Tristan is widely recognised as a leading junior barrister across his core practice areas of public, regulatory and competition law. The legal directories recommend him for his clear and practical approach. He is regarded as the ‘go-to’ junior of choice for several regulatory clients, and is one of the Standing Counsel to the Competition and Markets Authority.  

Tristan tends to act in large and complex cases, frequently leading a team of barristers and usually appearing against KCs. He recently (2023) led a team of six barristers in a six-week trial for the CMA, against five teams of opposing counsel.

Tristan also has a successful employment law practice, and he brings that additional expertise to cases raising issues which cut across different practice areas.  He also has a longstanding interest in alternative dispute resolution, teaching and consulting on problem-solving negotiation skills.

Key recent quotes include:

  • "Tristan is one of the standouts and a star of the future. He's got particular expertise in class action and large-scale multiparty cases. He's very easy to deal with and responsive and hard-working."- Chambers UK, 2023
  • "He just does not miss anything in a case: everything is dealt with very thoroughly."- Chambers UK
  • "Tristan is a star junior – he is tremendously clear thinking and excellent both in court on paper."- Legal 500

Experience

Shortlist

Public & Regulatory

Tristan’s practice covers the full range of public and regulatory law, from administrative law through to technical regulatory matters.  The current edition of Chambers & Partners notes that he is sought after in “difficult administrative and public law disputes”.  

Tristan has a particular reputation in cases raising complex technical or economic issues. Other recent work has included prison law, immigration, oil and gas licensing, pharmaceuticals, professional regulation, broadcasting, investigations, special educational needs and higher education law.  

A selection of recent cases appears below.

Cases

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EU & Competition

Tristan is a leading EU and competition junior.  He is one of the Standing Counsel to the Competition and Markets Authority.

Tristan has appeared in many of the leading competition damages cases, including those concerning infringements in interchange fees, air cargo, bearings, rubber, and copper tubes.  In addition to the cases listed below, he is currently acting for a large multinational group of claimants in the trucks litigation, and for one of the defendant banks in the forex claims. 

In collective proceedings, Tristan acted for the claimant in the first application for a Collective Proceedings Order. He represented Which? in its intervention in the Supreme Court in Merricks concerning the new collective proceedings regime. He recently acted for the class representative obtaining a CPO against Google, and is currently instructed in several other collective claims. 

Tristan has also appeared in some of the main challenges to regulatory competition decisions, including in antitrust and merger cases.  In the merger space, his experience includes acting for Ryanair in its challenges to the CMA, as well as more recently for the CMA in the two high-profile technology sector merger challenges in 2020 (the CMA's Sabre/Farelogix decision) and 2022 (Facebook/Giphy). In addition to the cases listed below, he has recently acted in two other Chapter I and Chapter II cases (liothyronine and prochlorperazine).   

Tristan also has state aid and subsidy experience. He acted as lead counsel for the claimants in the 2019 state aid challenge to the capacity market.  In 2022 he was been part of the team acting for British Sugar in a challenge to import tariff rules.

A selection of Tristan's recent cases appears below.

Cases

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Telecommunications

Tristan is recognised as a leading junior in telecoms law, which brings together his EU, regulatory and competition expertise.  He has appeared in many of the main cases over the last decade, and is frequently instructed by Ofcom as well as by industry.  A selection of recent cases appears below.

Cases

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Civil Liberties & Human Rights

Tristan acts in a wide range of cases raising civil liberties and human rights issues.  His recent advocacy work has included acting for the claimant in a five-day human trafficking damages claim in the High Court, and acting for a claimant in the Court of Appeal on a test case regarding Jobseekers’ Back to Work Schemes.    

A selection of recent cases appears below.

Cases

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Employment

Tristan has experience of a wide range of employment disputes, covering Employment Tribunal and High Court cases.

Tristan has particular expertise in equal pay and the Equality Act. He regularly appears in the Employment Appeal Tribunal, and he acted as sole counsel for the successful claimant in the leading Court of Appeal case on discrimination causing stress at work.  He has also acted in several high profile disability discrimination claims.

Tristan is currently acting for the claimants in two large sets of group equal pay claims in the retail sector, one against Morrisons and one against Boots.  

A selection of recent cases appears below.

Cases

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Achievements

Education

MA Hons (Cantab) Starred First Class; Masters in Public Administration (Harvard) (Kennedy Scholar); Diploma in Law (City) Distinction

Prizes & Scholarships

As a student and young barrister, Tristan won several scholarships and prizes. Those included the James Hunt Advocacy Trophy, a prize for the best advocacy among Gray’s Inn students.

Publications

Selected earlier reported cases

EU & Competition

  • WM Morrison Supermarkets Plc and Safeway Stores Ltd v Office of Fair Trading [2011] CAT 41 
  • Safeway Stores Ltd and others v Twigger and others [2010] EWCA Civ 1472
  • National Grid v Gas and Electricity Markets Authority [2010] EWCA Civ 114 

Public & Regulatory

  • R (Remedy UK Ltd) v General Medical Council [2010] EWHC 1245 
  • Barbara Nan Ratcliffe v Secretary of State for Defence [2009] EWCA Civ 39
  • R (Binyam Mohamed) v Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs [2008] EWHC 2048
  • R (Teesside Power Limited) v Gas and Electricity Markets Authority [2008] EWHC 1415

Civil Liberties & Human Rights

  • Barbara Nan Ratcliffe v Secretary of State for Defence [2009] EWCA Civ 39
  • R (Binyam Mohamed) v Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs [2008] EWHC 2048

Telecommunications

  • Ofcom v Satellite Entertainment Ltd (2011) (before Ofcom’s Broadcasting Sanctions Committee).
  • British Telecommunications Plc v Office of Communications [2011] EWCA Civ 245
  • Ofcom v Floe Telecom Limited and T-Mobile v Floe Telecom Limited [2009] EWCA Civ 47

Professional Discipline

  • Ofcom v Satellite Entertainment Ltd (2011) (before Ofcom’s Broadcasting Sanctions Committee).
  • British Telecommunications Plc v Office of Communications [2011] EWCA Civ 245
  • Ofcom v Floe Telecom Limited and T-Mobile v Floe Telecom Limited [2009] EWCA Civ 47

Other relevant information

Tristan teaches legal negotiation skills. For several years, he was an Adjunct Professor of Law at Georgetown University, where he taught an intensive Legal Negotiation Seminar. He has taught and consulted on negotiations for organisations including the Norwegian Bar Association, CocaCola, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, and Merrill Lynch. In 2006, he was named Young ADR Professional of the Year by the ADR Group.

Before training as a barrister Tristan worked as a journalist for an international news agency. Prior to that, he was President of Cambridge University Students’ Union.

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