Instructing us
Instructing Counsel is a straightforward process. Your first point of contact should be our Practice Managers, who will be delighted to help you. However, if you have a particular Counsel you want to deal with, then you can contact and instruct that Counsel direct.
Below you will find further information about our service and how we can help you. We have also recorded the answers for you to some of the most frequently asked questions.
Barristers can work directly for a wide range of clients and our work typically comes from accountants, solicitors, in-house legal counsel from a wide variety of industries, tax advisors, trust companies and under Public Access from members of the public. To check the rules under which you can instruct, you can check here for Professional Clients and Licensed Access. You can find out more about Public Access and which of our barristers are qualified to accept public access instructions in the “Public access instructions” section below.
Our practice managers will be happy to advise as to the best way for a particular client to instruct a member of chambers.
Like other barristers’ chambers, we are not a firm or partnership. Each barrister has his or her own personal practice. We are specialists and not generalists and you can find out more about each barrister’s particular field of interest and specialism from their profile here. We do discuss amongst ourselves difficult points of law and this wide experience enables us to offer practical, accurate and insightful tax advice.
Our practice managers are happy to discuss how to find the right person or team to instruct and when would be the best point to instruct them either on the telephone or by email. We pride ourselves on giving exceptional service and in understanding exactly what you need to ensure the optimum and most cost-effective result.
We can be instructed to give tax advice and to conduct tax appeals and other tax-related litigation. We appear in tax appeals argued before the First-Tier Tribunal (Tax), the Upper Tribunal, the High Court, the Court of Appeal, the Supreme Court, the Privy Council and the European Court of Justice.
Where we are to give tax advice, it is important to instruct a tax barrister as early as possible in the planning stage.
Where the work is contentious, we can be instructed right up to the hearing, whether tribunal or Court. We are used to stepping in at very short notice, but as a rule it is generally better to involve the barrister at the correspondence stage, as we can often resolve a dispute without the need for lengthy correspondence or a court hearing.
In complex matters, it is often cost-effective to instruct a junior barrister alongside a senior barrister. In litigation, a Queen’s Counsel (QC) will often be assisted by junior counsel.
The following members of Chambers can accept instructions directly from the public without the need for first instructing a professional adviser (for example a solicitor or accountant).
You may also find the following publication by the Bar Standards Board helpful: Public Access for Lay Clients
The normal basis on which each barrister charges their fees is set out with their other details here . We are happy to provide an estimate of fees, if requested to do so and if sufficient information is available. As a rule of thumb, we aim to provide you with an estimate for fees before work starts and as quickly as possible. The work undertaken by members of chambers ranges across a wide spectrum of complexity, duration and responsibility and as a result we agree the fee for each piece of work separately.
Our practice managers are happy to provide you with an estimate and explanation of costs and are adept at helping you to manage your budget effectively. If you are uncertain on any point, they will be happy to take you through each area in more detail.
The professional who instructs the barrister (known as the licensed access client) is liable for the barrister’s fee due in respect of work carried out by the barrister under any instructions. Even in a case where the matter concerns a lay client, the professional is solely and exclusively liable to the barrister for the fees whether or not the lay client puts the professional in funds.
In this regard, the relationship, between the barrister and the professional is a contractual one.
Any individual giving or purporting to give instructions on behalf of any partnership, firm, company, individual or other person warrants to the barrister that he is authorised by the latter to do so and retain for six years after the last item of work done by the barrister instructed copies of instructions (including supplemental instructions); copies of all advices given and documents drafted and approved; a list of all documents enclosed with any instructions; notes of all conferences and all advice given by telephone.
If the professional is a partnership or a firm or unincorporated association, the liability of the partners or members and on death that of their estates for the barrister’s fees is joint and several.
Neither the sending by the professional of instructions to a barrister nor the acceptance of those instructions by a barrister nor anything done in connection therewith nor the terms governing Licensed Access nor any arrangement or transaction entered into under them shall give rise to any contractual relationship rights duties or consequences whatsoever either between the barrister and the General Council of the Bar and any lay client or between the General Council of the Bar and the professional.
