Nadia O'Mara

Year of Call: 2018

“I have instructed Nadia in complex cases, involving clients with learning difficulties and mental health issues and her work on these cases was excellent. She quickly established rapport with them and had great empathy that went beyond just doing her job. She is meticulous in her preparation and her written work is excellent”.

Solicitor Client

Nadia “not only understands the applicable law and policy with technical ease, but clearly grasps and understands the traumas suffered by our vulnerable client base … Her attention to detail was exceptional, and the legal and factual written arguments detailed in the skeleton argument was on a par with many experienced counsel we have instructed. I was particularly impressed with this considering her year of call.”

Solicitor Client

“I was tremendously impressed not only by the excellence of Nadia’s work but by her dedication to the case and willingness to go above and beyond her duties in order to achieve a fair and sustainable solution for our client.”

Solicitor Client

Contact

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Nadia is a public law practitioner. Her work focuses on immigration & asylum, community care, education, human rights, and anti-discrimination.

She has particular expertise in migrants’ rights, regularly acting in judicial review proceedings relating to unlawful detention, age disputes, asylum support, support under the Care Act 2014, support for victims of trafficking and challenges to certification/ fresh claim decisions.

Prior to coming to the Bar, Nadia worked in the human rights sector at leading UK non-governmental organisations, Liberty, and JUSTICE. She welcomes and is regularly instructed by NGOs, including advisory and strategic work.

Alongside her judicial review work, Nadia appears in immigration appeals in the First-tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal. She takes a trauma-informed approach to her practice and has extensive experience working with children and adults at risk.

Asylum & Immigration

Nadia has a strong background in immigration law. Prior to coming to the Bar, she qualified as an IAAS Senior Immigration Caseworker and worked for two years providing legal advice and assistance to migrants in Greece and Calais, France. Nadia has expertise across the full spectrum of statutory appeals, including asylum, deportation, deprivation, EUSS and human rights appeals. She welcomes instructions at the earliest stage and is always keen to work with her instructing solicitor to assist with evidence preparation and negotiation with the Home Office.

Nadia has a particular interest in issues arising in the context of immigration detention. She is regularly instructed in unlawful detention claims and applications for immigration bail. She takes a holistic approach to advice and representation, drawing on her expertise in immigration, human rights, and community care to secure positive outcomes for clients. She takes a trauma-informed approach to her practice and is trained in psychological first aid. 

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Administrative and Public Law

Nadia’s judicial review work cuts across her multi-disciplinary practice, drawing on her strong academic and policy background, teaching administrative law at UCL and working with organisations, including Liberty and JUSTICE. She accepts judicial review instructions in all areas of immigration law, unlawful detention, community care and education law. She regularly acts, led and unled, in highly complex claims concerning the interplay between these areas.

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Community Care Law

Nadia has a busy and successful community care practice. She regularly acts in age dispute challenges on behalf of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children and in matters involving the entitlement of children and adults to support under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, Children Act 1989, and Care Act 2014. Nadia has particular expertise on the interplay between the duties of the Home Office to accommodate asylum seekers and migrants, and the obligations on local authorities to provide care and support under the Care Act 2014. She recently acted for a disabled asylum-seeking client in a successful judicial review challenge to a local authority’s refusal to accommodate him and his family, led by Gráinne Mellon.

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Education Law

Nadia has an extensive education law practice. She is regularly instructed in SEND Tribunal appeals relating to Education, Health and Care Plans, and has experience in running – and securing settlement – in disability discriminations claims in the First-tier Tribunal.

She has particular expertise challenging decisions to permanently exclude children from school and is confident running complex and novel human rights and Equality Act 2010 arguments. She acts for children, young people and parents, often pro bono with organisations like Coram Children’s Legal Centre. Nadia welcomes difficult instructions requiring a creative and novel approach.

Nadia acted for the Claimant in R (TZA) v a Secondary School [2023] EWHC 1722 (Admin), led by Stephanie Harrison KC with Ollie Persey, and in R (AI) v London Borough of Wandsworth [2023] EWHC 2033 (Admin), led by Nicola Braganza KC with Ollie Persey. 

