- Head of Chambers: Lewis Marks QC
- Senior Clerk : Ivor Treherne
- Tenants: 30
THE CHAMBERS QEB specialises in family law, particularly in matrimonial finance and international family law, but also in child law including child abduction and forced marriage. The set has been established for well over 100 years and is consistently rated as one of the best sets for family law. It is also very forward-looking and client-focussed. Chambers has expanded premises to provide more conference rooms and enhanced facilities for private FDRs and other forms of dispute resolution including arbitration, mediation and collaborative law. Many members of chambers are listed as leaders in their field in ‘The Legal 500’, ‘Chambers & Partners’ and ‘Legal Experts’. The legal directories’ praise for QEB includes the following published reviews: “long held reputation for excellence”; “hotbed of talent”; “good commercial sense”; “fine tradition of producing the very best financial barristers”; “phenomenally bright barristers abound”; and “jam-packed with trouble shooters capable of tackling the thorniest money cases” (Chambers & Partners); while ‘The Legal 500’ praises it as having “few peers for expertise in complex ancillary relief” and “almost without exception thebarristers are exceptional.”
QEB’s success and distinction are not a recent phenomenon. QEB has always had an excellent reputation for the quality of the advocates it produces and has been involved in many high profile and historic decisions. Many members of chambers have continued into high judicial office. At present, five Family Division judges are former members of QEB and Lord Wilson, sits in the Supreme Court. Several of QEB’s former members participate in occasional QEB ‘Question Time’ panel sessions to answer questions from instructing solicitors. These have proved very popular amongst the profession.
WORK UNDERTAKEN QEB is particularly well known for dealing with the financial consequences of relationship breakdown but there is immense experience in all aspects of family law including: jurisdictional disputes, foreign divorces, pre-marital agreements, civil partnerships, injunctions both financial and domestic, public and private law child work, child abduction and forced marriage, Inheritance Act claims and disputes between former cohabitees. In addition some members practise in general common law with particular emphasis on personal injury and professional negligence work.
As a complement to its international work QEB offers a range of languages including members of chambers professionally fluent in French, German, Punjabi, Hindu and Urdu.
Members of QEB appear in courts throughout the country and abroad, ranging from magistrates’ courts to the Supreme Court and the European Court of Human Rights. The confidentiality of chambers’ work is strictly respected but recent public decisions in which members of QEB were briefed include White, Sorrell, Harb v King Fahd Bin Abdul Aziz (the late King of Saudi Arabia), Miller, Charman, Spencer, Marano,Weiner, Robson, Schofield, Jones and Z v Z (No.2.) QEB has always been at the forefront of the development of matrimonial law and members have appeared in many of the leading authorities including such seminal decisions as Wachtel, F v F, Duxbury and Preston. The current clerks’ room of five is headed by Ivor Treherne who has been senior clerk since 1979. He is assisted by Stephen Morley and the rest of the team. They are happy to recommend particular members for particular cases and provide charging rates on request as well as practical assistance in the management of cases.
The QEB clerks are regularly singled out for special praise by external commentators who have hailed the “superlative clerking” at QEB. Chambers continues to hold BARMARK certification in recognition of its practice standards as assessed each year by the British Standards Institution.