International Lawyers

Barristers from Brick Court Chambers are involved in a large number of international disputes, frequently instructed directly by lawyers from other jurisdictions, and appearing in courts and tribunals all over the world.

Unlike some jurisdictions, the legal profession in the UK is divided into two distinct branches - barristers and solicitors. Solicitors are in direct contact with clients, whereas barristers are appointed by solicitors on behalf of their clients for advocacy and advisory work. (A persuasive and well presented argument is a highly prized and necessary part of the litigation procedure in the UK legal system, and a barrister's experience in this can often give one party an edge.)

Instructing a barrister is a straightforward process. Barristers are all self-employed but share the services of a clerk and administration with other barristers in a collective called a chambers. The first point of contact in employing a barrister is through their clerks who manage their diaries and all fee matters. At Brick Court Chambers we have an efficient and knowledgeable team of clerks, led by Ian Moyler, Julian Hawes and Deborah Anderson. They have a detailed knowledge of each barristers' experience and are therefore ideally positioned to assist on the best choice of counsel, as well as all aspects of efficient case management. The clerks can advise on the likely costs of work undertaken by members of Chambers, and will often be able to give advice on the likely costs of overall fees in the English system.

Where a matter so requires, a barrister may work in a team of two or possibly three other barristers, and the flexibility of the chambers system means that they need not necessarily be members of the same chambers. From time to time there may be occasions on which barristers in the same chambers are instructed by parties who are on opposing sides of a dispute. These arrangements can seem unusual to some clients but they may rest assured that there are very specific procedures in place to ensure that confidentiality and the highest standard of ethics are maintained when this occurs. A copy of our confidentiality guidelines can be found by clicking here.

Due to regulations in the English legal system or the nature of a case, it may not always be appropriate for a barrister to be instructed directly rather than through a solicitor. We can advise you on this and if this situation arises we are able to refer you to a very extensive network of instructing firms either in the United Kingdom, or beyond.

Below are some testimonials from clients who have used barristers from Brick Court chambers.

"In engagements with four silks and their juniors over several years, I have found Brick Court extraordinarily reliable, practical and responsive. A foreign lawyer should feel at ease instructing Brick Court." Michael Soccarras Washington DC

"I had the privilege of working with a silk from Brick Court in major anti trust proceedings in Australia, and there is no doubt that this was a career highlight for me. As an added bonus, I found dealing with the senior clerks and other staff of the chambers to be a real delight- I felt they were very conscious of considering my needs as instructing solicitor and those of my Australian client and went out of their way to make everything run smoothly- so that the time zone and jurisdictional differences seemed non existent."

Rebecca Davies - Sydney

Members of Brick Court Chambers have acted in and led teams of lawyers from a number of jurisdictions on European Commission cases and in major international arbitrations. It is perhaps indicative of our international reputation that over the past few years members of chambers have appeared before the Courts in Australia, Bermuda, Cayman, British Virgin Islands, Gibraltar and Hong Kong and we have arbitrated disputes in Amsterdam, Zurich, Ohio, Washington ,New York ,Paris, Rotterdam,Trinidad and the Falkland Islands.