Lord Pannick QC
- Called to Bar:
- 1979
- Appointed to silk:
- 1992
- Practice areas:
- Degrees:
- MA (Oxon), BCL (Oxon)
- Languages:
-
French (fluent)
“David Pannick QC is “still up there as the ultimate public law and human rights counsel of choice.” Commentators agree: “Everything that’s said about him is completely justified; he’s a stellar performer and a fantastic advocate who’s expensive but worth every penny.” Pannick’s “intellectual brilliance and magnificent style” are underscored by an ability to be “incredibly concise and clever, yet conversational and relaxed in court.” (Chambers UK 2008)
“David Pannick is still at the top – he is untouchable as the supreme advocate of his generation.” (Chambers UK 2007)
In Chambers UK 2008 Lord Pannick QC is rated as a leading silk in seven practice areas and is recognised as one of its “stars at the bar”:
- Administration and Public Law – “he’s a stellar performer and a fantastic advocate”, his “intellectual brilliance and magnificent style” are underscored by an ability to be “incredibly concise and clever, yet conversational and relaxed in court.”
- Competition/European Law – “a European and public law expert”
- Human Rights - “the ultimate human rights silk.” In the words of one leading peer: “He really can affect the outcome of a case in the House of Lords. If I see him on the other side, I need to raise my game.”
- Professional Discipline - “outstanding and incredibly bright”, “right at the top of his tree in the regulation sector”, “Clients affirm that ‘you are never going to be disappointed if you go to him. People like him come along very rarely in a generation’”.
- Sport - “brilliant at sport, but then he’s brilliant at everything”, “a consummate advocate and a superb adviser.”
- Telecommunications - “a star silk, full stop.” “Brilliant at whatever he turns to,” a “superb advocate”, “the ‘king of administrative law’”.
Lord Pannick QC is recognised by the Legal 500 2008 as a ‘Leading Silk’ in seven areas:
- Administrative and Public law – ‘By common consent, David Pannick QC is “the best” as “he distils the most complex case into simple issues”’
- Commercial Litigation
- Employment
- Human Rights and Civil Liberties - ‘is said to “score ten out of ten in all areas” and “demonstrates legal and client relations skills of the very highest order”
- Immigration – ‘a “consummate professional who is always completely prepared”’
- Media, Entertainment and Sport – ‘”simply a genius”’
- Professional Discipline and Regulatory law
Professional Experience
Junior Counsel to the Crown (Common Law) 1988-1992
Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, since 1978
Honorary Fellow of Hertford College, Oxford since September 2004
Administrative Law Bar Association
Member of the Editorial Board of Public Law
Public Law and Human Rights
Lord Pannick QC has acted in many of the leading public law cases in the past 20 years, such as Spycatcher, Brind, and ex parte Iris Bentley, representing a wide range of clients, from the Revd Moon to the Chief Rabbi, from Red Hot Dutch Television to the Lord Chancellor, from Mohammed Al-Fayed to Lord Rees-Mogg, from Diana Princess of Wales to the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority in the case brought by Diane Blood who wished to be impregnated with the sperm of her dead husband.
He has argued over 90 cases in the House of Lords, more than 25 cases in the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, and over 30 cases in the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Amongst important cases in the Strasbourg Court, David acted for servicemen dismissed from the armed forces because they are homosexual; for the United Kingdom in relation to the sentence imposed on Robert Thompson and Jon Venables, the youths who killed James Bulger; for Greece in resisting the claim by former King Constantine for the return of property; and for Cyprus in relation to human rights abuses by Turkey in Northern Cyprus. He has also appeared in cases on the rights of transsexuals, sadomasochists, and gypsies.
He also appeared on behalf of the State of Brunei in proceedings against Prince Jefri in the Court of Appeal of Brunei. He has appeared in a number of cases in the Court of Final Appeal of Hong Kong, and he has argued cases in the Court of Appeal of the Cayman Islands.
Current and recent work
- Representing the British Olympic Committee in July 2008 in resisting the application by athlete Dwain Chambers for an injunction to overturn the lifelong ban on him competing at the Olympic Games by reason of an earlier doping offence.
- Acting for the pharmaceutical company Eisai in persuading the Court of Appeal in May 2008 that NICE acted unlawfully by reason of procedural fairness in refusing to provide on the NHS drugs for patients suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease.
- Successfully representing Porsche in the Administrative Court in contending that Mayor Ken Livingstone’s policy of amending the Congestion Charge so as to charge £25 a day for all high-performance cars and other cars with large engines was unlawful. After Mayor Livingstone lost the Mayoral election, his successor, Boris Johnson, submitted to judgment in June 2008 and paid Porsche’s costs.
- Successfully representing the BBC in the Divisional Court in December 2007 in resisting the contention that the Director-General had committed the criminal offence of blasphemy by broadcasting “Jerry Springer – The Opera”. (Following the judgment, Parliament decided to abolish the criminal offence of blasphemy).
- Representing the public interest body Liberty in the House of Lords in the case which established that the detention without trial of terrorist suspects is a breach of the European Convention on Human Rights and in another case which addressed the legality of control orders for terrorist suspects.
- Acting for the League Against Cruel Sports in resisting the challenge to the validity of the Hunting Act 2004.
- Acting for a woman who established in the Court of Appeal her right to be provided with the breast cancer drug, Herceptin.
- Acting for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in establishing in the House of Lords that state immunity applies to claims alleging torture.
- Acting for Greg Rusedski at a tennis tribunal in Montreal defeating allegations that he was guilty of a doping offence.
- Acting for The Queen in the High Court winning an injunction to restrain The Daily Mirror from publishing further allegations about her home life by a reporter who had gained employment as a footman.
- Acting for the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority in establishing in the House of Lords the right of Mr and Mrs Hashmi to obtain treatment to have a child so cells from the umbilical cord could assist their severely ill son ("the designer baby case").
- Representing the BBC in the House of Lords in defeating the claim by the Pro-Life Alliance that censorship of their party election broadcast was unlawful.
- Acting for the Home Secretary in cases on the rights of mandatory life prisoners (Hindley, Anderson and Lichniak).
Other cases
His previous important cases in this country have included representing Camelot in its challenge to the National Lottery Commission; Pfizer Ltd in a challenge to the decision of the Health Secretary preventing GPs from prescribing Viagra on the NHS; a prisoner who wanted artificially to inseminate his wife; and Sheptonhurst Ltd against the British Board of Film Classification in establishing the right to buy, in licensed sex shops, videos of "Nympho Nurse Nancy" and "Horny Catbabe".
Other relevant experience
Publications:
Judicial Review of the Death Penalty (1982, Duckworth)
Sex Discrimination Law (1985, Oxford University Press)
Judges (1987, Oxford University Press)
Advocates (1992, Oxford University Press)
Human Rights Law and Practice (general editor with Lord Lester of Herne Hill QC, Butterworths, October 1999 and second edition March 2004)
A fortnightly legal column in The Times (since 1991)
