Furnival Chambers is a multidisciplinary set, with members consistently ranked as leaders in their fields across a number of specialist practice areas. They are:
- In criminal proceedings. Our barristers act for the defence and prosecution in the full range of criminal cases before the Crown Courts and Magistrates’ Courts.
- Appellate proceedings whether as ‘fresh’ counsel or following earlier proceedings
- Extradition
- In a wide range of regulatory proceedings covering such areas as cybercrime, employment, health & safety, public inquiries, international arbitration and sports. Our barristers act for regulators and regulated persons before disciplinary tribunals and on appeal.
- In coronial proceedings. Our barristers act for participants appearing at Inquests and on appeal.
More information about Furnival, including our Terms of Service, can be found on our website along with policies for all other areas.
Contacting us
When instructing a barrister, your first point of contact will be a member of our experienced and dedicated clerking team led by our Senior Clerk, Stephen Ball. He and his team have enormous knowledge in the specialist areas covered by Chambers and its barristers. They will assist you in relation to all matters including availability, fees and suitability for your case.
The following are invited to contact the clerking team for a quote for our barristers’ services by phone, email or post at the contact details provided below:
- Solicitors or other practising lawyers whether domestic or international.
- Licensed Access clients, who either hold a licence issued by the Bar Standards Board, or a member of a professional body recognised by the Bar Standards Board
- Members of the public who wish to instruct a barrister under the Public Access Scheme [please see below]
Our clerks have developed extremely strong working relationships with Court staff and will endeavour to assist in ensuring suitable dates and times for court hearings.
We will provide you with a quotation as soon as possible, but you should not hesitate to contact us if there is something you don’t understand.
Fees
Our clerking team work with the barristers to provide fees estimates and budgets for each instruction. Whilst we charge competitive market rates commensurate with the service provided, we are always willing to discuss the way our fees are structured in order to find a solution that works.
Barristers in Chambers most often charge hourly rates for privately funded work in the areas of their specialist practice. In such cases our barristers work under the standard default terms provided by the Bar Council, known as The Standard Contractual Terms for the Supply of Legal Services by Barristers to Authorised Persons 2012 (Updated for the GDPR in 2018); hard copy available on request.
The hourly rate for a particular case or a specific piece of work will normally be agreed in advance and takes into account the market rate, the individual barrister’s skill and experience and the particular circumstances of the case or work, including its complexity.
Fixed fees, conditional fee agreements and different contractual terms may also be considered in certain cases.
For more information, please contact the clerking team.
Timescales
The timescales for a case will necessarily vary depending on such factors as the barrister’s availability, the nature and seriousness of the case, the type of evidence involved, court waiting times and a host of other unknown variables.
Public / Direct Access
If you are a member of the public, see the Bar Standard Board’s Public Access Guidance for Lay Clients. This will assist with how the Public Access scheme works and how to instruct a barrister directly.
The Bar Standards Board requires barristers to provide additional price information in relation to specific areas of Public Access work. Public Access barristers at Furnival practise in specific areas that include:
- Fresh counsel appeals
- Summary only motoring offences
An illustration of how the pricing operates in relation to Summary Only [Magistrates Court without election] Motoring Offences can be seen below:
Timescale
Timescales for services and completion of such work is dependent on a number of variables that aren’t always within the control of the barrister or chambers generally. The complexity of the case, service of evidence and availability of court time are just some of the factors that require consideration. Even if you require representation at short notice, please contact the clerking team and our barristers will aim to represent you at the hearing or advise you where possible, whether in person or over zoom.
Fees
Barristers most often charge hourly rates for this type of work. Estimates are provided below based on ranges of hourly rates upon which VAT is payable. Should your needs require Queens Counsel or an experienced barrister, or the case be particularly complex or serious, the rates would be at the higher end.
Stage of case | Range of hourly rates (estimates) |
Written advice on your case | £100-£800 + VAT, approximately 1-10 hours |
Preparation of case, including conferences with you and assistance with drafting of court documents | £100-£800 + VAT, approximately 1-10 hours |
Guilty pleas | £100-£800 + VAT, approximately 1-5 hours |
First appearance (pre-trial court appearance) | £100-£800 + VAT, approximately 1-5 hours |
First day of trial | £100-£800 + VAT, approximately 5-10 hours |
Court appearances per day, after the first day of trial | £100-£800 + VAT, approximately 5-10 hours per day |
Contact us
All information is correct as of September 2021, but fees are estimates only. Please contact a member of the clerking team for an accurate estimate.
Contact us about Direct Access
Regulatory and Complaints Information
All barristers at Furnival are regulated by the Bar Standards Board. You can search the Barristers’ Register on the Bar Standards Board’s website which assists in confirming that the barrister has a current practising certificate and whether they have any disciplinary findings.
Alternatively, you can contact the Bar Standards Board on 020 7611 1444 or email them at: contactus@barstandardsboard.org.uk
We aim to provide an excellent quality of service at all times. If you are unsatisfied with any area of our service, we would encourage you to let us know immediately.
In many cases, potential complaints can be resolved informally without resort to the formal complaints procedure. Please direct your complaint to our Senior Clerk, whose contact details are given below. In our experience, complaints can often be resolved satisfactorily in this way without recourse to the more formal procedure.
If the case cannot be resolved informally in a satisfactory way, Chambers has adopted a formal complaints procedure which ensures that complaints are dealt with appropriately. If anyone wishes to find out more about that procedure, details can also be found on this website here.
Our complaints procedure also provides information on:
- Any right you may have to complain to the Legal Ombudsman – the independent body which can help you if you have complained to your lawyer and are not happy with their response;
- How to complain to the LeO; and
- Any time limits for making a complaint.
You can also search the decision data on the LeO’s website.
Further information and contact details
For further information, or to request a hard copy of this informative page, please contact the clerking team by telephone on 020 7405 3232, or by email at clerks@furnivallaw.co.uk or by post addressed to The Senior Clerk, Furnival Chambers, 16 Took’s Court, London Ec4A 1LB
Furnival Chambers enjoys a strong reputation in general crime, across all levels of call. We have consistently high rankings in the Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners. Our specialist teams have built up considerable experience, and a formidable reputation, in areas such as money laundering, asset forfeiture and extradition.
Chambers is home to a past Chair of the Criminal Bar Association (Sally O’Neill KC) and a current member of the Bar Council (Tim Devlin). Two former members of Chambers, Francis Sheridan and Steven Holt, have been appointed to the Circuit Bench.
We are a set that embraces equal opportunities, and combines the highest levels of skill and expertise with standard-setting levels of efficiency. All our work is underpinned by an open commitment to quality and service. We believe that quality standards are a starting point rather than an end in themselves, and a platform for a steadily improving service.