The Legal 500 2019: Wilberforce is a set of ‘top-flight barristers’

The latest edition of The Legal 500 UK has been released and Wilberforce has had another successful year. We have three top-tier set rankings and are recommended as a leading set in a further eight practice areas. We have 135 barrister rankings including 17 new entries.

Praise is also directed at our staff, with eight individuals in the clerks’ room singled out by our clients. A summary of our recommendations is below and full coverage in the 2018 guide can be found here.

Leading set rankings

• Charities
• Commercial litigation
• Company and partnership
• Fraud – civil
• Insolvency
• Offshore
• Pensions
• Private client: personal tax
• Private client: trusts and probate
• Professional negligence
• Property litigation and agriculture

Set Overview

The ‘polished’ Wilberforce Chambers is ‘the best in the market’ for pensions litigation work and one of the ‘premier’ offshore sets as it can offer ‘a choice of top flight barristers who can offer a deep understanding of the offshore legal market and who have hands-on experience in the offshore courts’. Chambers ‘has grown and gone from strength to strength’ since the ‘solutions driven’ Nicholas Luckman was appointed as practice director. Luckman (‘a stalwart in the offshore legal world’) and head clerk Mark Rushton are ‘both responsive and sensitive to client needs and oversee a commercially focused clerks’ room’. Rushton in particular is praised for ‘going out of his way to ensure a fantastic service and constantly asking how they can get even better’. The clerking team is ‘second to none’, providing ‘an integral part of the exceptional service the set provides its clients’. Solicitors highlight the ‘standout’ Fraser Geddes; a ‘superb’ Ben Rippengale, who is ‘on the ball, efficient, personable and a genuine pleasure to deal’; and Stewart Cameron, who is ‘responsive and great at trying to fix listing problems as well as squeezing in assistance from counsel at short notice when we need it’. In addition, Danny Smillie and the ‘impressive’ Nancy Lee are also recommended. Offices in: London