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Recently Benched

Amanda Redman
Ms Amanda Redman MBE

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

Award winning, thrice BAFTA-nominated actor, Amanda Redman trained at the prestigious Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. She has a huge number of credits to her name including theatre, film, TV and radio.

Some of her most iconic TV roles include Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman in New Tricks, Alison Braithwaite in At Home with the Braithwaites and Dr Lydia Fonseca in The Good Karma Hospital.

Film credits include Sexy Beast, For Queen and Country, Richard's Things.

In the theatre, Amanda has performed in various productions for the National Theatre, Bristol Old Vic, the Royal Court, Young Vic and the West End.

Amanda also has a huge passion for passing on her knowledge and has run the Artists Theatre School for adult actors since 1998. She directs an annual show with her current cohort of students every July.

In 2012, Amanda was appointed an MBE for her services to drama and charity.

Derek Jacobi
Sir Derek George Jacobi CBE

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

Derek Jacobi has been an actor for over 60 years, first performing Hamlet in public at the Edinburgh Festival when he was 17 years old. He has performed Hamlet around the world nearly 600 times, from the LA Olympics, to Kronberg Castle. A multiple award winner, he was also knighted by the Queen of Denmark, making him the only living actor to be a double knight!

His interests are gardening and fine wines, both of which he thoroughly enjoys!

Harriet Walter
Dame Harriet Mary Walter DBE

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

Harriet Walter is a London-born actor working in theatre, film, television and radio . She is also the author of 5 books.

Television credits include Succession, Killing Eve, Belgravia, and The Crown.

Films include The Last Duel, Herself, Rocketman, The Sense of an Ending Sense and Sensibility, Young Victoria, Atonement and Louis Malle’s Milou en Mai.

On stage she is best known for her Shakespearean work, from Viola and Ophelia to Beatrice, Lady Macbeth and Cleopatra and also the usually male roles of Brutus, Henry IV and Prospero for the Donmar all-female trilogy set in a women’s prison.

Her book titles are Brutus and Other Heroines, Other People’s Shoes, Macbeth; portrait of a marriage, Facing It, and the recently published She Speaks! What Shakespeare’s Women Might have Said” (Virago) Harriet is a patron of many charities She was awarded a CBE in 2000, and a Damehood in 2011. 

Tracey Lloyd-Clarke
Her Honour Judge Lloyd - Clarke

Ordinary Bencher Called 1988 Benched 2024

Tracey was born and grew up in the Cynon Valley in South East Wales. She graduated from the University of Buckingham in February 1987 with an LL.B. (Hons), attended the Inns of Court School of Law and was called to the Bar in 1988. After completing pupillage, she practised in general common law and then exclusively in crime at Mitre Court Chambers, London.  In 1994, Tracey moved to live in Shrewsbury and joined the West Mercia Crown Prosecution Service as a Senior Crown Prosecutor. In 1999, she joined St. Philips Chambers in Birmingham practising in criminal law. In 2005, Tracey returned home to Wales and joined chambers at 30 Park Place, Cardiff. In 2009, she became a Recorder sitting in crime on the Midland circuit. In 2016, Tracey was appointed as a Circuit Judge sitting in crime in Cardiff and Caernarfon. In 2021, she was appointed as a Senior Circuit Judge, the Resident Judge for Cardiff, Newport, and Merthyr Tydfil, and The Recorder of Cardiff. In her spare time, Tracey enjoys reading, dancing, gardening, and supporting Welsh rugby.

Stephen Smith
The Rt Hon Stephen Francis Smith

Ordinary Bencher Called 1980 Benched 2024

Mr Smith was a Member of the Australian Parliament for 20 years as the Federal Member for Perth (1993-2013).
Mr Smith was the Minister for Defence from 2010 to 2013, Minister for Foreign Affairs (2007-2010), and Minister for Trade in 2010.
Mr Smith was Professor of Public International Law at the University of Western Australia (2014-2022).
Prior to his current appointment, Mr Smith served as one of two Independent Leads of the Australian Government’s Defence Strategic Review (August 2022 – February 2023).
Mr Smith holds a Bachelor of Arts (BA) and Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from the University of Western Australia.
Mr Smith resided in the UK from September 1979 to March 1983. During that time he completed The Bar Exams and was admitted as a Barrister of the Bar of England and Wales (Middle Temple).
He also completed a Master of Laws (LLM) in Public International Law at London University (LSE).

Charles Morgan
Charles Morgan Esq

Ordinary Bencher Called 1978 Benched 2024

Charles read law at Clare College, Cambridge and is an Astbury Scholar of Middle Temple. Called in 1978, he practised for many years from chambers in Newcastle upon Tyne, initially in general common law and latterly in the work of the Business and Property Courts. Having become increasingly involved in environmental law whilst acting for the Environment Agency for 15 years as a member of the Attorney-General’s regional panel, he joined Six Pump Court Chambers in 2016. His practice is now entirely concerned with the use and management of water and wastewater and the regulation of the water industry. He has recently acted and continues to act in several significant cases concerning sewage discharges into rivers, private watercourses and the sea. He has since 1992 been a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

Charles still lives on the village green at Wallsend (his lifelong Tyneside home) whilst making frequent visits to Middle Temple, working, lodging and dining within the Inn. He is particularly interested in outreach by the Inn to practitioners and students in the regions. His interests include popular music (recorded and at the piano), gardening, and walking Henry, his Dalmatian dog.

 

 

Nikki Singla
Nikki Singla KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 2000 Benched 2024

After reading law at New College, Oxford (BA and BCL, both First Class), Nikki taught contract and trusts at Oxford and was called to the Bar in 2000. Awarded the Queen Mother’s Scholarship and Harmsworth Entrance Exhibition. His pupillage was at Wilberforce Chambers where he has remained ever since. He is recognised as a leading advocate in trusts, company and commercial chancery litigation, much of it with an international flavour. He appears in the Chancery Division, Commercial Court and overseas (called ad hoc in Cayman, Bermuda and Mauritius). He was appointed King’s Counsel in 2018. In 2020, he was appointed a Recorder of the Crown Court on the South-Eastern Circuit.

He sat on the Inn’s Hall Committee and continues to sit on the Inn’s International Committee. He served for a decade on COMBAR’s executive committee, attending the historic 2007 conference in Jamestown.

In his spare time, he enjoys tennis, cricket and walking.

