27/06/17
From 1 September Victoria Wakefield has been appointed by the Attorney General to the A Panel of Junior Counsel to the Crown, and Oliver Jones has been appointed by the Attorney General to the B Panel of Junior Counsel to the Crown.
Victoria’s practice spans commercial, EU, competition and public law. Recent highlights in her practice include addressing the Supreme Court on three separate occasions over the past year (in respect of restitution in R (Hemming t/a Simply Pleasures) v Westminster City Council; on access to justice in R (Unison) v Lord Chancellor; and on the application of A1P1 ECHR to forfeiture of an insurance claim in Versloot Dredging BV.
Oliver has a broad practice encompassing commercial, public and international law. He regularly appears in heavyweight commercial litigation and in high-profile judicial review challenges, and also has extensive experience of international law and State immunity issues in various contexts. His recent cases include Law Debenture Trust Corp Plc v Ukraine [2017] EWHC 655 (Comm), a claim against Ukraine by the Trustee of USD 3 billion in Eurobonds held by the Russian Federation, Paulley v FirstGroup [2017] UKSC 4, concerning the obligations of bus companies to make reasonable adjustments for disabled passengers pursuant to the Equality Act, and Belhaj v The Rt. Hon Jack Straw & Ors [2017] UKSC 3, in relation to whether claims for mistreatment involving UK officials are blocked by State immunity or the act of State doctrine.