I am an experienced Manchester barrister offering public access or direct access work to private clients. I operate mainly in the North West, in the main court centres of Manchester, Liverpool, Preston, Bolton and Carlisle, but I also represent clients in all parts of England and Wales.

I am a member of Lincoln House Chambers, which is widely regarded as one of the best sets of chambers outside London, where I have practised for over 20 years.

I sit as a Recorder (judge) in the Crown Court and have been a Category A prosecutor on the Attorney General’s list for a number of years. You can find more detailed information on my experience on the About Me page.

What I can do for you falls into four main areas:

• Appearing on your behalf in Court or before a tribunal
• Providing you with legal advice based on the evidence that you provide
• Drafting documents for you
• Advising you on legal proceedings and processes

I believe that working with a public access barrister should be easy. It is my job to keep things as simple as possible, all the time offering my public access clients the same high standards of legal advice and professional service that I do when prosecuting or defending the most complex of cases.

There are certain types of case where the rules of direct access mean I cannot act for you and I have prepared a checklist to guide you.

Even when I am unable to represent you on a direct access basis, I may still be able to do so via a solicitor.

The first step after completing the checklist and satisfying yourself that I can advise you is an initial consultation, probably on the phone.

This should take no more than about 20 minutes and is an opportunity for you to explain the background to your case and for you to ask questions. There is no charge for this consultation.

If we both feel that we can proceed, I will send you a client instruction form, what is known as the Client Care Letter, which must be completed and returned before any work can begin and before I can offer you any formal legal advice.

Nothing is certain in the law but I believe that the fewer surprises, the better, so after the initial consultation I will send you an estimate of my fees based on what we have discussed so that you can decide whether this meets your expectations and budget.

I will continue to keep you updated on the amount of time the work is taking as it progresses. I do not generally offer conditional fees (so called no-win, no-fee) and all fees are paid in advance of each stage of work commencing.

The first step is to call me at my chambers on 0161 832 5701 to set up the initial consultation or email me directly using the contact form.

I was called to the Bar in 1985 and I have been a member of Lincoln House Chambers in Manchester since 1986.

Lincoln House Chambers is among the most highly regarded barristers chambers in Manchester and nationally was recently described as “superb” and “a first tier firm” by the Bible of the legal profession, The Legal 500.

Chambers UK commented: “Lincoln House sets the benchmark for quality advocacy on the Northern Circuit…an impressive and very well-organised set with excellent barristers across the board.”

I was made a Category 4 (the highest tier) prosecutor over 18 years ago, I was appointed as a Recorder over 11 years ago. For over eight years I have been a category A prosecutor on the Attorney General’s list.

I believe the simplest case should be conducted with as much vigour and professionalism as the most complex and my varied experience and case load means that I have a reputation for cutting to the core of a case quickly. This is efficient for my client’s budget and is always appreciated by the Court. I bring these skills to bear as a public access barrister.

I have successfully conducted cases in a wide range of areas of the law including:

• VAT fraud and MTIC Fraud
• Currency fraud
• Money laundering
• Bankruptcy offences
• Counterfeit goods
• Copyright
• Tribunals (General Medical Council and Nursing & Midwifery Council)
• Police disciplinary hearings
• Complex commercial fraud in large companies
• A range of crime – including murder, manslaughter, riot and serious sexual assault

In all of these cases I believe success has been achieved through effective handling of (sometimes very large) volumes of evidence coupled with a confident, productive performance in Court that is as aggressive or as sensitive as the case demands.

I take pride in being approachable and straight talking and in getting to the essence of a case as quickly as possible, however I am mindful that the legal process and Court proceedings are unfamiliar and can be daunting to many of my clients and that it is my job to keep my client informed and to allay concerns.

I believe that the Bar is an attractive and rewarding profession for young people and each year I encourage students to consider a legal profession by coaching teams in the Manchester schools mock trial competition.

The rules of public access set out by the Bar Council mean that I cannot accept certain types of cases so to avoid confusion, please go through this checklist to work out whether I can help you.

• My case is an immigration or family matter
  Immigration and family law are not areas in which I specialise, but a number of my colleagues in Lincoln House are expert in these fields and can act for you through a solicitor.
• My case will be funded by legal aid
  Public access work cannot be funded by legal aid. If you are relying on legal aid to fund your case you must go through a firm of solicitors.
• I need help obtaining and preparing the evidence
  I am not permitted to obtain evidence for you; you would need to ask a solicitor to do this for you. If there is a substantial amount of evidence to be recorded and assessed for the admissibility, it will probably be more cost effective to instruct a firm of solicitors to do this time consuming work. My time is best spent on considering evidence that has already been sifted.
• I need you to handle money for me
  I cannot handle client funds under any circumstances.
• The case involves sums of money over £10,000
  You will be asked to make a clear statement that the money has not and does not contravene the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and the Money Laundering Regulations 2007. If you are unable to provide this statement I will not act for you and am required to record this fact.
• I do not have formal identification documents such as a passport
  I will need to take copies of these documents as proof of identity. Examples include a passport or photo driving licence. If you represent an organisation such as a professional body acting for a member I will need a certified copy of accounts or Certificate of Incorporation.
• I am the trustee/legal guardian/have power of attorney for the person to be represented
  That is perfectly acceptable under the rule of Direct Access.
• I represent a professional body acting for one of our members who needs representation
  That is perfectly acceptable under the rule of Direct Access.
• I’ve already instructed solicitors, can I still instruct you?
  Yes, but I will need to consider whether it is appropriate and you should inform your solicitors if we proceed.

Further details on public direct access is available from the Bar Council.