Brick Court Chambers‘ Mark Howard QC has been appointed to co-head the set with Helen Davies QC, as incumbent Jonathan Hirst QC prepares to step down.
With his new appointment unopposed Howard QC will now lead the set, which houses nearly 40 silks, alongside Davies QC who has served in the role alongside Jonathan Hirst QC since 2013. Hirst QC will remain at the set as a door tenant.
Widely considered a heavyweight silk at the commercial Bar Howard QC has appeared in some of the most high-profile commercial cases in recent years, including most recently Terra Firma’s £2.3bn battle against Citibank at London’s High Court over the purchase of EMI in 2007. He further advised Imperial Tobacco before the Competition Appeals Tribunal in the leading case of Imperial Tobacco v OFT, setting aside the then largest fine ever imposed by the OFT in a competition case.
His status as a leading silk at Brick Court has helped drive the financial power of the set, which alongside the likes of Essex Court Chambers, Fountain Court Chambers, One Essex Court, and Blackstone Chambers, command very lucrative fees while attracting a high calibre of junior talent at the Bar.
On the reshuffle of leadership, Davies QC said: ‘[Howard’s] appointment was unopposed which reflects the very high esteem his fellow members of chambers hold him in. We are extremely grateful to Jonathan for the very significant contribution he has made to chambers throughout his tenancy, and most particularly as a longstanding joint heads of chambers.’
Other changes at the premier set of late has been the recruitment of junior barristers, including Wilberforce Chambers’ rising star Laura Newton and 20 Essex Street’s Edward Ho.
Sarah.downey@legalease.co.uk
For more on Mark Howard QC, click here. For more on the super sets at the Bar, see ‘Set in Stone – testing time for mid-tier sets as elite London sets tighten their grip‘