Isabel Hitching
Miss Isabel Hitching KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1992 Benched 2024

Isabel Hitching KC is a commercial silk specialising in construction and insurance disputes.  She was the first woman to read for both the MA and BCL at Christ Church, Oxford, where she was a Scholar and Exhibitioner, and was the first to be appointed by the college to teach law.  She continued to teach for many years alongside full-time practice at the Bar, having been called in 1992.  She was awarded Sachs LJ and Queen Mother Scholarships and an Inns of Court Studentship.  She took silk in 2019 and practises from Crown Office Chambers. Drawing on her academic background she is frequently instructed in test cases from first instance to Supreme Court.  She regularly lectures for specialist bar and industry associations and is Editor of Emden on Construction.  She also acts as an adjudicator and arbitrator and serves on the Civil Procedure Rule Committee.  Throughout her career she has been keen to mentor and support others by serving on the BSB, Bar Council, specialist Bar Association and Inn committees to introduce policies to improve access, retention and progression. 

Adrian Briggs
Professor Adrian Briggs

Ordinary Bencher Called 1989 Benched 2024

Adrian Briggs is Emeritus Professor of Private International Law at the University of Oxford, and Emeritus Fellow of St Edmund Hall, Oxford, from the service of each of which, after 41 years, he retired in September 2021. He is the author of several books on private international law, most notably Civil Jurisdiction and Judgments (7 editions; 8th in preparation) and Private International Law in English Courts (2 editions). He is a member of Blackstone Chambers. In addition, he is joint author with Andrew Burrows (now Lord Burrows JSC) of The Law of Contract in Myanmar, and it is this last which is the greatest source of professional satisfaction.

Qazi Isa
Hon Mr Justice Qazi Faez Isa

Ordinary Bencher Called 1982 Benched 2024

Justice Isa was called to the Bar of England and Wales (Middle Temple, 1982). Before Justice Isa’s elevation to the Bench, he was a founding partner and head of litigation at one of Pakistan’s leading law firms, which was repeatedly recognized as a top-tier firm in several practice areas by both the Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners.

On 5 August 2009, Justice Isa was directly elevated to the position of Chief Justice of the High Court of Balochistan where he served for over five years. He was then appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan on 5 September 2014, and on 17 September 2023 took oath as the Chief Justice of Pakistan.

Justice Isa’s father, Qazi Mohammad Isa, was also called to the Bar from Middle Temple, as was his daughter, becoming the third generation in his family to be called from the Inn.

Judith Khan
Her Honour Judge Judy Khan KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1989 Benched 2024

Judy was called to the Bar in 1989. She practised as a criminal defence barrister at Garden Court Chambers. She was appointed as Queen’s Counsel in 2010 and typically defended young defendants tried for murder at the Central Criminal Court. Judy represented families of those who died in the Hillsborough Stadium disaster. She led a team of barristers who dealt with the pathological and other medical evidence in the inquests which spanned just over two years. She was appointed as a Recorder in 2007 and appointed as a Senior Circuit Judge at the Central Criminal Court in August 2023.

Judy’s parents came to the UK from the Caribbean as part of the Windrush generation, and she was educated at state schools. Given her own background, she is passionate about promoting equality, diversity and inclusion in the legal profession. Judy is a trustee with the Kalisher Trust and is a mentor. She values and enjoys being involved in outreach work.

Jane Hartley
Her Excellency Jane Hartley

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

Jane Hartley was sworn in as the United States Ambassador in May 2022. She previously served as Ambassador to the French Republic and the Principality of Monaco. Hartley was Chief Executive Officer of Observatory Group, an international economic and political advisory firm, and Chief Executive Officer of the G7 Group, a research firm providing macroeconomic and political analysis to global clients.

Hartley serves as a member of the Visiting Committee of the Kennedy School at Harvard University. She is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and is a member of the Board of Overseers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. She is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Sesame Workshop (Sesame Street) and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Hartley also served at the White House in the Carter Administration. She earned a B.A. at Boston College (Newton College).

John Baker
Professor Sir John Hamilton Baker KC

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

Born in Sheffield 1944. King Edward VI School, Chelmsford, 1955-62. Read Law at UCL 1962-65 (LLB, PhD; Honorary Fellow 1991). Called to the Bar, Inner Temple 1966 (Honorary Bencher 1988); ad eundem, Gray’s Inn 1978 (Honorary Bencher 2013). Taught Law at UCL 1965-70, Cambridge 1971-2011 (MA, LLD), latterly as Downing Professor of the Laws of England; Fellow of St Catharine’s College. Literary Director, Selden Society, 1981-2011 (President 2015-18). FBA 1984; Honorary LLD Chicago 1992; Honorary Foreign Member, American Academy, 2001; knighted for services to legal history 2003. Author of books and papers on English legal history, including Introduction to English Legal History (5th edition, 2019); Oxford History of the Laws of England, vol. 6 (1483-1558) (2003); Sources of English Legal History (2010, 2024); The Men of Court 1440-1550 (2012); Collected Papers on English Legal History (2013); The Reinvention of Magna Carta (2017); English Law under Two Elizabeths (2021).

Richard Hedley
His Honour Judge Richard Hedley

Ordinary Bencher Called 1983 Benched 2024

Richard Hedley is currently the Designated Civil Judge for Leicester and Northampton and also sits on a number of committees concerning Civil Business and the Reform Programme in Civil Work.

Richard read law at the University of Leicester, graduating in 1982 (followed later by a Post Graduate Diploma in Notarial Practice (Cantab)).  He was called in 1983.  He practiced in London until 1996, during which time he was a Revels performer from 1982 to 1995 (Musical Director in 1994 and 1995) and became an Advocacy Trainer.  After moving practice to Nottingham in 1996 he continued further occasional musical performance in the Inn including “The Prince of Love” in 1998 (a version of the Revels of 1598) and after-dinner entertainments.

His practice was in business and commercial litigation.  He was appointed as Recorder in 2002, District Judge in 2012, Circuit Judge and Deputy High Court Judge in 2018 before taking up his current role in February 2019. He has been a tutor for the Judicial College since 2014 .

He continues be involved in making music, playing golf badly and genealogy.

