Lisa Henderson KC FCIArb
Lisa Henderson KC called to the Scottish Bar in 1995. She was appointed Queen’s Counsel in September 2016. She was called to the Bar in England and Wales in 2019 and is a tenant at 42 Bedford Row, London. She is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and an Ambassador for the Scottish Arbitration Centre.
Lisa specialises in the most serious clinical negligence and personal injury litigation. She has considerable experience in claims involving cerebral palsy, amputation, complex brain and spinal. She has acted in numerous multi-million-pound settlements.
Lisa is ranked Band 1 in the Chambers and Partners UK Bar for both clinical negligence and personal injury:
“…she has an aptitude for handling cases with complex quantum and causation issues arising from brain and birth injuries”
“Lisa is rigorous, thorough and a really hard worker.” “She is a good advocate and very experienced in clinical negligence.”
The Legal 500 lists her in personal injury and medical negligence saying: “She is extremely hardworking, with extensive experience in high-value personal injury cases.”
Lisa was the author of the personal injury elective for Edinburgh University’s Diploma in Legal Practice and former lead tutor. [2011 and 2017] She is a former honorary senior lecturer at Glasgow University School of Medicine [2012- 2018] and was a visiting lecturer at Pavia University, Italy. [2014 and 2015]. She has also taught at Aberdeen University School of Law. She is regularly invited to chair or present at conferences. She teaches advocacy skills on a regular basis. She is an advocacy skills instructor on the Faculty of Advocates devils [pupils] training programme.
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Marcus McKay KC
Marcus McKay KC has a specialist interest in planning and environmental law. He is regularly involved in all aspects of the consents process for major energy projects from initial advice on the requirements of the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations (including EIA Report work), to appearances at public inquiries and judicial review hearings in the Court of Session. Marcus has appeared at a wind farm inquiry in England and has experience of national infrastructure projects. He also acts for planning authorities and has successfully resisted applications for judicial review of planning decisions.
Marcus is listed in the Legal 500 where he is described as having “significant court experience, backed by sound commercial awareness.”
Marcus is a ranked Band 1 silk in Chambers and Partners UK Bar guide, where he is “Noted for his deep planning experience and widely praised for his meticulous attention to detail. His particular focus lies in energy and environment work, and he is especially experienced in renewable energy matters. He has experience advocating in inquiries and at all levels of the court system, including the Supreme Court.” The Guide goes on to say “He is a very gifted advocate and extremely diligent. He is always extremely well prepared and imaginative. He is highly intelligent and can not only grasp very complicated detail with ease but has the skill to be able to explain complex matters in straightforward terms.” “He is a very competent advocate, enthusiastic and diligent.” “He is definitely one of the best at the Bar.”
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Maria Maguire KC
Maria Maguire KC called to the Bar in March 1987. She was appointed Queen’s Counsel in February 2002. She has considerable experience in catastrophic injury cases, clinical negligence cases, fatal accident inquiries, abuse claims, cases involving psychiatric injuries and regularly acts in significant judicial review petitions for government bodies.
She has been listed in Chambers & Partners UK Bar Guide consistently at Band 1 or higher.
Previous entries for Personal Injury describe her as “Frequently noted as a formidable negotiator, she has significant experience of acting for both pursuer and defender in high-level catastrophic injury claims”; “She’s had some pretty spectacular results – she is an extremely skilful QC; and “She’s awesome – scarily so.”; “She is one of the best advocates, if not the best, in Scotland. She is very nice and approachable with clients but in a courtroom she is just fierce.”; “She doesn’t give in easily. She is very robust and formidable on cases.”
