Barrister Category: Tenants

Derek is a criminal defence advocate.

Derek was admitted as a solicitor in 2001, immediately specialising in criminal defence work and further qualified as solicitor advocate in 2005 and has been undertaking crown court trials for 18 years. Derek transferred to the Bar in 2015 and his trial experience includes cases involving murder, terrorism, attempted murder, drug conspiracies, robbery, kidnap, firearms, fraud and the full spectrum of sexual offences.

Derek is a highly respected advocate noted for his clear reasoning, exceptional professional judgement and outstanding client care, honed over 2 decades in legal practice.

Derek is deeply committed to ensuring that his clients have the best advocacy available. He is acutely aware that the odds are stacked against an individual facing criminal charges and being challenged by the power and resources of the police and Crown Prosecution Service. Derek is relentless in his pursuit of the best defence for his clients, offering them a platform to present their case with confidence and self-determination before the courts. Derek has appeared on numerous occasions in the Court of Appeal including appeals against sentence and Attorney-General references.

As Derek’s practice continues to grow, he persists with his purposeful objective of the staunch defence of those who need it most.

Bryan Cox is a specialist criminal advocate in high demand. He has been consistently commended in the legal directories as a leading silk in Crime and Regulatory Law, and in 2018 was short listed in the Legal 500 for Circuit Silk of the year. He has a broad practice defending and prosecuting the most serious criminal cases ranging from, gang/gun related homicide, terrorism and fraud to serious sexual offences, including historic sexual allegations. He often defends in multi-handed cases featuring cell-site evidence and /or joint enterprise.

He is very experienced representing clients who are vulnerable by reason of age or neuro-diversity, including those with autism spectrum disorder and/or ADHD. Many of his cases attract a high level of media attention.

Since taking silk in 2006, many of his cases have been those in which medical and scientific issues have been prominent. These have included many cases where ‘baby shaking’ has been alleged, and cases of alleged suffocation, strangulation, and poisoning. He has extensive experience of appearing in cases concerning allegations of ‘shaken baby syndrome’ (‘Triad’ cases), and is very familiar with the medical debate and relevant literature in that area, and he has extensive experience of cross examining the leading experts in the associated fields of neuropathology, paediatric neuropathology, ophthalmic pathology, histopathology, and paediatric radiology.

In addition to his primary area of expertise in crime, his expertise in medical issues attracts instructions in the care jurisdiction of the Family Court, where he represents parents in major fact-finding proceedings. These are often parents facing allegations of causing serious injury, including head injury, or alleged to have committed serious sexual abuse. He has also represented parents facing allegations of factitious illness disorder.

He is a resourceful and versatile advocate whose practice has extended beyond ‘mainstream’ crime. Before taking silk, a substantial part of his practice was Regulatory Crime (Health and Safety and Environmental) Judicial Review and Inquest Law, and he continues to accept instructions in these areas. He was appointed to the Attorney General’s ‘A’ list when a junior, and he has substantial experience of prosecuting and defending in high profile cases arising from fatalities in train derailments, chemical explosions, and industrial accidents. He has considerable experience representing and prosecuting public bodies and major corporations in relation to proceedings brought by the HSE and the Environment Agency. He has considerable experience representing teaching staff, both in relation to prosecutions by the HSE and at inquests; by way of illustration, he represented the teaching staff at the ‘Stainforth Beck’ inquest in Yorkshire, when 2 children died during ‘river walking’ activities, he represented teaching staff at an inquest in relation to a school trip in France, and he defended a Head teacher in relation to a HSE prosecution arising from a death of a pupil during a swimming lesson.

Before taking silk, he had a substantial Judicial Review practice, regularly representing applicants, particularly in the fields of Education, Housing and Social Security Law. He is the author of The Law of Special Educational Needs (Croom Helm 1989).

He has an interest in human rights and environmental issues, including climate litigation. He was recently one of 2 silks instructed in the class action brought by 20,000 Kenyans against the Foreign and Colonial Office in respect of serious abuses committed by the security forces under British control during the Kenyan State of Emergency during the 1950’s.

He sits a Recorder, and is authorised to try Crime, including Serious Sexual Offences, and Civil Cases.

Tetevi has been described as a “rising star” by solicitors and judges. Since accepting an offer of Tenancy, he has been regularly instructed in cases beyond his year of call and is gaining a reputation for his courtroom advocacy, written work and strategic thinking. He is developing a broad practice encompassing all areas of criminal defence, civil liberties, extradition and international law.

Tetevi has recently been instructed as a led junior in a high-profile case of conspiracy to possess firearms with intent to endanger life. The case involves several prominent UK music artists and has been widely reported in the media. He also recently secured acquittals in a case of possession of false identity documents and high-value fraud following a four-day trial at Inner London Crown Court.

Tetevi has a keen interest in international law and was recently instructed by the NGO Reprieve to provide legal advice to the Middle East and North Africa team on the status of the death penalty under international law. He has also authored several articles on aspects of international law and has published work with leading international law scholars.

Prior to coming to the Bar, Tetevi worked as a Criminal Paralegal before spending time at the International Criminal Court in The Hague where he was based in the Legal Advisory Section of the Office of the Prosecutor. He has also worked in the Appeals Chamber of the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and was a former Nicolas Bratza visiting scholar to the European Court of Human Rights.

Tetevi accepts instructions in both English and French.

Michael is a dual qualified solicitor and barrister. He was admitted to the roll of solicitors in 2013 and was called to the Bar in 2014 by the Honourable Society of Gray’s Inn.

Michael has a multi-disciplinary practice and he specialises in the following areas:

• serious crime and road traffic;
• fraud, regulatory and business crime;
• civil actions/inquests.

Michael trained and qualified with a top-tier firm listed in the Legal 500 and ranked in UK Chambers and Partners.

Philip has practised at the Bar since 1991.

In crime, he prosecuted and defended for a number of years but now has an exclusively defence practice. He has extensive experience of cases involving murder and serious violence, firearms, rape, drug importation and production, major fraud and asset forfeiture.

He has established practices in the areas of family and employment law.

Before the Bar, Philip worked in the City for a US bank, drafted and monitored loan agreements for a small London merchant bank and analysed the profitability/viability of UK corporations.

He also spent a period investigating asbestosis compensation claims in Cleveland, Chicago and New York City.

Philip was the criminal advisor at Tottenham Law Centre at the time of the Broadwater Farm unrest in 1985.