Paul Stephan
Paul Brooke Stephan

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

Paul Stephan is the John C. Jeffries, Jr., Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Virginia. His research and teaching concentrate on international and comparative law.  He has taught at universities and diplomatic academies in Australia, Austria, Brazil, China, France, Georgia, Germany, Israel, Italy, Russia, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. He served as Counselor for International Law to the Legal Adviser of the Department of State in 2006-2007, and as Special Counsel to the General Counsel of the Department of Defense in 2020-21. He was coordinating reporter for the American Law Institute’s Restatement (Fourth) of the Foreign Relations Law of the United States from 2012 to 2018. His most recent publications include The World Crisis and International Law – The Knowledge Economy and the Battle for the Future (Cambridge University Press) and Municipal Law in International Disputes, based on his 2023 special course at the Hague Academy of International Law.

Cindy Dennis
Cindy Dennis

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

For more than 20 years, she has facilitated the American Inns of Court scholarship exchange programs and arranged educational amity visits between the American Inns of Court and our English counterparts both in the United States and “across the pond.”

She is a member of the General Society of Mayflower Descendants, the leading organization perpetuating the memory of the 1620 Mayflower Pilgrims through excellence in research and family history.

She is also an officer of the Kate Waller Barrett Chapter National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, a volunteer women’s service organization dedicated to promoting historic preservation, education, and patriotism.

Her other activities include her non-profit organization, “On Purpose with Passion,” that offers small group discussion, educational events, and activities to help younger women unlock their personal and professional potential, raise their aspirations and gain inspiration from mentors, and seasoned women professionals.

John Lungstrum
The Hon John W. Lungstrum

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

A native of the state of Kansas, Judge Lungstrum was educated at Yale University and the University of Kansas School of Law, at both of which he received various academic awards. Following practice in Los Angeles, California and service in the United States Army, he settled in Lawrence, Kansas and practiced law there until his appointment in 1991 by President George H.W. Bush as United States District Judge for the District of Kansas. He served as Chief Judge of his Court from 2001-2007 and, by appointment of the Chief Justice of the United States, as Chair of principal committees of the Judicial Conference of the United States. Judge Lungstrum was also an adjunct member of the faculty of the University of Kansas school of Law for over 30 years and is the recipient of professional recognitions, including from the American Inns of Court.

His Honour Brian Barker CBE KC

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

Retired at 70 in 2015 as senior judge at the Central Criminal Court and Recorder of London.

Previously the Common Serjeant of London, appointed to the Old Bailey in 2000. Married to Dame Anne Rafferty DBE PC KC with three adult daughters

After a postgraduate degree at the University of Kansas called by Gray’s Inn 1969 and subsequently practiced from William Howard’s Chambers 3 Kings Bench Walk, becoming  Hollis Whiteman Chambers  Queen Elizabeth Building.

Silk in 1990 and cases included representing the Crown Prosecution Service in the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry.  Bencher of Gray’s.  Chairman Criminal Bar Association 1998-2000

Subsequently appointed as an Assistance Surveillance Commissioner; was for six years the Independent Reviewer for National Security in Northern Ireland and served two three-year terms as the Chairman of the British Horseracing Authority Judicial Panel.  Also conducted the first Deepcut Inquest and various inquiries in both this country and abroad.

 

 

Stephen Kós
The Hon Sir Stephen Kós KZNM KC

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

Sir Stephen Kós KNZM KC studied law at Victoria and Cambridge Universities. After practising at Russell McVeagh, he joined the New Zealand independent bar in 2005, co-founding Stout Street Chambers. He was appointed Queen's Counsel in 2007. His principal fields of practice were commercial, equity and environmental litigation.

He was appointed to the New Zealand High Court in 2011 and to the Court of Appeal in 2015, where he was President from 2016 to 2022. He became a Judge of the Supreme Court of New Zealand in April 2022.

He has academic interests in private law and legal history. He is a Distinguished Fellow at the Victoria University Law School and a Senior Fellow at the Melbourne University Law School, where he was the James Merralls Visiting Fellow 2022/23. In 2023 he was knighted for services to the judiciary and legal education.

Nicholas De Marco
Nicolas De Marco KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 2001 Benched 2024

Nick De Marco KC is ranked as one of leading lawyers in sports law. He acts for international and domestic sports-governing bodies, federations, players, clubs, sponsors, broadcasters and agents across all sports in both commercial and regulatory disputes.

He regularly lectures and writes on sports law, is author and editor of 'Football and the Law' (Bloomsbury 2018 & 2022), contributor to 'Lewis & Taylor: Sport and the Law' (Bloomsbury, 2021} member of the Editorial Board of Law In Sport, Football Legal and the Advisory Board of the Middle East Sports Law Platform, is a director of the British Association for Sport and the Law (BASL) and host of The Sports Law Podcast. Nick also sits as an arbitrator across a number of sports.

Nick came to the Bar later in life, having worked in retail, catering and nightclubs, and for a while as a film & video editor. He is committed to diversity at the Bar and encouraging those from less 'conventional' barrister backgrounds. Outside of work his interests include photography, art, cooking, wine-making and QPR

Mohinderpal Sethi
Mohinderpal Sethi Esq KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1996 Benched 2024

Mohinderpal Sethi KC attended Langdon Comprehensive School in East Ham in the London Borough of Newham. He read Law at Wadham College, Oxford where he was a College Scholar. He was called to the Bar in 1996 and was The Queen Mother’s Scholar (the premier Inn scholarship), The Malcolm Wright Prizewinner and Harmsworth Major Entrance Exhibitioner. He took silk in 2019 and practises from Littleton Chambers.

He specialises in commercial, employment, partnership and sport litigation and arbitration appearing at all levels in domestic, international and offshore courts and tribunals. In 2015 he was appointed by the Attorney-General directly to the A-Panel of Counsel to the Crown. He was the Chair of the Employment Law Bar Association from 2021 to 2023. In 2022 he was named the Civil Lawyer of the Year (ALA) and Barrister of the Year Finalist (The Lawyer). In 2023 he won Employment Silk of the Year (Legal 500) and Senior Counsel of the Year (IEL). He is co-author of Employment Tribunal Remedies (OUP) and Termination of Employment (Bloomsbury). He enjoys tennis, hiking and opera. He has a particular interest in advancing equality, diversity and social mobility at the Bar. 