For Clinical Negligence her previous entries note: “She is absolutely superb. She is very well prepared and is brilliant with clients.”; “She is someone who for many years has been entrusted with the most complex and difficult cases in Scotland.”; “a first-class clinical negligence advocate who is revered for her straightforward and hard-working approach. She specialises in complex brain injury and cerebral palsy cases and clients are left impressed with her ability to ‘always take every available argument‘.” ; “has produced some fantastic results” ; Unanimously regarded as a standout advocate in this arena, Maria is constantly in high demand. Of late, she has been focused on acting for pursuers in cases of the utmost complexity and severity. Strengths: “An absolute star at clinical negligence.” “She carries a great deal of weight in the court.”
She has been described in The Legal 500 as “‘quite superb’, absolutely diligent in all aspects of her work ’, and with an ‘immense’ knowledge base is able to ‘conduct fairly high-brow medical consultations with expert witnesses intelligibly and concisely without missing anything out” ; “A leading silk whose experience, judgement, intellectual ability and attention to detail are second to none.”
In Chambers 2019 she is rated as a Star Individual in both Personal Injury and Clinical Negligence with the following entries:
Personal Injury
“A towering figure in both personal injury and clinical negligence matters. She specialises in complex catastrophic injury claims as well as fatal accidents, abuse claims and psychiatric injuries. Her competitors agree that she is a formidable opponent in court. “ ‘At the top of her game in every respect. She deals with highly complex matters and still manages to communicate with clients so that they both understand her and have total faith in her representation.”; “ She has excellent attention to detail , is excellent on her feet and as a strategist she has no equal.”
Clinical Negligence
“Routinely considered the leading silk in the field of Scottish clinical negligence litigation…. Her extensive advocacy experience enables her to get to the bottom of the thorniest of medical causation issues”; “Top class. She has an eye for detail and knows the law”; “Supremely able and highly skilled”; “Absolutely superb. I would pretty much let her take my appendix out. Her knowledge of medicine is second to none and she is a great tactician.”
Legal 500 entry notes her as a leading silk in both fields and ‘A formidable advocate who commands respect.’
Maria acts on behalf of defenders, insurers, local authorities, professional bodies and individual pursuers – including those funded via legal aid, trade unions or on a speculative basis. Maria also acts for clients in Health & Safety Prosecutions.
As a member of the court user’s group dealing with court procedure she drafted the basis for the Chapter 42A procedures for catastrophic injury cases in Scotland and Practice Notes in order to improve the management of such cases. She continues to be active in monitoring and improving the procedure. She currently chairs a sub group of the Personal Injury Committee of the Scottish Civil Justice Council developing a Voluntary Pre Action Protocol for Clinical Negligence cases.
Selected significant reported cases
Confidentiality prohibits the details of the numerous claims which have settled without recourse to the courts or in the course of proof
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Mark Fitzpatrick
Mark Fitzpatrick has developed a particular interest in medical negligence actions. Mark has come to act principally for Defenders and has represented the interests of various Health Boards in numerous Fatal Accident Inquiries arising out of unexpected deaths in hospital. He also has an interest in mental health law.
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Paul Reid KC
Since calling to the Bar in 2011, Paul Reid has built a strong practice anchored around professional liability and public law. In 2020, he was appointed the First Standing Junior Counsel to the Scottish Government (having first been appointed a Standing Junior in 2015). In that capacity he has advised the Scottish Government in respect of a broad range of public law matters and represented them in numerous high profile cases of constitutional significance (e.g. the 2022 Referendum Reference to the Supreme Court). In that capacity, he has also represented the UK Government before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. He has particular experience in respect of prison-related litigation (including several high profile Fatal Accident Inquiries following deaths in custody) and planning-related litigation (including compensation claims before the Lands Tribunal and planning appeals to the Inner House).