If and when you wish to consult with Counsel we can now offer video conferencing facilities. Our system is compatible with the majority of IP systems. If you do not have access to a video conference system, but do have access to an iPad or a computer with a webcam, then we can also accommodate you. The process is very simple; we invite you as a Guest via e-mail. The e-mail includes a link to a special web sign up page. Once the guest has logged in successfully Counsel is able to call and begin the video conference.
In accordance with the guidelines issued by the Bar Standards Board, the Bar Council and the Revenue Bar Association, we are required to ask all lawyers or regulated professionals, whether UK or overseas, who instruct a member of Chambers to confirm in writing the identity of their lay client and that they have verified the identity of the lay client in accordance with the relevant money laundering regulations. We cannot start work until that written confirmation has been received. We aim to make this process straightforward and convenient for the lay client and the regulated professional client.
Where we are instructed directly by a member of the public, we undertake these client identification procedures ourselves and again aim to make this process straightforward and convenient for our client.
All barristers offer their services to clients subject to and in accordance with the Code of Conduct of the Bar.
A copy of our standard terms and conditions are available on request.
Specific terms may be agreed between the barrister and the client on a case by case basis subject always to the Code of Conduct of the Bar.
We are fully committed to equal opportunity and diversity both inside and outside chambers. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to fulfil their potential and we abhor any form of prejudice or discrimination in relation to gender, race, ethnicity, disability, religion, sexuality, class or age.
We have willingly adopted policies in relation to grievance, anti-harassment, and the making of reasonable adjustments to reduce substantial disadvantage for disabled people working with chambers or receiving legal services and we have available a written statement on equality and diversity.
We are committed to making chambers a pleasant and enjoyable place for everyone who works here or instructs us.
Complaints Procedure
- Our aim is to give you a good service at all times, but if you have a complaint you are invited to let us know as soon as possible. In the first instance it may be helpful to contact the individual who is working on your case to discuss any concerns and he or she will do their best to resolve any issues at that stage. However, if you would like to make a formal complaint our complaints procedure is as follows.
Complaints made by telephone
- You may wish to make a complaint in writing and, if so, please follow the procedure in paragraph 4 below. However, if you would rather speak on the telephone about your complaint then please telephone Marie Burke (Practice Manager) or Stephanie Talbot (Assistant Practice Manager). If the complaint is about the Practice Manager or Assistant Practice Manager, then it should be made in writing to the Head of Chambers, Patrick Soares. The person you contact will make a note of the details of your complaint and what you would like done about it. He or she will discuss your concerns with you and aim to resolve them. If the matter is resolved he or she will record the outcome, check that you are satisfied with the outcome and record that you are satisfied. You may also wish to record the outcome of the telephone discussion in writing.
- If your complaint is not resolved on the telephone you will be invited to write to us about it within the next 14 days so it can be investigated formally.
Complaints made in writing
- Please give the following details: your name and address, which member(s) of chambers or staff member(s) you are complaining about; the detail of the complaint; and what you would like done about it. Please address your letter to Marie Burke, Practice Manager, Field Court Tax Chambers, 3 Field Court, Gray’s Inn, London, WC1R 5EP (unless the complaint relates to the Practice Manager or Assistant Practice Manager in which case please address your letter to Patrick Soares, the Head of Chambers, at the same address).
- Any written complaint will be considered by the Head of Chambers (unless the complaint relates to the Head of Chambers in which case another member of Chambers will consider the complaint). In any case, the person appointed will be someone other than the person you are complaining about.
- The person investigating the complaint will write to you as soon as possible to let you know that he or she will be doing so and that they will reply to your complaint within 14 days. If that person finds later that they are not going to be able to reply within 14 days they will set a new date for their reply and inform you. The reply will set out (1) the nature and scope of the investigation, (2) the conclusion on each complaint and the basis for the conclusion, and (3) proposals for resolving the complaint if it is found that the complaint was justified.