Aparna Nathan
Aparna Nathan KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1994 Benched 2024

Aparna Nathan KC attended schools in London (Cavendish School for Girls; Queens College) and in Singapore (United World College of S.E. Asia; Raffles Junior College) before returning to London to study Law at the London School of Economics at undergraduate and Masters level.

She is a member of Devereux Chambers, having moved there from her previous set, Gray’s Inn Tax Chambers, in August 2014.

Aparna was called to the Bar in November 1994. She was appointed to the Attorney General’s Panel of Civil Counsel in 2010 progressing to A Panel by 2017 before taking silk in 2019.

Aparna specialises in Tax Law with a particular focus on residence, domicile, offshore trust and corporate structures, limited liability partnerships and estate planning. Aparna is a committee member of sub-committees at the Chartered Institute of Taxation and of the Addington Society. Aparna is a member of the Worshipful Company of Tax Advisers, the Chancery Bar Association and the Revenue Bar Association.

Aparna has taught ethics for the Inn for several years and has also given talks to introduce Tax law to current and prospective pupils.  Aparna is committed to furthering diversity and inclusion in the Inn.

Aparna trained in Bharatanatyam (South Indian classical dance) for 6 years. She is on the Education Committee of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, London (Centre for Indian Arts and Culture) with whom she has had a long and close involvement since her childhood.

Emma Smith
Professor Emma Smith

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

Emma Smith is Professor of Shakespeare Studies at Hertford College, Oxford. Her work focuses on the reception of Shakespeare in print, production, and criticism. She loves talking about this given half a chance - in schools, literary societies, rehearsal rooms, festivals, and libraries, and on radio. Her most recent books are This is Shakespeare (2019) and Portable Magic: A History of Books and their Readers (2022). Her current work is on an edition of Shakespeare's Middle Temple play, Twelfth Night, for the Arden Shakespeare.

Rosie Harding
Professor Rosie Harding FAcSS

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

A graduate of the University of Edinburgh, Keele University and the University of Kent, Rosie Harding is Associate Dean and Professor of Law and Society at Birmingham Law School, the University of Birmingham. Her research focuses on the place of law in everyday life, with particular interests in capacity law, disability law, gender sexuality and law, health and social care law and human rights. She is general editor of the Law, Society, Policy book series for Bristol University Press. She has held visiting positions at Lund University, Sweden, Flinders University, the University of Adelaide, and the University of Edinburgh. She was Chair of the Socio-Legal Studies Association from 2017 – 2022, and is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences. She was awarded a Philip Leverhulme Prize for Law in 2017.

Rosie is also a trustee of Changing Our Lives, a west midlands based charity.

Brian Cregan
The Hon Mr Justice Brian Cregan

Honorary Bencher Benched 2024

Brian Cregan studied Law at University College Dublin (1979 – 1982), and then Philosophy, Politics and Economics at St. John’s College, Oxford (1983 – 1985).  He worked in the City of London for three years (1986 – 1988).  He then attended the Honourable Society of King’s Inns in Dublin and he was called to the Bar in 1990.  He commenced practice in 1992 and practiced mainly in the area of commercial law and competition law.  He was admitted to the Inner Bar in 2004 and became a Judge of the Irish High Court in 2014.  For a number of years he was the Sole Member of a Commission of Investigation into the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation.  He is a former Chairman of the Education Committee of King’s Inns.  He is a Bencher of the King’s Inns.

Hugh Mohan
Hugh Ignatius Mohan SC

Ordinary Bencher Called 2019 Benched 2024

Currently Chair of the Honorable Society of King’s Inns, Dublin, Ireland (2020 – to date).  He is the former Chair of the Council of the Bar of Ireland (2004 – 2006).  He is a former Co-Chair of the International Council of Advocates and Barristers (ICAB) (2009 – 2011).

In the past, he has also Chaired the National Audit Committee of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) (2008 – 2011) (Irish National Sporting Organisation), and Chair of the Remuneration Committee of the GAA (2016 – 2019).  He is a former Chair of the Electronic Communication Appeals Panel (2005 – 2008).

In the past, he has been a member of the Court Services Board and the Judicial Advisory Board in Ireland.

He is a Fellow of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, (induction March 2024). 

He was educated at St McCartan’s College, Monaghan, UCD and the Honorable Society of King’s Inns.  He was called to the Bar in 1985 and became a Senior Counsel in 2000.  He has been a Bencher of the Honorable Society of King’s Inns since 2005 and is currently a trustee of same.  He became a member of the Bar of England Wales (Middle Temple) in 2019.  He is an Accredited Mediator (CEDR 2007 and Harvard University 2019).  He is also a Trustee of the estate of Patrick Kavanagh (Irish Poet) (2021 – to date).

Karen Reid
Miss Karen Reid

Ordinary Bencher Called 2010 Benched 2024

Karen read history and international relations at the University of Aberdeen before studying the GDL at the College of Law in York. Before becoming a bencher, Karen was a member of the Middle Temple Young Barrister’s Association (“MTYBA”) for several years including two as its president. She was also an elected member of the Hall Committee for two terms, the second of which (2020-2022) she served as Chair of the committee. Karen has assisted the Inn as an advocacy tutor and sits on scholarship panels and the Inn’s hardship award panel. Karen practices in public law, predominantly in housing and immigration, at the 36 Group where she is joint head of the public and human rights group.

Benet Brandreth
Benet Brandreth Esq KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1999 Benched 2024

Benet Brandreth was called to the Bar in 1999 and took Silk in 2018. He specialises in Intellectual Property Rights but enjoys trespassing in other areas of the law and served on the Attorney-General's C and A Panels of Counsel and as a Recorder on the Midland’s Circuit, sitting in Crime. He was Chair of the Camden Citizens Advice Bureau for many years.

Beyond his legal work, Benet is fascinated by language, evidenced by his being a two-time World Student Public Speaking Champion, recipient of the Richard Du Cann Memorial Award for Excellence in Advocacy and an award-winning comedian.  He is also an author, having written critically acclaimed historical novels featuring William Shakespeare as a central character, plays, and scripts for radio and television. He is particularly interested in Classical Rhetoric.  He is an advocacy trainer for Middle Temple. He has trained actors’ companies from the RSC, the Donmar and others on rhetoric and verse for many years and is the author of "Shakespearean Rhetoric," part of the Arden Performance Companion series.

Benet’s diverse interests extend to martial arts, where he holds a black belt in Filipino Martial Arts, and powerlifting. He lives in London, is married to actress Kosha Engler and is father to two sons.

