Personal Injury
“St John’s Buildings is well regarded for its expert representation of both claimants and defendants in a wide range of personal injury claims, and counts several insurers, public authorities and private individuals among its varied clientele. Members are regularly instructed in cases arising from RTAs and accidents at work, and the team offers considerable strength in the handling of employers’ and public liability claims. Interviewees report: ‘St John’s Buildings has excellent barristers and a wide breadth of skills.'” Chambers UK Bar 2023
“St John’s Buildings ‘is one of the strongest sets in the North, with a true depth of experience.’ Its members act for both defendants and claimants in cases involving fatal accidents, road traffic accidents, accidents at work and industrial disease.”
“St Johns Building is a very strong set with a good range and number of very capable Counsel in the field of personal injury.”
“Good availability of counsel and they provide good quality training.” Legal 500 2023
Our team has a long tradition of personal injury and related litigation, with a deserved reputation for delivering a high quality yet accessible service for both Claimants and Defendants. The group currently comprises over 70 experienced personal injury and professional negligence lawyers at all levels of seniority.
The Personal Injury Group works as a team. We hold regular group meetings to ensure that all members offer an up to date reliable and consistent service to our professional clients.
The work
Chambers deals with all aspects of personal injury and related litigation including:
- Fatal accidents
- Road traffic accidents
- Employers liability, accidents at work
- Work related stress
- Industrial diseases [respiratory diseases, cancers, deafness, work related upper limb disorders, vibration white finger]
- Public Liability
- Civil procedure
- Fraudulent claims
- Injuries of the utmost severity [serious head and spinal injuries]
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
Notable cases in which members of the group have been involved are shown on individual members’ CVs.
The clients
Our work is for Claimants and Defendants. Claimant’s work is received from solicitors instructed by trade unions, legal expense insurers and privately; Defendants work from solicitors instructed by insurers and various public authorities.
The service
“Chris Shaw leads the team fantastically well.”
“The clerks are excellent. They take time to consider precisely what is required, communicate effectively and deliver a superb service.” Chambers UK Bar 2023
We offer a fast, high quality, up-to-date and reliable service. All members of the group are approachable and are committed to written standards of service which are available on request. Suitable backup is available in the event that it is necessary.
The civil group in chambers is separate and distinct from the other groups and has over thirty members with dedicated support and other services.
The group is committed to providing specialist services in both advisory and advocacy to insurance clients and prides itself on the ability to do so with quality practitioners, working hard for competitive rates.
We are client focused and despite the fact we are a long established set, have a modern outlook. We recognise the fact that this is a people business and pride ourselves on our approachability and accessibility. We are pleasant people to do business with. The team approach to cases has been long understood and embraced by members.
The group is without parallel in terms of the numbers of specialist counsel and the range of call covering all levels of work.
One major strength of the group is simply the ability of the barristers within it, many of whom have national reputations as leaders in the field.
We have a proven track record of attracting and developing some of the most able practitioners in the North, working out of Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield and Chester.
Directory recommendations
“Everyone on the clerking team is professional, friendly and helpful.” “The clerks are very approachable, willing to assist and very accommodating.” Chambers UK Bar 2022
“Areas of expertise for the set include work-related stress, industrial disease and high-value catastrophic injury claims. Chambers UK Bar 2022
“St John’s Buildings is a ‘great set’ with ‘real strength in numbers’. Areas of expertise include fatal accidents, road traffic accidents, employers’ liability and public liability.” Legal 500 2022
“Everyone at the set is so professional and personable, from the reception staff right through to the clerks and counsel.” Chambers UK Bar 2021
“The clerks are efficient, very client-focused and provide an excellent service.” “The clerks always do their very best to find counsel even when it appears that they have no one available. They also let you know if any problems have occurred and do their best to resolve those problems.” “The clerks are very approachable and will always go out of their way to ensure a barrister can cover a hearing or take on any urgent work that needs to be done.” Chambers UK Bar 2021
“Well reputed personal injury set on the Northern Circuit, housing barristers operating out of offices in both Manchester and Liverpool. Members are experienced in the representation of both claimants and defendants in a wide range of personal injury work, with clients including insurers, trade unions, public authorities and private individuals.” Chambers & Partners 2019
“St John’s Buildings has ‘strength in depth’ in the personal injury and clinical negligence sphere.” Legal 500 2019
“‘Very experienced and knowledgeable’ barristers.” Legal 500 2017
“A well-known set with an accomplished track record in claimant and defendant personal injury work… it has notable expertise in industrial disease and employers’ liability.” Chambers and Partners 2016
“Solicitors comment on the superb technical ability of counsel, as well as their range of expertise. The clerking team is also praised for its organisational abilities.” Chambers and Partners 2015

Michael Redfern KC
Year of Silk: 1993
Richard Norton
Joint Head of ChambersYear of call: 1992
Eric Shannon
Year of call: 1974
Philip M.D. Grundy
Head of Catastrophic InjuryYear of call: 1980
Peter Harrison
Year of call: 1983
Nicholas Price
Year of call: 1987
Jonathan Thompson
Year of call: 1990
Alastair Wright
Head of Industrial Disease Litigation GroupYear of call: 1991
Daniel Frieze
Head of Personal InjuryYear of call: 1994
Gordon Stables
Head of Criminal Team in SheffieldYear of call: 1995
Andrew Lawson
Year of call: 1995
Douglas Denton
Year of call: 1997
Jacqueline Swain
Year of call: 1998
David Taylor
Year of call: 1998
Liam Murdin
Year of call: 1998
Lara Holsgrove
Year of call: 1999
John Ratledge
Year of call: 1999
Andrew Bridgman
Year of call: 2001
Robert Cline
Year of call: 2002
Timothy Connolly
Year of call: 2004
William Poole
Year of call: 2004
Rebecca Sutton
Year of call: 2004
Samantha Openshaw
Year of call: 2005
Gareth Thompson
Year of call: 2005
Ben Kelly
Year of call: 2006
Christopher Pare
Year of call: 2006
Diarmuid Bunting
Year of call: 2006
Henry Vanderpump
Year of call: 2007
Simon Murray
Year of call: 2008
Hannah Walker
Year of call: 2008
David Baines
Year of call: 2009
Jessica Southcote-Want
Year of call: 2010
Jessica Denton
Year of call: 2012
Tarlun Ahari
Year of call: 2014
Matthew Burdon
Year of call: 2016
Kelly Hutchinson
Year of call: 2014
Rebecca Titus-Cobb
Year of call: 2017
Alex Platts
Year of call: 2019
Urd Varlo Larsen
Year of call: 2017
Laura Halsall
Year of call: 2017
Cressida O'Connor
Year of call: 2019