Barrister: Thomas Jones

Personal Injury:

Thomas represents Claimants and Defendants in road traffic, employer’s liability, public liability and product liability claims. He has a particular interest in international personal injury claims including claims brought under the Montreal Convention, the Athens Convention and the Package Travel Regulations. He is regularly instructed to advise on liability, evidence and quantum in fast track and multi-track cases.

Clinical Negligence:

Thomas also accepts instructions in clinical negligence cases. In pupillage, Thomas spent two months with the head of the clinical negligence team in Chambers, with whom he drafted advices and pleadings in complex clinical negligence matters including failure to diagnose claims and cosmetic surgery negligence. Prior to joining 9 Gough Chambers, Thomas taught tort law to undergraduates at Queen Mary, University of London.

Public Law:

Thomas is a member of the Attorney General’s Junior Junior Panel and the Welsh Government’s Junior Barrister Public Law Panel. Prior to pupillage, Thomas was a stagiaire at the European Court of Justice to the UK Advocate General and later became a legal advisor within the European law department at an international law firm in Brussels. In his first year in practice, Thomas acted for the Secretary of State for Transport as a Junior Junior in Eurotunnel v Secretary of State for Transport, the challenge to the award by the UK Government of contracts to Seaborne Freight for the provision of additional freight capacity between the UK and continental Europe.

Recent Cases:

• A v. SR [2018]: Thomas acted for the Defendant in this successful strike out application. The court accepted Thomas' submissions that the claim was an abuse of the court’s process as the Claimant was seeking to re-litigate a previously litigated claim contrary to the principle of res judicata. This entitled the Defendant to full costs in circumstances where fixed costs would ordinarily have applied.
• TY and FY v. T [2019]: Thomas successfully represented the Claimants in this fast track trial, despite low velocity evidence, and recovered two sets of fixed costs pursuant to section IIIA of CPR 45.

Recent Articles:

• Cameron v Liverpool Victoria Insurance Co Ltd [2019] UKSC 6 (relating to the extent to which actions can be brought in tort simply by describing the Defendant through past actions - https://www.9goughchambers.co.uk/news/1550/)
• Page v RGC Restaurants Ltd [2018] EWHC 2688 (relating to the scope of a budget in bringing an action in tort pursuant to rule 3.13 of the Civil Procedure Rules - /news/1510/).

Court of Protection:

Since joining Chambers, Thomas has developed a busy Court of Protection practice, particularly in cases involving the health and welfare jurisdiction. In Thomas' first year in Chambers, he was nominated for the ALC Outstanding Newcomer Award for “the commitment he has shown to developing the law relating to children and the vulnerable, specifically in the field of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards”.

In his second year in Chambers, Thomas was ranked as a ‘Rising Star: Tier 1’ in the Legal 500 for Court of Protection and Community Care. He was also shortlisted for the FLA Young Barrister of the Year Award for his expertise in dealing with cases which overlap the jurisdictions of the Family Court and the Court of Protection. His nomination describes him as a ‘formidable force in cases where there is an interplay between the two jurisdictions’.

He accepts instructions from local authorities, the Official Solicitor, the Office of the Public Guardian, deputies, attorneys and private individuals. He has appeared in s. 16 cases, s. 21A cases and a series of deprivation of liberty order applications under the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court. Thomas has recently been instructed to advise on the application of a Deprivation of Liberty order made by the High Court of England and Wales in a separate jurisdiction. He has also advised on whether restrictions placed on an inpatient at the Bethlem Adolescent Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit amount to a deprivation for the purposes of article 5 of the ECHR.

Prior to joining Chambers, Thomas worked for the Law Commission on its review into the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. The UK Government responded to the Law Commission’s review by agreeing that the DOLS system should be replaced as a matter of urgency. The Mental Capacity (Amendment) Act 2019, replacing the DOLS with the LPS, received Royal Assent in May 2019.

In 2019, Thomas was seconded to the Welsh Government where he advised on the implementation of Mental Capacity (Amendment) Act 2019 in Wales. Thomas principally provided advice to the Welsh Ministers on the legal accuracy of the new LPS Code of Practice.

Thomas is a committee member of the Court of Protection Bar Association.