Alexander Chalk
Alex Chalk Esq

Ordinary Bencher Called 2001 Benched 2023

Rt Hon Alex Chalk KC MP was appointed Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice on 21 April 2023. He was Minister of State in the Ministry of Defence from October 2022 to April 2023 and was formerly HM Solicitor General for England and Wales and the Prisons and Probation Minister.  

Prior to being elected in 2015 as MP for Cheltenham, Alex was a barrister and prosecuted and defended in cases concerning terrorism, international fraud, and homicide. 

As Justice Minister, Alex led the Domestic Abuse Bill through the Commons. For the first time in history, the Bill includes a wide-ranging legal definition of domestic abuse which incorporates a range of behaviour beyond physical violence. 

During his time as Prisons Minister, Alex announced a new scheme to provide temporary, basic accommodation to prison leavers for twelve weeks, as well as overhauling the unpaid work that offenders are ordered to do as part of community service. 

As HM Solicitor General, Alex oversaw the work of the Law Officers’ Departments and took a particular interest in the issue of disclosure.  

As Minister for Defence Procurement, Alex authorised the transfer of Challenger II tanks to Ukraine. 

He lives in Cheltenham with his wife and three young children. 

William Godwin
William Godwin Esq KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1986 Benched 2023

William Godwin specialises in commercial and construction cases, often with a cross-border element, and sits as an arbitrator and adjudicator. He is a panel member of a number of arbitration institutions and has written and spoken widely on arbitration, commercial and construction law.
Before coming to the Bar, William read philosophy at UCL and at Oxford where he taught at two of the colleges. In 2021 he was appointed to a visiting senior research fellowship in philosophy at King’s College London. Later that year, and with the Inn’s great support, he started a group to organise discussions (which are qualifying sessions) of broadly philosophical questions that arise from the study and practice of law.
Between 2014 and 2021 William served on the board of the Great Britain-China Centre, a non-departmental public body established by the FCDO in 1974 to develop UK-China relations. Much of its focus is in the areas of legal reform, rule of law and good governance. An achievement of which the Centre is most proud is its contribution to reducing the use of the death penalty in China.

Sarah Cleveland
Professor Sarah Cleveland

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Professor Cleveland has a long and distinguished career in the service of international law, including as a professor of international law, as the Counselor on International Law in the U.S. Department of State’s Office of the Legal Adviser (2009-2011), as Vice Chair and member of the UN Human Rights Committee (2015-2018), and as the independent U.S. member on the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe (2010-19). In November 2023, she was elected by the UN to serve as a judge on the International Court of Justice. 

Cleveland holds the Louis Henkin Chair in Human and Constitutional Rights at Columbia University Law School in New York, where she has been on the faculty since 2007. She has also taught at Oxford University, Sciences-Po University and the University of Paris Panthéon-Assas (Paris II), Leiden University, the European University Institute, the Geneva Graduate Institute, and the University of Tokyo, among others. Professor Cleveland has published widely on international law subjects and has been involved in international law litigation in the United States and abroad. She has served as a Council Member of the International Bar Association’s

Human Rights Institute, and as a Commissioner for the International Commission of Jurists. Professor Cleveland served as a law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry A. Blackmun. She received her undergraduate degree from Brown University (1987), her law degree from Yale Law School (1992), and a Masters in Commonwealth History from Oxford University (1989), where she studied as a Rhodes Scholar.

Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat
The Rt Hon Tengku Maimun Binti Tuan Mat

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

A law graduate of the University of Malaya in 1982, the Right Honourable Tun Tengku Maimun binti Tuan Mat was born on the 2nd of July 1959 in Kota Bharu Kelantan. Her Ladyship then served in the Judicial and Legal Service and was the Chief Registrar of the Federal Court before being appointed as a Judicial Commissioner of the High Court of Malaya in 2006. Her Ladyship was later elevated as a Judge of the High Court of Malaya, and thereafter promoted to the Court of Appeal, and finally to the Federal Court, before becoming the Chief Justice of Malaysia in 2019.

Alastair Sutton
Alastair Sutton

Ordinary Bencher Called 1972 Benched 2023

Alastair was educated at Fairfield Grammar School in Bristol and at the Universities of Aberdeen (LLB) and London (University College – LLM). He was called to the Bar by Middle Temple in May 1972, whilst teaching public international and European law at UCL and at the Civil Service College, preparing UK civil servants for the UK’s accession to the EC in 1973.

Between 1973 and 1989, Alastair was an official of the European Commission, negotiating bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, serving for 5 years as a diplomat in the Commission Delegation in Tokyo, legal advisor in the Cabinet of Lord Cockfield, Commission Vice President for the Internal Market and head of the insurance division, under Vice President Sir Leon Brittan.

Since leaving the Commission, Alastair was a founding partner of the EU law firm Forrester, Norall and Sutton and, following its merger with White and Case, a partner in this global law firm. Following his retirement in 2010, Alastair has been a member of Brick Court Chambers and an avocat at the Belgian Bar.

Alastair has taught European and international law around the world, most recently for judges in EU Member States.

Alastair has been married to Eileen since 1968, has four children and five grandchildren and is an enthusiastic traveller, sportsman and musician.

 

Martin Chalkley
Professor Martin John Chalkley

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Professor Martin Chalkley is an economist who trained at Southampton and Warwick Universities obtaining a PhD in 1985. He specialises in the economics of incentives and payment systems and began working with the legal profession in 1996, assisting in the design and evaluation of graduated fees schemes. He has continued to advise the Bar Council, specialist Bar associations and the Ministry of Justice since then until the present. He was head of economics at the University of Dundee from 2004 until 2008 and was President of the Scottish Economic Society from 2005 to 2007. As an academic economist he has published widely on the issues surrounding how fee payment systems affect the effectiveness of public service delivery. He is currently a professor economics at the University of York. He is married to Heather and together they have a son and daughter.

Charlotte Worsley
Miss Charlotte Worsley KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 2002 Benched 2023

Charlotte Worsley was born and educated in Leeds. She studied Social Anthropology at Emmanuel College, Cambridge then undertook the GDL. She was called by Middle Temple in 2002, initially practicing in London then returned North and joined Park Square Barristers in Leeds (formerly 6 Park Square) in 2003. She specialises in Children Family Law with a particular interest in child protection cases involving international, cultural and religious issues. She took silk in 2022 and was elected a Bencher in 2023. She has been Secretary for the North Eastern Circuit Middle Temple Society since its inception, serves on the Middle Temple Emergency Support Scheme Committee and is an accredited advocacy trainer. She lives in Yorkshire with her husband, two children and two dogs. 