Confidentiality
- All conversations and documents relating to the complaint will be treated as confidential and will be disclosed only to the extent that is necessary. Disclosure will be to the Head of Chambers and to anyone involved in the complaint and its investigation. Such people will include the barrister or member of staff who you have complained about, and the person who investigates the complaint. The Bar Standards Board is entitled to inspect the documents and seek information about the complaint when discharging its monitoring functions.
Our policy
- As part of our commitment to client care we make a written record of any complaint. Our Head of Chambers inspects the record with a view to improving services.
Complaints to the Legal Ombudsman / alternative dispute resolution
- If you are unhappy with the outcome of our investigation, and you fall within their jurisdiction, then you can have the complaint independently looked at by the Legal Ombudsman. The Legal Ombudsman investigates problems about poor service from lawyers. Please note that the Legal Ombudsman only deals with complaints from a barrister’s client (a non-client who is not satisfied with the outcome of our investigation can contact the Bar Standards Board – see below).
- Before accepting a complaint for investigation the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have, then the time limits within which you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman are:
- Within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint and
- No more than six years from the date of act/omission; or
- No more than three years from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.
- If you would like more information about the Legal Ombudsman please contact them. The contact details are:
- Visit www.legalombudsman.org.uk
- Call 0300 555 0333 between 9am to 5pm.
- Email enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
- Legal Ombudsman PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ
- Decisions made by the Legal Ombudsman can be accessed here.
- In addition, if you are unhappy with the outcome of our investigation, alternative complaints bodies (such as ProMediate www.promediate.co.uk) also exist which can deal with complaints about legal services, should you and the barrister both wish to use such a scheme. If you wish to use ProMediate please contact us to discuss this. Please contact ProMediate to obtain further details about the scheme, including details of any applicable time limits for using the scheme. Please note that if mediation is used neither you nor the barrister is required to accept the proposed resolution. If mediation does not resolve the complaint, you may still make a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman (provided you fall within their jurisdiction and you do so within the time limit).
Non-clients
- If you are not the barrister’s client you can nonetheless complain to the barrister or to Chambers using the procedure set out above. It should be noted, however, that it may not always be possible to investigate a complaint brought by a non-client. This is because the ability of Chambers to satisfactorily investigate and resolve such matters is limited and complaints of this nature are often better suited to the disciplinary processes maintained by the Bar Standards Board. Therefore, Chambers will make an initial assessment of the complaint and if they feel that the issues raised cannot be satisfactorily resolved through the chambers complaints process they will refer you to the Bar Standards Board. Furthermore, if we carry out an investigation but you are unhappy with the outcome then please contact the Bar Standards Board:
- Bar Standards Board, Contact and Assessment Team, 289-293 High Holborn, London WC1V 7JZ
- Telephone 0207 6111 444
- www.barstandardsboard.org.uk
The following information is provided by Field Court Tax Chambers pursuant to the requirements of The Provision of Services Regulations 2009.
Part 2 Chapter 1
Regulation 8(b)
Field Court Tax Chambers is a set of barristers chambers. Chambers does not have a collective legal identity or form and all barristers practising from Field Court Tax Chambers are self-employed.
Regulation 8(g)
All members of chambers are registered for VAT and their registration numbers is available under their regulatory information on their profile on this website and is available on their fee notes.
Regulation 8(h)
The General Council of the Bar is the approved Regulator of the Bar of England and Wales and together with the Bar Standards Board (its regulatory arm) regulates the services provided by the barristers at Field Court Tax Chambers.
Regulation 8(n)
Barristers are required to hold professional liability insurance. This is provided by:
Bar Mutual Indemnity Fund Limited
90 Fenchurch Street
London EC3M 4ST
The minimum limit of cover is £500,000 and extends to claims brought in any jurisdiction. Members of Chambers may opt to take out additional cover, which is provided by TLO.
Privacy Notice – General Information Protection Regulation (“GDPR”)
Please read the following information carefully. This privacy notice contains information about the information collected, stored and otherwise processed about you and the reasons for the processing. It also tells you who Chambers shares this information with, the security mechanisms Chambers has put in place to protect your information and how to contact Chambers in the event you need further information.
Please note that specific barristers in Chambers have individual Privacy Notices which you should also consult here.
Who Am I?