Recent Cases:

• Re J (Inherent Jurisdiction: Deprivation of Liberty) [2020] EWHC 2395: Thomas represented the local authority in a deprivation of liberty application before Mr Darren Howe QC, sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge. His judgment comments upon Thomas’ ‘detailed skeleton argument’, which ‘properly and fully’ addresses the applicable law and the steps to be taken when proposed placements are unregistered [para 12].
• LBL v. N [2020]: Thomas represented P through the Official Solicitor in s. 16 MCA 2005 proceedings in which P had a diagnosis of hydrocephalus and epilepsy.
• BCC v. CP [2020]: Thomas represented P through the Official Solicitor in s. 21A MCA 2005 proceedings relating to whether it was in the best interests of a woman with chronic schizophrenia to receive care at her existing placement, a new placement or at home
• LBL v. K [2019]: Thomas successfully acted for the local authority in this deprivation of liberty application before Mrs Justice Judd in respect of a young adult with severe learning difficulties and autism.
• LBN v. A [2018]: Thomas successfully acted for the local authority in this deprivation of liberty application in respect of a child considered to be at risk of being killed by a petrol bomb. The application was made under the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court.

Recent Lectures:

• Secure Accommodation and Deprivation of Liberty under the Inherent Jurisdiction [2020], available here.
• Consent in Secure Accommodation Orders and Deprivations of Liberty, London Borough of Legal Alliance [2019]
• Identifying a Deprivations of Liberty in Practice, Safeguarding and Community Services, Southwark Council [2019]

Memberships:

• Court of Protection Practitioners’ Association
• Court of Protection Bar Association

Children - Public:

Thomas has quickly become a popular junior in public law family proceedings, regularly acting for local authorities, parents and children’s guardians in all aspects of care, adoption and other public law proceedings. In his first year in practice, he was the most frequently instructed barrister in Chambers for children’s services through the London Boroughs’ Legal Alliance. He has appeared in cases of neglect, substance misuse, non-accidental injury and child abuse. He has experience of drafting statements of reasons and skeleton arguments in respect of permission to appeal applications to the Court of Appeal. In pupillage, Thomas assisted with advice on the recognition of foreign adoption in English law.

Children - Private:

In private law proceedings, Thomas represents clients in respect of child contact disputes, non-molestation and occupation orders.

Recent Cases:

• LBG v. L [2018]: Thomas represented a new born baby in an urgent review hearing in circumstances where the court had not sanctioned the child’s move to a new placement prior to it occurring.
• LBH v. CD [2018]: Thomas acted for the local authority initially at the interim care order hearing, which was transferred to the High Court in respect of applications for collection, location and attendance orders

Crime:

Thomas has experience of prosecuting and defending in the Magistrates’ Court and Crown Court in London and across the South East. He is a member of the following panels:

• CPS – General Crime, Grade 2
• CPS – Extradition Panel, Grade 1
• Regulatory Panel of Prosecuting Advocates, C Panel

Police:

Thomas has represented police forces in respect of proceeds of crime proceedings, Account Freezing Order applications, Forced Marriage Prevention Orders and Sexual Harm Prevention Orders. He also regularly acts for the police in disclosure matters between the criminal and family courts. He has been instructed by the Metropolitan Police to advise in writing on whether the retention of a series of historic cautions constitute an interference with individuals’ article 8 ECHR rights and should be deleted from the Police National Computer.

Recent Cases:

• S v. S [2018]: Thomas represented the Metropolitan Police in a public interest immunity application in respect of a sensitive crime report on the basis that its disclosure would have a damaging effect upon the health of a third party. Tom’s skeleton argument was described as a model summary of the applicable law by the judge.
• R v. I [2018]: Thomas prosecuted a Defendant charged with theft, assault of a police constable, disorderly behaviour and common assault. He was convicted on all four charges.
• Transport for London v. JMJ [2018]: Thomas represented Transport for London in prosecuting a taxi driver who refused to accept a booking from a disabled person accompanied by his assistance dog contrary to section 170 of the Equality Act 2010.
• MPS v. S [2018]: Thomas represented the Metropolitan Police in this High Court application for a Forced Marriage Prevention Order in respect of two children suspected of being removed from the jurisdiction to be married against their will.