Laurie-Anne Power
Miss Laurie-Anne Power KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 2000 Benched 2023

Laurie-Anne is a leading criminal barrister, media consultant and mentor. Her practice includes murder, sexual offences, terrorism and complex fraud. She has appeared before the Court of Appeal, Courts Martial and worked on the International Criminal Trials in Sierra Leone. She has a reputation for being fearless.

Laurie-Anne was a former part-time lecturer in criminal evidence, and taught advocacy and ethics on the bar practice course. Laurie-Anne was the treasurer of the Criminal Bar Association between 2020 and 2023 and was instrumental in the government negotiations on renumeration for the criminal bar, she is a member of the Bar Council’s working group on race, a member of the Bar Standards Board (Race Equality Taskforce), chair of Women in Criminal Law (Race Equality Committee) and former Chair of Pupillage at 25 Bedford Row. She acts as a mentor and volunteer for various charities and schools that are committed to improving the career development and social mobility of young people from diverse and marginalised backgrounds. She was the Winner of the 2019 UK Diversity Legal Awards “Lawyer of the Year” and in 2020 she was nominated “Barrister of the Year” at the Women in Law Awards.

Timothy Moloney
Tim Moloney KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1993 Benched 2023

The Chair of the Management Board of Doughty Street Chambers, Tim was called to the Bar by Middle Temple in November 1993. Prior to that, he had completed his Ph.D. and had worked as a University Lecturer in Law for two years. He took silk in 2010. He practices in Crime, Inquests and Inquiries.

His recent cases of note include Hamilton and others (the quashing of the convictions of 39 postmasters wrongly convicted on evidence generated by the unreliable Horizon software programme) and The King (on the application of Police Officer B50) v Her Majesty’s Assistant Coroner for the East Riding of Yorkshire and Kingston upon Hull [2023] EWHC 81 (Admin) (which upheld a jury’s unlawful killing conclusion). For the past year he has appeared at the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry chaired by Sir Wyn Williams, representing postmasters who have had their convictions overturned.

For over 15 years he has been the author of the Sexual Offences (with HHJ Rook QC), Terrorism and Appeals sections of Blackstone’s Criminal Practice. He is a Consultant Editor of Halsbury’s Laws.

Steven F. Molo
Mr Steven F. Molo

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Steven F. Molo is one of America's leading advocates. Chambers and Partners calls him a "fabulous courtroom litigator" who "lights up the room with his presence." Based in New York, he is a founding partner of the distinguished litigation boutique, MoloLamken LLP. Mr. Molo is a past Trustee of the American Inns of Court Foundation. He is also a Solicitor on the Roll of Attorneys.

Jacqueline Gleeson
The Hon Justice Jacqueline Gleeson SC

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Justice Gleeson holds Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Laws and Master of Laws degrees from the University of Sydney. She was admitted as a solicitor in 1989 and, after practising as a commercial solicitor, was called to the New South Wales Bar in 1991. She left the Bar in 2000, serving as General Counsel of the Australian Broadcasting Authority from 2001 to 2003, and as a Senior Executive Lawyer with the Australian Government Solicitor from 2004 to 2006. She returned to the Bar in 2007 and took silk in 2012.

Prior to her appointment to the High Court, Justice Gleeson served as a judge of the Federal Court of Australia, having been appointed to that Court in April 2014.

Magazine Biography Content: Justice Gleeson was appointed to the High Court of Australia in March 2021, after serving as a judge of the Federal Court of Australia since 2014. Justice Gleeson holds Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Laws and Master of Laws from the University of Sydney. She has practised as a commercial solicitor and public servant, and was a member of the NSW Bar from 1991-2000 and 2007-2014, taking silk in 2012.

Chinyere (Chi-Chi) Nwanoku
Professor Chinyere (Chi-Chi) Adah Nwanoku CBE

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Chi-chi Nwanoku is a British-born double bassist, professor, and broadcaster of Nigerian and Irish descent. Throughout childhood, she played the piano and pursued a sprinting career. When a knee injury ended her Olympic aspirations her focus shifted to the double bass. Her studies took her to the Royal Academy of Music in London and to Franco Petracchi in Rome.

Her commitment to diversity in classical music led her to establish the Chineke! Foundation. She has spoken globally on this subject. As a broadcaster, Chi-chi worked with BBC Radio 3, 4, Classic FM, presented a Sky-Arts documentary on Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and BBC's 'BEING BEETHOVEN'.

Chi-chi teaches at the Royal Academy and is a Visiting Fellow at Jesus College, Cambridge. She received a CBE in 2022, after an OBE and MBE. She holds honorary titles from Trinity Laban Conservatoire, Universities of Kent, Open, Cambridge and is an Honorary Bencher at Middle Temple.

Nneka Akudolu
Miss Nneka Akudolu KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 2002 Benched 2023

Nneka Akudolu KC was called to the Bar in 2002 and took silk in 2022.  

She is a criminal practitioner whose practice encompasses all areas of serious crime, including murder, drug trafficking and serious sexual offences. She has particular experience working with vulnerable defendants and witnesses and those charged with historic allegations of a sexual nature. 

Away from the Crown Court, Nneka has a keen interest in Military Law and has considerable experience representing members of the armed forces and their dependents in Court Martial proceedings both here and overseas.

Nneka is a fierce proponent of promoting diversity at the Bar. She regularly attends schools and colleges to speak to students on the subject in order to encourage those from under-represented groups to consider a Career at the Bar.

