Please see below the full list of Members and Staff at Chartlands Chambers. All Barristers at Chartlands Chambers are governed by the Code of Conduct. To access further information about an individual, including work specialisms, please click on the relevant profile.
Date of call to the Bar: July 1982
Inn: Inner Temple
Qualifications: LLB (Hons)
Status within Chambers: Joint Head of Chambers, Full member of Chambers, Pupil Mistress
Areas of Practice:
Child Law, in particular Care Proceedings, acting for Parents, Guardians, and Local Authorities. Also, other Public and Private Family Law work including jurisdiction and abduction cases, residence, contact. Also has a special interest in representing those with learning difficulties/mental health issues.
Membership of organisations:
DATE OF CALL TO THE BAR: JANUARY 1993
Inn: Gray’s Inn
Qualifications: LLB (Hons)
Status within Chambers: Joint Head of Chambers, Full member of Chambers, Pupil Supervisor
Areas of Practice:
Joy is a specialist children practitioner She has particular expertise in complex children matters encompassing both private and public law proceedings. She is regularly involved in cases concerning non-accidental injury, sexual abuse, physical and emotional abuse of children acting for all parties.
Membership of organisations:
Founding Trustee of KidsAid, a charity dedicated to delivering therapy to children who have suffered trauma through abuse, neglect, bereavement or other crises
Date of call to the Bar: November 1988
Inn: Middle Temple
Qualifications: LLB
Status within Chambers: Full member of Chambers
Areas of Practice:
All areas Child Family Law. Public Law Children work including advising and representing local authorities, Guardians, and parents in Care and Adoption proceedings. Private Law children work including issues of residence, contact, jurisdiction and other specific issues. He maintains a strong practice covering the Northampton, Coventry, and West Midlands regions, and is a popular figure with many solicitors.
Date of call to the Bar: January 1991
Inn: Middle Temple
Qualifications: LLB
Status within Chambers: Full member of Chambers, Member of the Management Committee
Areas of Practice:
All areas of Family Law, including Public and Private Law Children work, Financial matters including Ancillary Relief on Divorce, Separation and Trusts of Land Disputes. Also, domestic violence work. Practice includes advising and representing in high cost multi-asset financial cases.
Direct Public Access
Registered with the Bar Council to conduct Public Access work, whereby instruction in Family cases can be taken from lay clients directly without the need for a solicitor*.
*subject to terms and conditions. See also Public Access Work page.
Membership of organisations:
Date of call to the Bar: October 1996
Inn: Lincoln’s Inn
Qualifications: LLB (Hons), BVC
Status within Chambers: Full member of Chambers
Areas of Practice:
Immigration and Asylum work, including advising and representing appellants and sponsors at all Court levels. Preparing written advice and grounds of appeal, attending Refugee convention and Human Rights appeals, entry clearance, student visa, and other appeals. Also, pre-hearing reviews and bail applications. Available to attend Court centres nationally, and to prepare urgent grounds of appeal.
Civil Law practice includes Personal Injury, Contract, Debt Dispute, Road Traffic Cases. Work includes advising, attending conferences, and hearings at all court levels.
Direct Public Access
Registered with the Bar Council to conduct Public Access work, whereby instruction in Immigration and Asylum cases can be taken from lay clients directly without the need for a solicitor*.
*subject to terms and conditions. See also Public Access Work page.
Membership of organisations:
Date of call to the Bar: July 2006
Inn: Lincoln’s Inn
Qualifications: LLB (Law and Politics), LLM (Human Rights Law), Post Graduate Dip. in Professional Legal Skills
Scholarships: Scholarship from University of Nottingham. Attended Public International Law Course at the Hague Academy of International Law in 2005.
Status within Chambers: Pupil Supervisor, Member of the Management Committee, Equal Opportunities Officer
Areas of Practice:
Family Law
Waqas appears before all levels of Judiciary and undertakes work in all areas of family law including Public Law, Private Law, Financial Remedy and Domestic Violence Proceedings.
Waqas has a particular interest in financial remedy cases and is regularly instructed in cases involving foreign assets.
Waqas represents Local Authorities, Parents, Guardians and Interveners. Waqas has represented clients in complex cases including those involving Private Adoptions, Forced Marriage Protection Orders, Female Genital Mutilation, applications under Schedule 1 of the Children Act 1989 and Removal from the Jurisdiction to Non-Hague Convention Countries.
Notable Cases:
Direct Public Access
Registered with the Bar Council to conduct Public Access work, whereby instruction in family cases can be taken from lay clients directly without the need for a solicitor*.
*subject to terms and conditions. See also Public Access Work page.
Membership of Organisations: Member of Family Law Bar Association
Languages: Urdu, Punjabi and Mirpuri
Other: Waqas received a certificate from the University of Wolverhampton in 2015 for his contribution to the Student Mentoring Programme.
Waqas is an Associate Lecturer and has been teaching on the law degree since September 2020.
Date of Call to the Bar: July 2007
Inn: Middle Temple
Qualifications: LLB (Hons) – University of Nottingham (2.1), BVC – Nottingham Law School (VC, Outstanding in Family Law)
Scholarships: Scholarship from University of Nottingham. Awarded Chrystal McMillan prize by the Middle Temple for achieving within top 5% of Nottingham Law School students on the BVC.
Status within Chambers: Door tenant (please contact Clerks regarding availability)
Areas of Practice: All areas of Family Law, including Children Act (residence, contact, specific issue, prohibited steps), Domestic Violence, Public Law, Ancillary Relief and Trusts of Land.
Civil Law, including Personal Injury, RTA, Contract and Debt.
Memberships: Family Law Bar Association.