Field Court Tax Chambers (“Chambers”) collects, uses and is responsible for personal information about you. When Chambers does this it is the ‘controller’ of this information for the purposes of the GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.
If you need to contact Chambers about your information or the processing carried out you can use the contact details at the end of this document.
What does Chambers do with your information?
Information collected
Chambers collects some or all of the following personal information that you provide:
- personal details
- family details
- lifestyle and social circumstances
- goods and services
- financial details
- education, training and employment details
- physical or mental health details
- racial or ethnic origin
- political opinions
- religious, philosophical or other beliefs
- trade union membership
- sex life or sexual orientation
- criminal proceedings, outcomes and sentences, or related security measures
- other personal information relevant to instructions to provide legal services, including information specific to the instructions in question.
Information collected from other sources.
The same categories of information may also be obtained from third parties, such as members of Chambers, experts, members of the public, your family and friends, witnesses, courts and other tribunals, suppliers of goods and services, investigators, government departments, regulators, public records and registers.
How Chambers uses your personal information: Purposes
Chambers may use your personal information for the following purposes:
- to promote and market the services of the Barristers
- to train barristers
- to recruit staff and pupils
- to assess applications for tenancy, pupillage, mini-pupillage and work-shadowing opportunities
- to fulfil equality and diversity and other regulatory requirements,
- to procure goods and services,
- to manage matters relating to employment, including payroll [and pensions]
- to respond to requests for references
- to publish legal judgments and decisions of courts and tribunals
- to respond to potential complaints or make complaints
- to carry out anti-money laundering and terrorist financing checks
- as otherwise required or permitted by law.
Marketing and promotion
In relation to personal information collected for marketing purposes, the personal information consists of
- names, contact details, and name of organisation
- the nature of your interest in Chambers’ marketing
- your attendance at Chambers events.
This will be processed so that you can be provided with information about Chambers and the barristers and to invite you to events.
You may contact Chambers using the contact details at the end of this document if you no longer wish to receive such invitations or information.
Whether information has to be provided by you, and why
If you apply to Chambers for a position or are seeking a reference or are a member of staff your personal information has to be provided to Chambers, so that your application/reference can be properly assessed/your employment records, pay and pensions] can be administered and to enable Chambers to comply with its regulatory obligations, and to keep accounting records.
If you are offering or providing Chambers with goods or services your information may be processed in relation to such offers or contracts.
The legal basis for processing your personal information
Chambers relies on the following as the lawful bases to collect and use your personal information:
- If you have consented to the processing of your personal information, then Chambers may process your information for the Purposes set out above to the extent to which you have consented to Chambers doing so.
- In relation to information in categories (g) to (m) above (these being categories which are considered to include particularly sensitive information and which include information about criminal convictions or proceedings), Chambers is entitled by law to process the information where the processing is necessary for legal proceedings, legal advice, or otherwise for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal rights.
- In relation to information which is not in categories (g) to (m) above, Chambers relies on its legitimate interests and/or the legitimate interests of a third party in carrying out the processing for the Purposes set out above.
- In relation to information which is in categories (g) to (m) above (these being categories which include particularly sensitive information and which include information about criminal convictions or proceedings), Chambers relies on your consent for any processing for the purposes set out in purposes (i), (ii), (vi) and (viii) above. However, if you do not consent to processing for the purpose of providing a reference Chambers will be unable to take or provide a reference. This is because Chambers needs to be able to retain all information about you to provide an informed and complete reference.
- The processing is necessary for the purposes of performing or exercising obligations or rights which are imposed or conferred by law on Chambers or you in connection with employment, social security or social protection.
- The processing is necessary for the assessment of your working capacity or health or social care purposes.
- The processing of information in categories (g), (h), (j) and (l), is necessary for the purposes of identifying or keeping under review the existence or absence of equality of opportunity or treatment between members of staff, tenants, pupils and mini-pupils with a view to enabling such equality to be promoted or maintained.
- The processing is necessary to prevent or detect unlawful acts where it is in the substantial public interest and it must be carried out without consent so as not to prejudice those purposes.