Nneka is the Circuit Lead for the pioneering “Judicial Reverse Mentoring” programme, which places junior legal professionals as mentors to senior members of the judiciary.  The programme was spearheaded by Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb in 2022 with great success. Recently, Nneka became an advocacy trainer for the Inn and was called to the Bench in June 2023

Veronique Buehrlen
Miss Veronique Buehrlen KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1991 Benched 2023

Veronique was educated at St Andrews where she read French and International relations before reading law at City University and being called to the Bar in 1991. She was awarded the Queen Mother’s Scholarship in 1989 and went on to become the Inn’s Bristow Scholar in 1992 which took her to work at the Legal Service of the EU Commission and on to the EU Court in Luxembourg before taking up her tenancy at Fountain Court in 1993.  Veronique took Silk in 2010 and in 2011 she moved to Keating where she specialises in energy and construction work.  Veronique was appointed a section 9(4) Deputy High Court Judge in 2017 and has sat regularly in the TCC.  Much of Veronique’s work is now as an international arbitrator dealing with dispute arising out of major infrastructure projects.

Veronique lives in Kent.  She is married to a retired barrister himself a member of the Inn.  She has two children and a love of gardening and Italy where she and her husband have a small olive farm.

Marcia Shekerdemian
Miss Marcia Shekerdemian KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1987 Benched 2023

Marcia was called in 1987 having taken a law degree at the University of Cambridge. Her family are Armenian and settled in England in the late 1950s. She was the first member of the family to go to university and reluctantly agreed study law as “something useful to fall back on” instead of going to drama school. To everyone’s relief, Marcia never did get to tread the boards. To her great surprise, she actually quite liked the law. In 1989 (after a real struggle to get a tenancy) Marcia started in practice at in what was then the Chambers of Michael Beckman QC, at 19 Old Buildings, Lincoln’s Inn  specialising in corporate and personal insolvency and company law. Marcia has maintained a successful insolvency law practice and now leads the insolvency and restructuring team at Wilberforce Chambers and sits as a Deputy Insolvency and Companies Court Judge. Marcia is the past Chair of the Chancery Bar Association’s Equality and Diversity Committee and led the research which resulted in her 2021 report, “Voices of Women at the Chancery Bar”.  In her other life, she loves (in no particular order): family life, (all) dogs, fashion, (all) food, cooking, live music and Exmoor.

(Edward) Mellor
The Hon Mr Justice Mellor

Ordinary Bencher Called 1986 Benched 2023

James Mellor read engineering and then production engineering at King’s College Cambridge, with spells of work in Somalia, the Congo, Germany, France and Iraq before returning to King’s in 1984/5 to do the six core subjects in law.  He was called to the Bar by Middle Temple in June 1986.  After pupillage with Michael Briggs and John Baldwin, he secured a tenancy in the IP Chambers of Thomas Blanco-White QC, then at Francis Taylor Building.  Chambers moved to 8, New Square, Lincoln’s Inn in 1992.  James took silk in 2006 and became Head of Chambers in March 2018.  He was appointed an Appointed Person for Trade Marks and Designs in 2015, a Deputy High Court Judge in 2020 and to the High Court bench on 8th February 2021, being sworn in online, as one of the specialist Judges in the Patents Court.  James is currently the Judge in charge of the Shorter Trials Scheme.

Outside work, James is a keen windsurfer, skier and mountain biker, with his three sons only being interested in the latter two sports.  He commutes to work by bike.  His better half, Jenny (M, 1987) is a cabinet maker.

Emily Jackson
Professor Emily Jackson OBE

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Emily Jackson is a Professor of Law at the London School of Economics and Political Science, where she teaches Medical Law. She is a Fellow of the British Academy, and was previously a Member and then Deputy Chair of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, and a Judicial Appointments Commissioner.

 

Andrew Parker
The Rt Hon the Lord Andrew Parker of Minsmere GCVO KCB

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Lord Parker grew up in Newcastle on Tyne, attended a local comprehensive school, then Churchill College, Cambridge. He served in the Security Service (MI5) from 1983 to 2020, latterly as the Director General, leading MI5 through a period of intense terrorism and state threats. Lord Parker was appointed Lord Chamberlain in 2021 and has led the Royal Household through the death and funeral of Prince Philip, the Platinum Jubilee, the death and funeral of The Late Queen Elizabeth, the Accession of HM King Charles III, and Coronation in 2023. Lord Parker is a Life Peer (Cross Bench), member of the Privy Council, a Non Executive Director on the board of Babcock International Group, Visiting Professor at Northumbria University's Law School, Board Adviser to a small technology company, Distinguished Fellow of RUSI, and Honorary Bencher at Middle Temple. Decorations: GCVO, KCB, Legion d'Honneur, Grand Cross of Order of Merit (Portugal), Medal of Honour (Estonia).

Adam Speker
Adam Speker KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1999 Benched 2023

Adam was Called to the Bar in 1999 and was appointed King’s Counsel in 2020. After pupillage at 5RB and QEB Hollis Whiteman he returned to 5RB as a tenant where he specialises in media and communications law, in particular defamation, misuse of private information, breach of confidence and harassment online. He has appeared in many cases involving protection of reputation and privacy, freedom of speech and open justice in this, and other common law, jurisdictions. He took silk in March 2020. He is the joint editor of the forthcoming fourth edition of The Law of Privacy and the Media (OUP).

Adam has been actively involved in the Inn throughout his career. This has included serving on scholarship committees, acting as editorial consultant for the Middle Templar and travelling with the Inn to Singapore, Hong Kong, Washington DC and Malibu. He has also lived in the Inn. 

Oliver Glasgow
Oliver Glasgow KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1995 Benched 2023

Oliver Glasgow was called to the Bar in 1995 and was appointed King’s Counsel in 2016. He is First Senior Treasury Counsel – the leader of the team of specialist advocates, based at the Central Criminal Court, who prosecute the most serious and complex cases in the country.

In that role he has undertaken some of the most sensitive, difficult, and high-profile criminal cases on behalf of the principal prosecuting authorities and government departments.

He regularly appears in the Court of Appeal on behalf of the AG and the DPP in cases of significant public interest, and he advises the government and the security services (both here and abroad) in connection with matters of the utmost gravity.

He has carried out a number of reviews into the operation of military justice and has appeared in inquests and public inquiries involving the military, the police and the government.

Thomas Grant
Thomas Grant KC

Ordinary Bencher Called 1993 Benched 2023

Thomas Grant was Called to the Bar in 1993 and was appointed King’s Counsel in 2013. Thomas practises mainly in the Chancery Division and Commercial Court, as well as in the BVI and Cayman Islands, and has particular experience in heavy multi-party disputes.

