Environment
Overview
Environmental law straddles several of the key areas in which Chambers is already recognised as a leading set. These include transport, health & safety, regulation, personal injury, public and criminal law.
This area of law has grown so fast that it is now properly labelled as an area of specialism for Outer Temple Chambers. Members have been involved in many of the most significant environmental cases of recent, and present, times. Chambers has responded to the demand for high quality representation in this area with a newly created Transport Team.
The Transport Team is led by Tim Nesbitt and Patrick Sadd, two of the three leading juniors in the UK in this area of work. Both have vast experience of public inquiries called by the transport regulatory authorities to look into environmental issues thrown up by HGV/coach fleet operators. They act both for defence and prosecution in criminal cases against transport operators involving environmental allegations – particularly under the relevant European legislation relating to the road haulage industry. Trial and advisory work also frequently engages issues arising under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, the Water Resources Act 1991, the Environment Act 1995, the Planning (Hazardous Substances) Act 1990 and in relation to the various common law and statutory nuisances relating to noise, smell, smoke and dust. The work is business critical. Patrick and Tim’s reputations are not limited to England and Wales. They are frequently instructed to appear in cases in Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as by law firms from continental Europe. Because of its close links with the transport industry, they also have a particular interest in the law relating to waste management, disposal and recycling, frequently acting for companies engaged in those activities in the various regulatory regimes that apply to them.
The Team will welcome instructions to advise and act on behalf of Local Authorities to assist them in performing their statutory duties under the EPA, particularly in the areas of unlawful waste disposal, recycling, statutory nuisance and other related Environmental Health matters.
Areas of expertise
- Climate change
- Criminal liability for breaches of environmental protection
- Energy
- Group actions
- Pollution
- Transport
Track record and prominent cases
Current and recent high profile cases include:
- a £100m action arising out of the foot and mouth disease outbreak in 2007 which stemmed from the pollution of ground waters at the Pirbright Animal Health Laboratories [RLQC and RJT instructed by National Farmers Union and a cohort of farmers and other interested parties];
- the Buncefield Oil Refinery explosion litigation, with proceedings for major water pollution brought by the Environment Agency together with the Heath and Safety Executive and ancilliary proceedings for the pollution clean up costs brought by Three Valleys Water Authority [RLQC and NM instructed by Freshfields for British Pipeline Agency];
- the “Trigger” asbestos litigation, the first of six lead cases in high profile test litigation involving individuals, employers and insurance companies to determine the issue of whether payment should be made on policies of employers’ liability insurance in force during periods of negligent exposure to asbestos in respect of mesothelioma manifesting many years later [AM];
- Representing a major gas distribution business in respect of its civil and criminal liability under the Pipelines Safety Regulations following an explosion [RLQC and NM instructed by Osborne Clark for the Defence];
- R v T Clarke plc and others was a recent prosecution of a large PLC for alleged major chalk aquifer pollution by causing an escape of jet aviation fuel at USAF Mildenhall [RLQC instructed by Hamlins for the Defence];
- Huntingdon Life Sciences PLC: the trial [MBQC and SC] and the subsequent appeal of animal rights activists [MBQC];
- A US$4 billion commercial dispute with very significant UK and EC environmental and regulatory law issues on which RLQC instructed to advise and appeal as an expert at the trial in the commercial court in the Southern District of New York.
- the Bangladesh Arsenic Litigation, a House of Lords' Group action by hundreds of victims of arsenic poisoning in Bangladesh [ASQC instructed by Leigh Day & Co.]; acting for RWE Npower PLC (the power supplier in Wales) in a prosecution arising out of an isolation accident [RL QC and JL]
Beyond these cases, members of chambers have been and continue to be heavily involved in allied areas of litigation where those disciplines predominate but each has a significant environmental law quotient:
- Transport law where members have acted in most of the leading road transport regulatory cases in recent years including several that have altered the regulatory regime and railway law where we have appeared in the major public inquiries arising from rail accidents including Southall, Hatfield, Potters Bar, Ladbroke Grove, Tebay and Hednesford Bridge;
- Pollution cases where we have represented four corporate clients for oil spillages and we defended the skipper of the Cita which ran aground on the Scilly Isles spilling its cargo and littering the beaches;
- Energy issues including advising re compliance of a new oil field [RLQC and KB instructed by Freshfields];
- Criminal liability under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and under section 38(1)(b) of the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2007 for waste management breaches [NM represented the company in R v Hinton Organics (Wessex) Ltd];
- Legionella outbreaks: Barrow in Furness case 26 people died [RLQC and RJT instructed by Greenwoods Solicitors], Millenium and Copthorne Hotels 3 died [RLQC, RRQC, CWSQC, BC, SC and TL instructed by Morgan Cole], Imco Plastics 2 died [PMQC, CWSQC RLQC SC, TL instructed by the CPS, Beachcrofts Bristol]; MRSA and C difficile outbreaks: 96 died in Medway Hospitals [RLQC and JAL instructed by Beachcrofts];
- Climate change: we advised the Royal Society of Chemists on the Climate Change Bill.
Our clients
In transport work we act for the Department of Transport in Administrative Court appeals and are recognised by the specialist solicitors in the area as the leaders in the field of UK and European road transport regulatory law and with particular emphasis on environmental issues. Our client profile includes UK and European household names: SITA, UPS, Lynx Express, National Express, Norbert Dentressangle, Eddie Stobbart, Ryan Air, Medina Dairy, the Co-op, Delice de France, Terravision, Christian Salvesen, Texaco.
What the directories say
Memberships and involvement
Chambers is a corporate member of the UK Environmental Law Association (UKELA).
Tags: Environment