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Notable Cases & News

Immigration Blog: Garden Court barristers secure clean sweep of Rwanda removals bail victories

Blog post by Georgie Rea of the Garden Court Immigration Law Team.

24 June 2024

Garden Court barristers recognised on Pro Bono Recognition List of England & Wales

We are delighted to announce that Garden Court barristers have been listed on the Pro Bono Recognition List of England & Wales.

17 June 2024

High Court hears landmark challenge to the lack of legal aid for school exclusion appeals

The Claimant is represented by Stephanie Harrison KC & Ollie Persey, both of Garden Court, instructed by Coram Children’s Legal Centre. The charity MIND is intervening. MIND is represented by Grace Brown & Nadia O’Mara, both of Garden Court.

21 May 2024

High Court issues declaration of incompatibility finding that provisions in the Police Act unlawfully discriminate against Gypsies and Travellers

The successful claimant was represented by Marc Willers KC and Ollie Persey of Garden Court Chambers. Stephen Simblet KC and Nadia O’Mara of Garden Court Chambers acted for the First Intervener, Friends, Families and Travellers.

14 May 2024

High Court finds Local Authority's housing policy to be discriminatory against women and girls escaping violence in successful judicial review challenge

Stephanie Harrison KC and Nadia O’Mara of the Garden Court Public Law Team successfully acted for the Claimant, instructed by Public Interest Law Centre.

10 April 2024

Ollie Persey, Oscar Davies and Nadia O'Mara nominated for Bar Pro Bono Awards 2024

We are delighted to announce that Ollie Persey, Oscar Davies and Nadia O'Mara of Garden Court Chambers have been nominated at the Bar Pro Bono Awards 2024.

1 March 2024

High Court finds local authority subjected disabled asylum seeker to inhuman and degrading treatment for seven months

Gráinne Mellon and Nadia O’Mara of Garden Court Chambers represented the Claimant, TMX. Counsel were instructed by Monica Kreel of TV Edwards.

29 January 2024

Government to be challenged in High Court over ‘discriminatory’ PCSC Act

FFT will be represented by Stephen Simblet KC and Nadia O’Mara of Garden Court Chambers. Wendy Smith will be represented by Marc Willers KC and Ollie Persey of Garden Court Chambers.

16 January 2024

Immigration Blog: Illegal Migration Act's implications for victims of trafficking and modern slavery

Blog post by Nadia O'Mara of the Garden Court Immigration and Public Law Teams.

4 September 2023

Three new pupils join Garden Court Chambers

We are delighted to welcome Nadia O'Mara, Georgie Rea and Will Hanson who have joined Garden Court Chambers as pupils.

12 October 2021

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Background

Nadia previously worked in the human rights sector for five years. Most recently, she was a Policy and Campaigns Officer at Liberty, where she led work challenging Government plans to weaken the Human Rights Act 1998 and limit access to judicial review. Before joining Liberty, Nadia worked for JUSTICE on a range of access to justice issues.

Prior to pupillage, Nadia worked in Lesvos, Greece, providing legal advice and assistance on asylum claims and family reunification applications. She worked on several successful applications for interim measures to the ECtHR. She has worked extensively with children and adults at risk, including victims of trafficking, torture and gender-based violence.

Nadia taught public law at UCL and was awarded the Laura Devine Prize for best performance in human rights at LSE. She was also awarded scholarships from Inner Temple and City Law School to fund the BPTC. Her work in Greece was supported by an Internship Award from Inner Temple. 

Awards

Exhibition Award, Inner Temple
Postgraduate Scholarship, City Law School
Laura Devine Prize for Best Performance in Human Rights, London School of Economics
Internship Award (2018 and 2020), Inner Temple

Education

LLB, University College London, First Class
LLM (Master of Laws), London School of Economics, Distinction 

Professional Membership

  • Liberty
  • Administrative Law Bar Association
  • ILPA

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