- In certain circumstances processing may be necessary in order that Chambers can comply with a legal obligation to which it is subject (including carrying out anti-money laundering or terrorist financing checks).
- The processing is necessary to publish judgments or other decisions of courts or tribunals.
Who will Chambers share your personal information with?
It may be necessary to share your information with the following:
- information processors, such as IT support staff, email providers, information storage providers
- in the event of complaints, the Head of Chambers and members of Chambers who deal with complaints, the Bar Standards Board and the Legal Ombudsman
- other regulatory authorities
- current, past or prospective employers or employees
- in the case of recruitment of barristers to or from other chambers, your current, past and prospective chambers
- education and examining bodies
- legal professionals
- experts and other witnesses
- prosecution authorities
- courts and tribunals
- Chambers’ staff
- trainee barristers
- lay and professional clients of Members of Chambers
- family and associates of the person whose personal information Chambers is processing
- current, past or prospective employers
- education and examining bodies
- business associates, professional advisers and trade bodies, e.g. the Bar Council
- the intended recipient, where you have asked Chambers to provide a reference
- the general public in relation to the publication of legal judgments and decisions of courts and tribunals.
Chambers may be required to provide your information to regulators, such as the Bar Standards Board, the Financial Conduct Authority or the Information Commissioner’s Office. In the case of the Information Commissioner’s Office, there is a risk that your information may lawfully be disclosed by them for the purpose of any other civil or criminal proceedings, without Chambers’ consent or your consent, which includes privileged information.
Chambers may also be required to disclose your information to the police or intelligence services, where required or permitted by law.
Sources of information
The personal information Chambers obtains may include information obtained from:
- legal professionals
- experts and other witnesses
- prosecution authorities
- courts and tribunals
- trainee barristers
- lay and professional clients of members of Chambers
- family and associates of the person whose personal information Chambers is processing
- in the event of complaints, the Head of Chambers, other members of Chambers who deal with complaints, the Bar Standards Board, and the Legal Ombudsman
- other regulatory authorities
- current, past or prospective employers
- education and examining bodies
- business associates, professional advisers and trade bodies, e.g. the Bar Council
- the intended recipient, where you have asked Chambers to provide a reference.
- the general public in relation to the publication of legal judgments and decisions of courts and tribunals
- data processors, such as IT support staff, email providers, data storage providers
- public sources, such as the press, public registers and law reports.
Transfer of your information outside the European Economic Area (EEA)
This privacy notice is of general application and as such it is not possible to state whether it will be necessary to transfer your information out of the EEA in any particular case or for a reference. However, if you reside outside the EEA or your case or the role for which you require a reference involves persons or organisations or courts and tribunals outside the EEA then it may be necessary to transfer some of your information to that country outside of the EEA for that purpose. If you are in a country outside the EEA or if the instructions you provide come from outside the EEA then it is inevitable that information will be transferred to those countries. If this applies to you and you wish additional precautions to be taken in respect of your information please indicate this when providing initial instructions.
Some countries and organisations outside the EEA have been assessed by the European Commission and their information protection laws and procedures found to show adequate protection. The list can be found here. Most do not. If your information has to be transferred outside the EEA, then it may not have the same protections and you may not have the same rights as you would within the EEA.
Chambers may transfer your personal information to the following which are located outside the European Economic Area (EEA):
- [cloud information storage services based in the USA who have agreed to comply with the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, in order to enable me to store your information and/or backup copies of your information so that Chambers may access your information when they need to. The USA does not have the same information protection laws as the EU but the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield has been recognised by the European Commission as providing adequate protection. To obtain further details of that protection see https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-topic/information-protection/information-transfers-outside-eu/eu-us-privacy-shield_en.]
- [cloud information storage services based in Switzerland, in order to enable me to store your information and/or backup copies of your information so that Chambers may access your information when it needs to. Switzerland does not have the same information protection laws as the EU but has been recognised by the European Commission as providing adequate protection; see https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-topic/information-protection/information-transfers-outside-eu/adequacy-protection-personal-information-non-eu-countries_en.
