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Tanfield Chambers – Legal 500 2022

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30th September 2021

Following a year of substantial growth, Tanfield Chambers has once again been ranked highly in the Legal 500 directory. The set has solidified its position amongst the top property sets being ranked at tier two. The directory stated:

Tanfield Chambers is a focused property set with strong expertise across residential landlord and tenant work, real property, and commercial real estate disputes, alongside specialist areas such as party walls. Head of chambers Philip Rainey QC and Ellodie Gibbons represented the landlord in Sequent Nominees Ltd (Formerly Rotrust Nominees Ltd) v Hautford Ltd before the Supreme Court, securing a ruling preventing a tenant from obtaining planning permission without the landlord’s permission. Another major case for Rainey QC was the successful in the Court of Appeal in enfranchisement case LM Homes v Queen Court Freehold Company Ltd, which also featured Carl Fain on the counsel team for the tenants. Kerry Bretherton QC is representing the hotel in Poste Hotels v Cousins, a High Court case relating to rights of way, arguing that the hotel owner had acquired by prescription a right of way over the cul-de-sac giving access to the laundry, which had been repeatedly blocked by the opponent’s car, which both parties have sought permission to appeal to the Court of Appeal. Christopher Heather QC continues to represent the restaurant chain in the Performance Retail (General Partner) Ltd v Wagamama Ltd case relating to interpretations of a lease agreement.

Full results can be found here and on individual barrister profiles.

Property Litigation – Leading Silks

• Philip Rainey QC –“Philip is an extremely good advocate. He has a very persuasive and effective style. He is very technical and breadth of his legal knowledge is extremely impressive. He finds solutions to very difficult issues particularly on complex enfranchisement matters.” (Tier 1)
• Kerry Bretherton QC – “Kerry is incredibly knowledgeable and can put complex law into lay terms for clients to understand. She is calm and confident when advocating. She is realistic in managing the client’s expectations and instills confidence.” (Tier 2)
• Christopher Heather QC – “A very calm and highly effective advocate. Technically excellent but also commercial in his approach. A pleasure to work with and great to have on your team. An increasingly well known “go to” QC for high value and complex enfranchisement work – at the very top of the list.” (Tier 3)
• Timothy Polli QC – “Highly intelligent but understated, forensic and considered. Always looks at every angle which makes him one of my top counsel of choice – the client is exceedingly well informed and he does not fight battles for the sake of it but picks the one which will succeed. Very good on his feet and persistent in a calm way. Very accessible and gives clients a lot of confidence. A quality counsel.” (Tier 3)
• Andrew Butler QC –  (Tier 4)
• Nicholas Isaac QC – (New Silk)

Property Litigation – Leading Juniors

• Mark Loveday – “Mark is an approachable, user friendly barrister who is able to work at a number of different levels. His range of knowledge and experience in relation to enfranchisement and also service charge matters is impressive. He comes over very well with clients and is also highly responsive and sharp. On his feet Mark is excellent. Mark is an exceptional character and a great wit, as well as an intellect. In court or tribunal he is a skilled advocate and handles witnesses with a disarming ease. His management of evidence is exemplary and his judicial experience shines through. Mark is an all round professional and at the top of his game. In short, everything and more you would want a barrister in this niche area to be. ” (Tier 3)
• Michael Buckpitt – (Tier 2)
• Piers Harrison – “Piers is highly skilled, and intellectual but very personable. He comes over excellently with the client. He is never dry or boring, whatever the subject matter. Piers’ other strength is his extremely sharp mind. He has a highly inquisitive and brilliant side to him born out of a natural academic sense of curiosity. That makes him ideal for creative, sound legal argument. He is excellent on his feet and on paper and his enthusiasm shines through. He is without doubt one of the leading minds in his area.” (Tier 3)
• Daniel Dovar – (Tier 2)
• James Fieldsend – (Tier 1)
• Nicola Muir – “Nicola has an excellent grasp of technical enfranchisement matters and arguments (particularly in terms of valuation) and consistently obtains exceptional results which makes her the preferred counsel of several of our clients. Nicola provides straight-forward yet accomplished advice which is a hugely beneficial to both her instructing solicitors and their clients.” (Tier 3)
• Ellodie Gibbons – “Great technical ability but down to earth, and able to explain issues easily to lay clients. She also has great client inter-personal skills, is able to cut straight through to the issues and is commercial too.” (Tier 3)
• Marc Glover – “Marc is extremely sharp and focused and brilliant with clients. I have no hesitation in instructing him on tricky matters. Marc cuts to the important issues quickly providing excellent strategic advice. On his feet he has a heavyweight presence. An all-round magnificent advocate.” (Tier 2)
• Rebecca Cattermole – (Tier 3)
• Carl Fain – “Carl is an exceptional barrister who is able to very quickly grasp the key elements of a dispute and provide clear and succinct advice. He is also very commercial and particularly persuasive on his feet.” (Tier 2)
• Jonathan Upton – “Jonathan is quietly confident and learned, a strong intellect and someone who has really established his own name as a leading practitioner in restrictive covenant and residential law.” (Tier 3)
• Amanda Gourlay – (Tier 3)
• Michael Walsh – (Tier 3)

Property Litigation – Rising Star

• Edward Blakeney: “Ed is excellent; a star of the future. Unflappable, hard working, willing to get stuck in, clever and easy to work with.” (Tier 1)

Agriculture – Leading Juniors

• Rebecca Cattermole – (Tier 1)

Social Housing – Leading Juniors

• Rebecca Cattermole – (Tier 4)
• Sam Madge-Wyld – “Sam has broad expertise in all matters relating to social housing. Sam is capable of spotting the important points in cases that might otherwise seem unwinnable.” (Tier 4)

Family Law (including divorce and financial remedy)

• Gerald Wilson – “Gerald is exceptionally strong with tax issues, and he puts clients at ease, explaining each case at the right level of complexity for each client.” (Tier 4)
• Kerstin Boyd – “Kerstin is conscientious and provides realistic advice from the outset. A junior who will always go the extra mile to ensure the best case is presented.” (Tier 4)
• Gwyn Evans – “Gwyn is details-orientated and able to distil complex information in a clear and concise way. A barrister who inspires confidence easily. ” (Tier 4)

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