Essex Court Chambers is a set of commercial

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

s in

Lincoln's Inn Fields Lincoln's Inn Fields is the largest public square in London. It was laid out in the 1630s under the initiative of the speculative builder and contractor William Newton, "the first in a long series of entrepreneurs who took a hand in develo ...

, central

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. It has 96 tenants, of whom 45 are

King's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...

s, also known as Silks. It is considered by legal commentators to be one of the '

Magic Circle A magic circle is a circle of space marked out by practitioners of some branches of ritual magic, which they generally believe will contain energy and form a sacred space, or will provide them a form of magical protection, or both. It may be marke ...

' of London's most prestigious commercial

barristers' chambers In law, a barrister's chambers or barristers' chambers are the rooms used by a barrister or a group of barristers. The singular refers to the use by a sole practitioner whereas the plural refers to a group of barristers who, while acting as sol ...

. The former

Lord Chief Justice Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

, Sir John Thomas, was a member of Essex Court Chambers when he was at the Bar. Other members or former members of Essex Court Chambers include Lord Collins of Mapesbury, Dame

Rosalyn Higgins Rosalyn C. Higgins, Baroness Higgins, (born 2 June 1937) is a British former president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). She was the first female judge elected to the ICJ, and was elected to a three-year term as its president in 2006 ...

, Sir

Christopher Greenwood Sir Christopher John Greenwood (born 12 May 1955) is Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge and a former British judge at the International Court of Justice. Prior to his election, he was professor of international law at the London School of ...

Lord Millett Peter Julian Millett, Baron Millett, , (23 June 1932 – 27 May 2021) was a British barrister and judge. He was a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary from 1998 to 2004. Biography Early life The son of Denis and Adele Millett, he was educated at Har ...

Lord Steyn Johan van Zyl Steyn, Baron Steyn, PC (15 August 1932 – 28 November 2017) was a South African-British judge, until September 2005 a Law Lord. He sat in the House of Lords as a crossbencher. Early life and education Steyn was born in Stellen ...

, Lord Savile and

Lord Mustill Michael John Mustill, Baron Mustill, PC, FBA (10 May 1931 – 24 April 2015) was an English barrister and judge. He was a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary from 1992 to 1997. Life and career The son of Clement William and Marion Mustill, he was ed ...

. The set is named after their former premises at 4 Essex Court in the

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

which it left in 1994. The chambers in its current incarnation date back to 1961. Lord Mustill, Michael Kerr (later Lord Justice Kerr), Anthony Evans (later Lord Justice Evans), Anthony Diamond (later Judge Diamond QC) and Robert MacCrindle were its founding members. The Singapore office opened in July 2009 and is located in Maxwell Chambers. Essex Court Chambers has been awarded ‘Chambers of the Year’ at the Legal Business Awards in 2020, at the Who's Who Legal Awards in 2019 and 2018. and at the British Legal Awards in 2018 On 26 March 2021, it was announced that Essex Court Chambers was one of four entities to be sanctioned by

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

for spreading what it called "lies and disinformation" about the country. Chinese citizens and institutions are prohibited from doing business with it. Several members of the set subsequently departed.

Notes and sources

;Notes ;Sources * *

External links

Essex Court Chambers home page

Profile
– Legal 500 Law firms based in London Barristers' chambers in the United Kingdom {{England-company-stub