Human rights

‘Chambers is very dedicated to social justice and every barrister there is someone who cares about excellence for clients and has empathy for their circumstances.’

– The Legal 500, 2024.

Garden Court North Chambers is a leading human rights set. We are listed as a Top Tier Set in The Legal 500, 2024 and have been recommended as a leading set for human rights and civil liberties work outside London in Chambers and Partners every year since 2006.

Chambers has a strong commitment to civil liberties and human rights and this is apparent throughout every area of specialisation. Our members, all of whom specialise in human rights, have experience in all aspects of human rights law and are happy to advise on such matters and undertake human rights challenges wherever relevant. For example:

  • Members of the Crime Team have brought cases before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR);
  • Members of the Public Law (judicial review) Team, regularly pursue human rights challenges to administrative decision-making;
  • Members of the Immigration Team regularly undertake human rights applications and appeals;
  • Members of the Prison Law Team have been involved in leading cases, including the successful Article 6 challenge to prison adjudications and Article 5 challenges to IPP sentences;
  • Members of the Housing and Community Care Teams are experts in the field of human rights law and regularly employ arguments under the ECHR;
  • Members of the Civil Actions Against the Police and Public Bodies Team are experienced in pursuing claims under the ECHR; and
  • Members of the Inquests and Public Inquiries Team are  instructed in cases on the application of Article 2 to inquest proceedings.

In addition, Chambers’ commitment to human rights is further demonstrated by our members’ involvement in organisations such as INQUEST, Liberty and Amicus, and by their involvement in death penalty work in the US and human rights missions to Bahrain.

Pete Weatherby QC and Kate Stone are members of the Executive Committee of The Bar Human Rights Committee of England and Wales.

Our members also deliver seminars and training on all aspects of human rights relating to all areas of specialisation, both through Chamber’s activities and personal commitment to specific organisations.

Chambers and Partners 2017 describes Chambers in the following terms: “Garden Court North Chambers houses an established team of barristers who are committed to the field of civil liberties and human rights. Its strong track record in areas such as immigration, asylum, prison law and miscarriages of justice distinguishes the chambers as a go-to human rights set outside of London. Alongside its stellar reputation domestically, … [it] offers a practice which is international in scope, with members frequently tackling major human rights matters as far afield as Bahrain, Colombia and the USA”.

Although Chambers is in Manchester, our members frequently travel to courts across England and Wales. If you would like to know more about our human rights work including training and seminars please contact the Practice Management Team on 0161 817 6377 or at gcn@gcnchambers.co.uk.

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