If Chambers decides to publish a judgment or other decision of a Court or Tribunal containing your information then may be published to the world.
Chambers will not otherwise transfer personal information outside the EEA except as necessary for the conduct of any legal proceedings.
If you would like any further information please use the contact details at the end of this document.
How long will Chambers store your personal information?
Chambers will normally store all your information:
- Each specific barrister has set out in his Privacy Notice the periods for which data will be stored. Data held by Chambers in relation to clients / cases relating to a specific barrister will be treated in the same way as explained in the barrister’s individual Privacy Notice (which you should consult).
- Equality and diversity data may be retained for six years (or longer if required by law) in pseudonymised form for the purpose of research and statistics and complying with regulatory obligations in relation to the reporting of equality and diversity data.
- Names and contact details held for marketing purposes will be stored indefinitely or until Chambers becomes aware or is informed that the individual has ceased to be a potential client.
- Personal information held for recruitment purposes or in relation to pupillage or mini-pupillage will be stored for ten years.
- The legal judgments and decisions of courts and tribunals will be stored and published indefinitely.
- Information related to anti-money laundering checks will be retained until five years after the completion of the transaction or the end of the business relationship, whichever is the later.
Consent
As explained above, Chambers is relying on your explicit consent to process your information in categories (g) to (m) above. You provided this consent when you applied to become a member of staff, tenant, pupil or mini-pupil / you asked Chambers to provide a reference / you instructed a specific barrister in Chambers.
You have the right to withdraw this consent at any time, but this will not affect the lawfulness of any processing activity carried out prior to you withdrawing your consent.
However, where Chambers also relies on other bases for processing your information, you may not be able to prevent processing of your information.
If there is an issue with the processing of your information, please contact Chambers using the contact details below.
Your Rights
Under the GDPR, you have a number of rights that you can exercise in certain circumstances. These are free of charge. In summary, you may have the right to:
- Ask for access to your personal information and other supplementary information;
- Ask for correction of mistakes in your information or to complete missing information Chambers holds on you;
- Ask for your personal information to be erased, in certain circumstances;
- Receive a copy of the personal information you have provided to me or have this information sent to a third party. This will be provided to you or the third party in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format, e.g. a Word file;
- Object at any time to processing of your personal information for direct marketing;
- Object in certain other situations to the continued processing of your personal information;
- Restrict the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances;
- [Request not to be the subject to automated decision-making which produces legal effects that concern you or affects you in a significant way].
If you want more information about your rights under the GDPR please see the Guidance from the Information Commissioners Office on Individual’s rights under the GDPR.
If you want to exercise any of these rights, please:
- Use the contact details at the end of this document;
- Chambers may need to ask you to provide other information so that you can be identified;
- Please provide a contact address so that you can be contacted to request further information to verify your identity;
- Provide proof of your identity and address;
- State the right or rights that you wish to exercise.
Chambers will respond to you within one month from when it receives your request.
Marketing Emails
Please note if you wish to unsubscribe from any marketing emails that you have signed up for, you can do so by contacting Chambers using the contact details set out below.
How to make a complaint?
The GDPR also gives you the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioners’ Office if you are in the UK, or with the supervisory authority of the Member State where you work, normally live or where the alleged infringement of information protection laws occurred. The Information Commissioner’s Office can be contacted at http://ico.org.uk/concerns/.
Future Processing
Chambers does not intend to process your personal information except for the reasons stated within this privacy notice. If this changes, this privacy notice will be amended and placed on the Chambers’ website at http://www.fieldtax.com/our-values/data-protection/.
Changes to this privacy notice
This privacy notice was published on 24 May 2018 and last updated on 24 May 2018.
Chambers continually reviews its privacy practices and may change this policy from time to time. When it does an amended privacy notice will be placed on the Chambers’ website www.fieldtax.com .
Contact Details
If you have any questions about this privacy notice or the information Chambers holds about you, please contact Chambers using the following contact details:
- by email to chambers@fieldtax.com
- write to us at Field Court Tax Chambers, 3 Field Court, Gray’s Inn, London, WC1R 5EP
- telephone us at 020 3693 3700.