Chamber plans to expand business

Sep 12 2007 by Graeme King, The Journal

THE merger of one of the top barristers chambers in the North-East with counterparts in Leeds will see the combined partnership set its sights on national growth.

Plowden Chambers, based on Lombard Street under the Tyne Bridge in Newcastle, is to merge with Park Lane Chambers in Leeds as from October 1 this year.

The new ‘set’ of Chambers, which will be known as Park Lane Plowden, will have 64 members practising from both Leeds and Newcastle. It will be jointly headed by Jeremy Freedman and David Wilby QC.

The combined set will provide expert advice and advocacy in its specialist fields of personal injury, clinical negligence, family, employment and commercial law.

The newly merged business will be the largest civil and family chambers based on the north eastern circuit working for solicitors, insurance companies, trade unions, local authorities and other clients.

Jeremy Freedman, head of Plowden in Newcastle, said: “Never before have two civil sets of chambers on different sites joined forces.

“The result is to create the largest civil set of Chambers in the North-East. The merger has been driven by the desire to provide a comprehensive and complete service to all our clients.

“We believe that it will be to the great advantage to our existing and potential clients to have such a large team of barristers in one set of Chambers, with a capacity to service their work the length and breadth of the country.

“It is our intention to extend our client base to achieve a national presence.”