Nicholas Bowen KC, Laura Dubinsky KC and Amal Clooney win awards at The Legal 500 Bar Awards Ceremony 2024
We are proud to announce that our Nicholas Bowen KC, Laura Dubinsky KC, and Amal Clooney, have won awards in the Legal 500 Bar Awards 2024.
Nicholas Bowen KC, received the ‘Public Services & Charities Silk of the Year’ in recognition of his groundbreaking work in claims against a wide variety of public authorities which have tested the boundaries of the law of tort and consequent state responsibility for public service failures that have led to miscarriages of justice and preventable tragedies, often involving life changing injuries, death and economic loss. Current work includes the pending Supreme Court judgment in Tindall v CC of Thames Valley Police [2022] appeals in CJ v CC of Wiltshire Police [2022] EWHC 1661 and Woodcock v CC of Northamptonshire Police [2023] EWHC 1062 listed this October. These involve the exploration of the high-level principles established in his previous Supreme Court appearances in the landmark cases Michael v CC of South Wales Police [2015] A.C. 1732, Robinson v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police [2018] A.C. 736 and James-Bowen v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis [2018] 1 W.L.R. 4021.
Laura Dubinsky KC received the ‘Immigration Silk of the Year’ award in recognition of her public law work focusing on refugee and immigration issues. Laura is instructed in significant challenges to government policies; complex asylum and deportation appeals; and landmark civil liberties cases, including leading cases concerning the administrative detention of immigrants and the scope of bail powers. Her clients range from UNHCR and NGOs to high-profile individuals and legally aided clients. Laura’s recent notable cases include (1) the Rwanda litigation, R (AAA (Syria) and Others) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2023] UKSC 42, [2023] 1 WLR 4433 (in which she acted for UNHCR); (2)R (IAB) v Secretary of State for the Home Department and Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities [2024] EWCA Civ 66 , [2024] 1 WLR 1916 in which she acted for multiple asylum seekers successfully challenging redactions in disclosure given by a public authority; and (3) a successful challenge to plans to remove licensing requirements from multiple occupation housing for asylum seekers. She often leads large multi-counsel teams, on behalf of multiple claimants or on behalf of a single party in major litigation.
Amal Clooney received an award for ‘International Law Junior of the Year’ in recognition of her outstanding work and contributions in the field of international law. Amal represents clients before international courts, including the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Court and the European Court of Human Rights. Described as a "brilliant legal mind" and "natural lead advocate" in “a league of her own at the Bar”, Amal is known for her superb advocacy and innovative approaches, particularly for victims of mass atrocities. She has acted in many landmark human rights cases in recent years including the world’s first and only trials in which ISIS members have been convicted of genocide against Yazidis. Amal also represents over 800 Yazidis in the first civil case in a U.S. court seeking to hold ISIS financiers responsible for supporting the terror group’s crimes. She has led efforts for accountability regarding crimes in Ukraine and she was recently counsel to 126 victims of crimes against humanity in Darfur, Sudan, at the International Criminal Court.
Amal also represents political prisoners around the world and has helped to secure the freedom of journalists arbitrarily detained for their work across the globe. She has received multiple awards for this work including the Gwen Ifill Award for “extraordinary and sustained achievement in the cause of press freedom” from the Committee to Protect Journalists, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press “Freedom of the Press Award” and the American Society of International Law “Champion of International Rule of Law” award.
The Legal 500 awards recognise sets and barristers based on positive feedback from clients collected during the research for its annual rankings. We are very grateful to the excellent solicitors and clients who instruct us for sharing their positive experiences with our barristers throughout this process.
The full list of winners can be found here.
