister rankings, including Band 1 rankings.
Over 40 years ago, Garden Court Chambers was founded on a commitment to hold state agents to account and promote fundamental human rights and freedoms. These principles are reflected throughout our work and embodied in our motto, ‘Do right, fear no-one’.
Garden Court Chambers were shortlisted for the Civil Liberties and Human Rights Set of the Year Award 2020 by the Legal 500.
the work we do
We have a proud history of winning contested cases on behalf of claimants in domestic, pan-European and international courts. Our cases have advanced the law and we have overturned great injustices in landmark, often controversial decisions, including the Hillsborough inquests, the suspension of the Detained Fast Track for asylum-seekers and the Supreme Court case on anonymity for detained mental health patients.
We are instructed on high profile cases such as the Grenfell Inquiry, the Undercover Policing Inquiry and the Child Sexual Abuse Inquiry.
Working with our public law barristers, we also bring related judicial review challenges to individual decisions made by public bodies as well as wider public law and human rights challenges to published policy.
Garden Court Chambers won the Human Rights and Public Law Set of the Year Award at the Chambers Bar Awards 2016. Our team includes those who have been shortlisted and won awards such as the Liberty Human Rights Award and the Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards.
our expertise
Garden Court’s strength lies in our inter-disciplinary expertise. As the largest chambers in London with over 180 barristers, we can offer an unrivalled breadth and depth of related expertise from our core civil liberties practice areas: claims against the police and public authorities, inquests and inquiries, prison law and immigration detention civil claims.
our commitment to civil liberties and human rights
Our civil liberties and human rights barristers have long worked with campaigning and other organisations such as INQUEST, Liberty, JUSTICE, Just for Kids Law, and the British Institute of Human Rights. A number of barristers are approved counsel for the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
In addition, every member of chambers contributes to a ‘Special Fund’, which provides financial support for smaller organisations to carry out legal, campaigning or charitable work in defence of civil liberties, human rights and social justice.
The Team
Stephanie Harrison QC
Year of Call: 1991
Year of Silk: 2013
Henry Blaxland QC
Year of Call: 1978
Year of Silk: 2002
Dexter Dias QC
Year of Call: 1988
Year of Silk: 2009
Ali Bajwa QC
Year of Call: 1993
Year of Silk: 2011
Rajiv Menon QC
Year of Call: 1993
Year of Silk: 2011
Peter Wilcock QC
Year of Call: 1988
Year of Silk: 2012
Marc Willers QC
Year of Call: 1987
Year of Silk: 2014
Leslie Thomas QC
Year of Call: 1988
Year of Silk: 2014
Amanda Weston QC
Year of Call: 1995
Year of Silk: 2018
Brenda Campbell QC
Year of Call: 2002
Year of Silk: 2018
Patrick Roche
Year of Call: 1977
Christopher Williams
Year of Call: 1988
Stephen Simblet
Year of Call: 1991
Nicola Braganza
Year of Call: 1992
Helen Curtis
Year of Call: 1992
Allison Munroe
Year of Call: 1992
Rajeev Thacker
Year of Call: 1993
Sean Horstead
Year of Call: 1996
Maya Sikand
Year of Call: 1997
Jacqueline Vallejo
Year of Call: 1997
Nick Wrack
Year of Call: 1997
Emma Favata
Year of Call: 1999
Sam Parham
Year of Call: 2000
Marina Sergides
Year of Call: 2000
Felicity Williams
Year of Call: 2000
Kate Aubrey-Johnson
Year of Call: 2001
Tim Baldwin
Year of Call: 2001
Irena Sabic
Year of Call: 2002
Abigail Smith
Year of Call: 2003
Joanne Cecil
Year of Call: 2005
Stephen Marsh
Year of Call: 2005
Sarah Hemingway
Year of Call: 2006
Shu Shin Luh
Year of Call: 2006
Alex Grigg
Year of Call: 2007
Kirsten Heaven
Year of Call: 2007
Richard Reynolds
Year of Call: 2007
Shahida Begum
Year of Call: 2008
James Mehigan
Year of Call: 2008
Thalia Maragh
Year of Call: 2009
Jacob Bindman
Year of Call: 2010
Paul Clark
Year of Call: 2010
Owen Greenhall
Year of Call: 2010
Taimour Lay
Year of Call: 2011
Ifeanyi Odogwu
Year of Call: 2011
Tom Stoate
Year of Call: 2011
Una Morris
Year of Call: 2012
Susan Wright
Year of Call: 2013
Stephen Clark
Year of Call: 2013
Miranda Butler
Year of Call: 2013
Laura Profumo
Year of Call: 2016
Tihomir Mak
Year of Call: 2016
Franck Magennis
Year of Call: 2016
Camila Zapata Besso
Year of Call: 2016
Associate Members
Mark George QC
Year of Call: 1976
Year of Silk: 2009
Anna Morris
Year of Call: 2006
Terry McGuinness
Year of Call: 2009
