Masters of the Bench

Full Title: Mr Spenser Hilliard

Category: Ordinary Bencher

Bench Call Date: 01-06-2026

Call Date: 25-11-1975

Bio:

After a Law degree at Queen Mary London, Spenser was awarded a Churchill scholarship by Middle Temple and Called to the Bar in 1975. He developed a substantial common law practice, including a specialist focus on major criminal VAT fraud prosecutions.

Following the Woolf reforms, Spenser increasingly focused on civil dispute resolution and mediation and for the past decade his practice has been exclusively devoted to ADR.

Spenser has long combined practice with domestic and international rule of law work. He served on the Delivery Group of the Slynn Foundation (2008–2017), delivering judicial and mediation training in post-communist European states, and participated in mediation and rule of law training for the Jordanian judiciary under Foreign Office and Ministry of Justice auspices. He is an Ambassador of the Tutu Foundation UK, supporting peacebuilding and mediation initiatives in the UK and internationally.

Spenser has been a member of the Bar Council’s ADR Panel since 2016 and its Chair since 2019, contributing to policy development on the integration of ADR within the justice system. He also serves on the Bar Council’s Legal Services Committee and the Judicial ADR Liaison Committee.

Spenser has served on the Inn’s Wine Committee since 2005.