Crime

Recent

News

At the cutting-edge and never far from the headlines, Tooks' Crime team invariably features in the major cases of the day bringing dedication and expertise to every case - often conducted in the full glare of public scrutiny.

The team extends from celebrated silks of the highest seniority to doughty juniors just setting out on their careers, offering a comprehensive service to professional and lay clients from the Magistrates' Court to the House of Lords, the Privy Council, the European Court of Human Rights, and other international courts and tribunals including war crimes. Underpinning all cases, from the most complex to the relatively straightforward, is Chambers' unwavering, long-standing and proven commitment to criminal defence.

Work undertaken by the team includes:

General crime:

Including murder; manslaughter; organised crime; sexual offences; violent offences; drug trafficking and other related crimes; people trafficking and facilitation; money laundering; confiscation; dishonesty related offences; and public order offences.

Recent high profile cases include:

Angela and Ian Gay acquitted of salt poisoning;
Barry George, in relation to the murder of Jill Dando;
Smith & Others, acquittals of prison officers for gross negligence manslaughter;
Baybasin, the alleged mafia godfather on charges of blackmail and heroin supply;
Brooke & Others, the largest counterfeiting operation to be detected in the UK to date;
Brian Haw and other Parliament Square protestors in relation to SOCPA and other offences.

Anti-terror/National security:

With established specialists in the team, rare has been the terrorism case post 9/11 which has not featured at least one member of the team, whose expertise is now harnessed in Chambers' specialist Terrorism Group.

Recent high profile cases include:

the 7/7 London Bombings;
the Glasgow Airport Terror Plot trial;
the Fertiliser Bomb Plot;
Bradford Terrorist Propaganda appeal (landmark ruling on section 57 of the Terrorism Act);
the 21/7 London Bombers;
Terrorist Training Camp trial;
the Muslim Soldier Beheading Plot;
the Radical Preachers trial.

Appellate:

Pioneering work by members of the Crime team in miscarriages of justice cases, in particular the Birmingham Six and the Guildford Four, led directly to the government's decision to set up the Criminal Cases Review Commission. Team members continue to lead the way in taking on ground-breaking appellate work.

Members specialise in appeals which continue to shape and redefine critical legal principles:

Pendleton, where the House of Lords defined the test for fresh evidence cases;
Zafar, defining the scope of section 57 of the Terrorism Act 2000;
Matthews, where the murder conviction was quashed after the original trial counsel wrongly waived privilege.

Work undertaken by the team also includes the exposure of unreliable scientific 'evidence' that had previously been considered infallible and the use of scientific evidence to expose miscarriages of justice:

the Shaken Baby cases;
Salt Poisoning case;
Cot Death case involving biased expert;
grossly unreliable forensic testing in Guildford Four and Birmingham Six;
ESDA testing proved fabrication of 'confessions' in the Carl Bridgewater case.

As part of its multidisciplinary approach, the Crime team also works alongside other teams to pool expertise and resources and to provide a more streamlined and efficient service:

Actions against the Police, Inquests and Inquiries:

With its inimitable blend of expertise in criminal and public law, Crime team members have been involved in almost all of the high profile and landmark inquests and inquiries over the last two decades. The team has barristers at all levels of seniority and draws on the set's public law expertise. Past cases include the

Dodi and Diana Inquest;
Dublin and Monaghan Bombing Inquest;
Tom Hurndall and James Miller Inquests;
Stephen Lawrence Inquiry;
Bloody Sunday Inquiry;

See actions against the police & inquests

Extradition:

Members are experienced in advising and representing clients in relation to extradition, having appeared in numerous leading cases. Examples include:

Kociukow v District of Bialystock;
R v Karpichkow;
R v Auchi;
R v Solimanpoor;
R v Al Fawwaz & Others.

International Criminal Law & Work in other jurisdictions:

Crime team members have particular expertise of litigation at international courts and tribunals including the ICC, ICTY and the ICTR as well as in various other jurisdictions. Recent notable cases include:

Prosecutor v Haradinaj et al (ICTY);
Prosecutor v Limaj et al, (ICTY);
appeal in the case of Prosecutor v Barayagwiza, (ICTR);

Members of the team are heavily involved in cases of universal jurisdiction and made the first successful application for an arrest warrant under the Geneva Conventions Act 1957 for war crimes against Doron Almog. Team members continue to provide representation in US death row cases. in the team undertakes work on a pro bono basis. international law

Members of the team contribute regularly to various legal publications and lecture extensively, both at home and abroad on issues relating to criminal justice. As part of the Legal Snapshots Series, the team offers regular public conferences and seminars to legal professionals in the field available on this website.events

Ongoing cases

7th July London Bombings trial;
and the murder trial of Special Constable Nisha Patel-Nasri.
advising senior members of the Syrian Army in relation to the UN Criminal Tribunal established following the murder of Rafik Hariri.

Upcoming cases

the Glasgow Airport Terror Plot trial;
the Securitas Robbery of £53 million in cash from the Securitas Depot in Tonbridge, Kent, the largest cash robbery committed in the UK's history.
the British Soldier Spy case
the Pat Finucane Inquiry (the solicitor murdered in his north Belfast home by UDA members);
and the Jean Charles De Menezes Inquest.

Further Information

Further information about individual members of our Criminal team can using the links to the right. You can also contact our clerks directly:

Alistair Roberts 020 7841 6114 alistair.roberts@tooks.co.uk
Kieran McCool 020 7841 6112 kieran.mccool@tooks.co.uk

Recent news

Fresh Medical Evidence Secures Retrial for Babysitter
The Court of Appeal has ruled that Suzanne Holdsworth should be retried for the murder of a 2-year old child she was babysitting on the basis of fresh medical evidence as to the cause of death.
1 May 2008
New Submissions in the Case of Kevin Lane Presented to the Criminal Cases Review Commission
Kevin Lane was convicted of the murder of Robert Magill in October 1994 after a retrial. He has always protested his innocence.Fresh evidence, and new arguments, concerning a number of issues at the heart of the case have been submitted to the CCRC.
20 March 2008
Long Fight to End Alleged Miscarriage of Justice
Two men convicted of a double murder in 1995 have their appeal against conviction heard in the Court of Appeal after a long running campaign.
17 March 2008
Plot to Kidnap and Behead a British Muslim Soldier
20 February 2008
Met Police Fearing “Shootout” Allowed War Crimes Suspect to Flee
An Independent Police Complaints Commission report into the failure of the Metropolitan Police to arrest war crimes suspect General Doron Almog revealed that the Metropolitan Police claimed that they failed to board an aircraft to issue an arrest warrant.
20 February 2008
Five Students Win Terror Appeal
'This nightmare is over. It's important to note that this sort of thing could happen to anybody - it's like a thought crime.' Father of one of the students.
14 February 2008
Michel Massih QC wins 'Criminal Lawyer of the Year Award' 2008
Michel Massih QC has been recognised as 'Criminal Lawyer of the Year ' for 2008 by the Society of Asian Lawyers.
8 February 2008
House of Lords Judgement in R v Clarke; R v McDaid
A significant judgement with far reaching consequences. The House had to decide whether the absence of a signed indictment at the outset and during the majority of the trial invalidated the proceedings. Their Lordships unanimously quashed the convictions.
6 February 2008
Legal 500 2007 recommends Tooks Chambers
17 September 2007

[Image] Crime