The silks list in full: 98 new QCs

Ninety-eight lawyers have been made up to Queen’s Counsel, the Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary Jack Straw announced today (22 January).

The only solicitor to be made up to silk was Paul Mitchard, a partner of US law firm Skadden Arps Meagher & Flom and head of the firm’s European international arbitration group.

Along with Mitchard, 97 barristers (as listed below) received the coveted title of Queen’s Counsel.

Sir Duncan Nichol, chairman of the QC Selection Panel said these appointments maintain the high standards expected of a silk.

“There were no quotas, nor did we give special treatment to particular groups of applicants,” said Nichol. “The list is composed in this way because that is where the evidence led us.”

The 98 new silks fought off 235 other lawyers - five solicitors and 230 barristers - to gain the kitemark. Those who received silk equated to 29 per cent of the total applicants.

This compares with 175 appointments from 443 applications in 2006. Prior to this no QC appointments had been made in the three years from 2003.

Of the 98 appointed this year, 39 per cent of the women applicants - 20 barristers - were made up, a drop of 10 percentage points on the previous silk round where 33 appointments were made.

Four barristers - 18 per cent of the 24 that applied - were from an ethnic origin other than white. Proportionally this is a drop of 24 per cent on 2006.

In addition, three appointments declared a disability, while eight were aged 55 or over.

[In no particular order]

7 King’s Bench Walk: Michael David Prior Allen, Julia Amanda Dias

Carmelite Chambers: Charles Bott

Essex Court Chambers: Alan Vaughan Lowe, Vernon James Hennessy Flynn, Toby Thomas Landau, Hugh Charles Mercer

XXIV Old Buildings: David Brownbill, Elspeth Talbot Rice

Maitland Chambers: Dominic Chambers, Simon George Harry Barker, Christopher Roy Parker

Atlantic Chambers: Stuart Driver

QEB Hollis Whiteman: Edward Brown, Mark Ellison

23 Essex Street: Dafydd Enoch

Lincoln House Chambers: Suzanne Goddard

3 Raymond Buildings: John Sydney Hardy, Crispin David William Aylett

St Philips Chambers: Peter Haynes

Keating Chambers: Nerys Angharad Jefford, Sarah Jane Hannaford

2 Hare Court: Brendan Damien Kelly, Jonathan James Laidlaw

4 Pump Court: Duncan James McCall, Alexander Murray Charlton, Aidan Patrick Christie

Four New Square: Graeme Paul McPherson, Mark Cannon

Peel Court Chambers: Stephen Christian Meadowcroft

Henderson Chambers: Prashant Popat

Coram Chambers: Alison Russell

Blackstone Chambers: Pushpinder Saini, James Eadie, Robert Howe

No5 Chambers: Leonard Wayne Smith, Michael Peter Burrows

1 High Pavement: Shaun Malden Smith

4 Paper Buildings: Michael Vivian Sternberg

1 Stanley Place: Andrew Martin Thomas

11KBW: Peter Thomas Wallington, Elisabeth Mary Caroline Laing

Furnival Chambers: Richard Whittam

Brick Court Chambers: Thomas Noble Adam, Helen Louise Davies, Timothy Michael Lord

9 Gough Square: Grahame Aldous

9-12 Bell Yard: Johannah Cutts

Deans Court Chambers: Stuart Henry MacDonald Denney, Susan Grocott

36 Bedford Row: Christopher John Donnellan

1 King’s Bench Walk: Deborah Ann Eaton

Atkinson Bevan Chambers: Aftab Jafferjee

Serle Court: Nicholas Lavender, Peter McMaster

2 Paper Buildings: Hugh Brian Gordon Lett

25 Bedford Row: Alison Frances Josephine Levitt

Wilberforce Chambers: Thomas William Gordon Lowe, James Justin Barnett Ayliffe

3 Verulam Buildings: Juliet Mary May, Adrian Joseph Beltrami

187 Fleet Street: Simon Peter Mayo

Matrix Chambers: Karon Monaghan

18 Red Lion Court: David Huw Anthony Williams, Max Benjamin Rowland Hill, Noel John Mac Lucas

QEB Chambers: Timothy Amos

Gray’s Inn Tax Chambers: Felicity Ann Cullen

Exchange Chambers: Brian Cummings, David John Casement

One Crown Office Row: Angus William Butler Edis

Landmark Chambers: Roy Logan Martin

8 New Square: Richard David Meade

20 Essex Street: Guy Morpuss

Charter Chambers: Nicholas Rhodes

St Paul’s Chambers: Andrew James Stubbs

2 Bedford Row: Brian Altman

3 New Square: Colin Ian Birss

7 Bedford Row: Rosalind Coe

Quadrant Chambers: Simon Martin Croall

Crown Office Chambers: Michael Alexander Curtis

Atkin Chambers: Chantal-Aimee Doerries

12 King’s Bench Walk: William Alan Featherby

2-3 Gray’s Inn Square: James de Cardonnel Findlay

5 King’s Bench Walk: Sarah Anne Forshaw

1 Temple Gardens: Dominic Charles Roberts Grieve

Littleton Chambers: Caroline Jane Harry Thomas

Cobden House Chambers: Richard Anthony Hartley

Byrom Street Chambers: David Michael Heaton

2 King’s Bench Walk: Nicholas Richard Maybury Hilliard

Fountain Court Chambers: Timothy Jean-Paul Howe, Mark Taylor Simpson

One Essex Court: Neil David Kitchener, Michael Jerome Sullivan

13 King’s Bench Walk: Nicholas Syfret

2 Temple Gardens: Sarah Jane Vaughan Jones

Farrar’s Building: Jonathan Helier Watt-Pringle

Skadden Arps Meagher & Flom: Paul Mitchard