Regarded as one of the leading advocates at the commercial chancery Bar Thomas was awarded Chancery Silk of the Year 2021 by Chambers and Partners. He spends a good part of his professional life in the courtroom and has appeared in a very large number of reported decisions (over the last four years alone Thomas has appeared in over 40 reported cases). Thomas also has a substantial international arbitration practice.

He has written three mainstream books - Jeremy Hutchinson's Case Histories (2015); Court Number One: The Old Bailey Trials that Defined Modern Britain (2019); and The Mandela Brief: Sydney Kentridge and the Trials of Apartheid (2022).

Susan Glazebrook
Dame Susan Glazebrook

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Justice Susan Glazebrook is a judge of the Supreme Court of New Zealand/Te Kōti Mana Nui o Aotearoa. She is President of the International Association of Women Judges (until May 2023).

Before her elevation to the Bench, Justice Glazebrook was a partner in a large commercial law firm and a member of various boards and government advisory committees. She served as President of the Inter-Pacific Bar Association in 1998.

Since becoming a judge, Justice Glazebrook has been a member of the Advisory Council of Jurists for the Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions and chaired Te Kura, the body responsible for judicial education in New Zealand.

Justice Glazebrook is a distinguished alumni of the University of Auckland and a distinguished fellow of Victoria University of Wellington Law School. In 2014 Justice Glazebrook was made a Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to the judiciary.

Rebecca Wilkie
Rebecca Wilkie

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Rebecca has worked and volunteered in access to justice for more than 20 years, as chief executive of Advocate since 2020 and from 2007-2015. Advocate is the Bar’s pro bono charity providing legal help in every area of law, in all courts and tribunals, for people unable to obtain legal aid and who cannot afford to pay. Previously Rebecca was programme director of the Litigant in Person Support Strategy at the Access to Justice Foundation. 

Rebecca began her career as a solicitor at Hogan Lovells before moving to the charity LawWorks, leading a project establishing free legal advice sessions in low income neighbourhoods. She has an MSc in charity management from Bayes Business School.

Rebecca has held number of trustee and non-executive roles including at the Advice Services Alliance and Blackfriars Settlement and is currently Vice Chair of Money Advice Trust and an adviser to the HMCTS Reform Programme.

Wim Trengove
Wim Trengove SC

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Wim Trengove SC is a South African advocate best known for his role in the development of South African constitutional jurisprudence and his involvement in high-profile political cases.

He litigated many of South Africa's most important human rights questions, arguing for the abolition of the death penalty; against discrimination on the basis of HIV status; for the protection of sex workers' labour rights; for the restitution of land and mineral rights to groups dispossessed during apartheid; and for the roll-out of anti-retroviral treatment for HIV patients. He represented mineworkers in a class action against mining companies for the widespread contraction of silicosis. The $400 million settlement was the largest in South African history.

Trengove has been active in high-profile political cases, representing former president Nelson Mandela, including in his divorce from Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, leading the prosecution of former president Jacob Zuma, and representing President Cyril Ramaphosa in various matters.

Deborah Enix-Ross
Deborah Enix-Ross

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Deborah is Senior Advisor to the International Dispute Resolution Group, and a member of the Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council at Debevoise & Plimpton. She previously served as a Senior Legal Officer of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Arbitration and Mediation Center in Geneva, Switzerland, and as the American representative to the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) International Court of Arbitration. The U.S. Departments of Commerce and State appointed her as one of the original eight U.S. members of the trilateral NAFTA Advisory Committee on Private Commercial Disputes. Deborah is a member of the Advisory Committee of the New York Law School ADR Skills Program.  She is President of the American Bar Association (ABA).   Deborah  was named on the 2022 Forbes 50 Over 50: Impact list,  recognized for being “a change maker who uses her empathy, insight and savvy to make the world a better, more equitable place.”

Róbert Spanó
Professor Róbert Ragnar Spanó

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Róbert Spanó is Of Counsel in the London office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher where he is a member of the firm’s Dispute Resolution Practice Group. He is the former President of the European Court of Human Rights. He was educated at the University of Iceland, the University of Leuven, and the University of Oxford. He was a tenured Professor of Law and Dean of the Faculty of Law, University of Iceland and practiced as a part-time Of Counsel for a law firm in Iceland and in London in the fields of public law and corporate law. He was provisionally appointed Parliamentary Ombudsman in 2013 before being elected a judge on the European Court of Human Rights. He served as President of the ECHR from 18 May 2020 to 31 October 2022. He is a Visiting Professor of Law at the University of Oxford for the 2022-2023 academic year and a Professor of Law, University of Iceland.

Michael Mainelli
Professor Michael Mainelli

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Professor Michael Mainelli

MStJ PhD BA FCCA FCSI(Hon) FBCS FRSA CITP FIC CMC MEI

A scientist and economist promoting societal advance through better finance and technology, Michael founded Z/Yen, the City of London’s leading think-tank and venture firm, in 1994.  Educated at Harvard, Trinity College Dublin, and LSE, where he was also Visiting Professor, he became a senior partner with BDO Binder Hamlyn, and Corporate Development Director for the Ministry of Defence’s Defence Evaluation & Research Agency.  Michael is a fellow of Gresham College, Kings College London, Birkbeck, and Goodenough College, visiting professor at UCL’s Bartlett School, non-executive director of the United Kingdom Accreditation Service and a listed mining company.  He is active in eleven livery companies, past Master of the World Traders, an Alderman of the City of London for Broad Street, and late Sheriff of the City of London 2019-2021, with charity interests in the environment, education, and care.

Nick Lyons
The Rt. Hon. The Lord Mayor of the City of London, Alderman Nick Stephen Leland Lyons

Honorary Bencher Benched 2023

Alderman Nicholas Lyons was elected as the next Lord Mayor of the City of London on 29 September 2022. He took office as the 694th Lord Mayor on 11 November 2022. He previously served as Sheriff of the City of London in 2021-22.

Nicholas was born in Ireland and was educated in Canterbury, attending the King’s School and then Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he read history.

 

After time as a political research assistant in London and with the Directorate General for External Relations at the EEC Commission in Brussels, he joined Morgan Guaranty Trust Company of New York in London in 1982 where he worked for 12 years, then at Salomon Brothers from 1994-95 and then moved with a team to Lehman Brothers where he worked from 1995-03. He held a series of global leadership roles at Lehman Brothers, retiring in 2003 to begin a plural career, sitting on the boards of many financial institutions and numerous charities. His City career has spanned over 40 years.