Previous Employment: Prior to pupillage worked for the CPS in the witness care department. Also worked as a County Court Advocate on the Midland, North Eastern and Northern Circuits handling small claims, summary judgment, infant settlement, mortgage possession, bankruptcy, return of goods and order for sale hearings, as well as case management conferences.
Personal Information: Interests include theatre, tennis, travelling and yoga.
Other: Carried out pro bono work alongside my studies at University and Law School.
Date of Call to the Bar: July 2007
Inn: Middle Temple
Qualifications: LLB (Hons) (2:1)
Status within Chambers: Full member of Chambers
Areas of Practice: All areas of Family Law including Children Act, Public Law Act, Domestic Violence, Ancillary Relief, Trusts of Land actions. Civil work including Personal Injury, Road Traffic cases, Contract and Debt dispute.
Memberships: Midland Circuit
Date of Call to the Bar: July 2012
Inn: Gray’s Inn
Qualifications: Masters in Law (LLM), LLB Law
Status within Chambers: Full member of Chambers, Chambers Librarian
Areas of Practice: All areas of Child Law – both Public and Private Law (including local authority). Proceedings – working for Guardians, family members and local authorities, Private Law Child arrangements and Specific Issues). Financial Provision cases within Family Law. Domestic Violence cases (including Injunctions and Occupation Orders). Civil Law work including Road Traffic matters and related Personal Injury. Other Small Claims work including Debt Dispute.
Previous Employment: includes LPC Law – County Court advocate on the Midland Circuit.
Date of call to the Bar: November 2016
Inn: Inner Temple
Qualifications: LLB(Hons), BPTC
Status within chambers: Full member of Chambers
Areas of practice
Family Law:
Charlotte undertakes work in all areas of family law including Public Law, Private Law, Financial Remedy and Family Law Act matters. Charlotte welcomes instructions from any party to proceedings including parents, Local Authorities and Guardians and is able to represent clients at every stage in proceedings.
Charlotte is able to take instructions on the following matters:
Civil Law:
Charlotte regularly deals with Road Traffic matters and Personal Injury cases. Charlotte accepts instructions for Fast-Track trials (including disposal hearings), Small Claims (including credit hire), MOJ Stage 3 Hearings and Infant Approvals. Charlotte is also able to accept instructions for drafting and written advice.
Background
Prior to undertaking her pupillage at Chartlands Chambers, Charlotte worked in China as a paralegal in the Civil department dealing with high value dispute cases in The High Court of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Charlotte has several years’ experience as a County Court Advocate and in Civil Litigation as a case handler in personal injury and clinical negligence claims
Date of call to the Bar: November 1983
Inn: Middle Temple
Qualifications: MA (Oxon) Dip Law
Status within Chambers: Door Tenant
Areas of Practice:
Family and Civil Law Practice. Family work includes Care Proceedings and Financial Provision including Ancillary Relief, Separation, and Trusts of Land Disputes. Civil work includes Professional Negligence, Property Disputes, Contract, Personal Injury, and Public Interest Immunity work. Also regularly conducts High Court Judicial Review cases.
Notable cases and other information:
Seminars for law professionals conducted throughout the country.
Membership of organisations:
Date of call to the Bar: January 1993
Inn: Gray’s Inn
Qualifications: B.A. (Hons.)
Status within Chambers: Door tenant (No current availability)
Areas of Practice:
All areas of Child Law including Care Proceedings, Jurisdiction cases, Residence, Contact, and other applications.
Also a member of the Queensland (Australia) Family Bar for the past ten years, bringing a wealth of experience from his practice in both countries.
Membership of organisations:
Member of the Australian Bar
Date of call to the Bar: October 2013
Inn: Middle Temple
Qualifications: LLB Hons
Status within Chambers: Full Member of Chambers
Gemma qualified as a solicitor in 2005 and a solicitor advocate in 2007 before transferring to the Bar in 2013. Gemma is a member of Middle Temple, Family Law Bar Association and the South-Eastern Circuit.
Gemma is a highly experienced trial advocate with a wide range of experience offering an enthusiastic approach in all she does and meticulous case preparation. She has extensive experience representing young and vulnerable clients with learning difficulties, mental health conditions and addictions.
Gemma has completed advocates gateway and the FLBA vulnerable witness training which is accredited by the Bar Council. Her areas of practice are public law children and private law children.
Her work
Public Law proceedings representing Local Authorities, parents, children, other family members, Special Guardians, competent children and other intervening parties including child minders and grandparents.
Public Law Children: care and adoption proceedings including complex cases involving non-accidental injury, fabricated or induced illness, sexual abuse, neglect, drug and alcohol misuse, mental health issues and cases involving proposed international placements. Gemma has appeared in cases in all tiers of Court up to the Court of Appeal.
Private Law proceedings: child arrangement disputes including intractable contact disputes.
Despite the restrictions on public funding in her areas of law, Gemma welcomes legal aid instructions. Gemma accepts instructions from members of the public, insurers and fellow professionals as well as traditional referrals from solicitors.
Gemma is direct access qualified.
Status within Chambers: Door Tenant
Position: Business Manager/Administration Assistant
E-mail: businessmanager@chartlands-chambers.co.uk
Maureen joined Chartlands in October 2021 after working in private practice as a Family Solicitor for over 30 years.
Position: Clerk to Chambers
E-mail: clerks@chartlands-chambers.co.uk
Anneka joins Chartlands and the world of the Bar, after several years working at local solicitor firms, and brings a wealth of legal knowledge and experience to our practice.
Position: Clerk to Chambers
E-mail: clerks@chartlands-chambers.co.uk
Gillian has a legal background and joined Chartlands in June 2020.