Paul also has particular interest and experience in professional liability and regulation (especially claims against solicitors, surveyors and medical professionals). As well as conducting litigation on behalf of professionals and professions, he has appeared before fitness to practice panels (medical profession), the Scottish FA’s judicial panel (sporting) and has represented legal professionals seeking leave to appeal decisions of the SLCC. He has appeared in a number of regulatory appeals to the Court of Session (both following substantive fitness to practice proceedings and in respect of extensions of interim orders). In that respect, he has experience represented both professionals and regulatory bodies. Paul is regularly instructed by the NHS in Scotland to advise on a wide range of matters, including clinical negligence claims, mental health issues and advice in relation to various issues of statutory and regulatory compliance, including advise in respect of medico-legal ethical issues. He was instructed by the NHS in their successful defence of the Scottish mesh litigation and acts on behalf a firm of engineers in another group litigation before the Court of Session (the Watling Street litigation). He represented the driver of the Glasgow bin lorry in the Fatal Accident Inquiry into the December 2014 disaster. He has also represented parties before the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry and the UK Infected Blood Inquiry. Although predominantly instructed on behalf of defenders, Paul also has experience of pursing a range of claims (professional liability, commercial and property). He regularly appears before the Court of Session and other tribunals.
Paul has taught public law at the University of Edinburgh since 2004, regularly lecturing and tutoring on various aspects of the subject. He has a particular interest in judicial review, surveillance powers and electoral law. In July 2024, he was appointed an Honorary Teaching Fellow at Edinburgh Law School and he will join the Editorial Board of the leading journal, Public Law, in January 2025. Paul regularly publishes articles and blogs on public law and has written the third and fourth editions of the Green’s Concise Guide to Public Law (published in October 2015 and August 2020, respectively). He also regularly speaks at seminars on public law and professional liability.
Paul is ranked in five different areas by Chambers and Partners (2024): Administrative and Public Law, Clinical Negligence, Commercial Dispute Resolution, Product Liability and Professional Negligence.
In 2022, Paul was appointed as a part-time Sheriff and in 2023 he was appointed King’s Counsel.
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Ross G. Anderson
Ross is ranked by Chambers & Partners (2025) as a Band 1 junior for Commercial Dispute Resolution, Company, Real Estate Litigation, and Restructuring/ Insolvency. He is also ranked for Tax. He is ranked in the Legal 500 (2025) as a Band 1 Leading Junior in Commercial Disputes, Administrative and Public Law, and Property and Construction.
“Ross is one of the best non-silks. He gives clients a lot of assurance and he is also seen as one of the leading advocates in all of Scotland” (Chambers 2025)
Ross is one of the best juniors at the Scottish Bar. He’s a joy to work with and there is no case which is too complex” (Chambers 2025)
“Ross is a go-to counsel for property disputes. He is very accessible, bright and the quality of his written work is very good. In my view, he has the experience to deal alone with complex matters.” (Chambers, 2025)
“Ross has an ability to crack on with complex factual matters and really understand the factual issues, which then allows him to be one step ahead in relation to the legal arguments.” (Chambers, 2025)
“He is a first-rate junior counsel – a go-to advocate in commercial, property and sports disputes. He is excellent to work with.” “He is incredibly intellectually sharp, and his opinions and analysis are first rate.” (Chambers 2023)
“Ross is excellent with clients; he has a brilliant ability to appease and calm clients while also being firm, decisive and straight-talking. He is very thorough and has a fantastic sense of commerciality. He is very able on his feet and he has got an amazing ability to get to grips with vast quantities of documentation and huge amounts of detail” (Chambers, 2021, Commercial Dispute Resolution)
“Highly intelligent, great with clients and very approachable.” (Chambers, Commercial Dispute Resolution, 2020)
“Very thorough and gets to grips with complex issues quickly. He’s so commercial, practical in his approach and proactive. He is hugely impressive.” (Chambers 2020)
“Very impressive ability to translate academic skills into practical advice to clients. Good on his feet as well” (Chambers, 2019) “He’s a junior with an extremely good sense of commerciality and pragmatism and has an excellent manner when dealing with solicitors and clients.” “He’s very good on particularly complex technical disputes.” (Chambers, 2018)
Ross’s practice focuses on commercial dispute resolution, company and insolvency law, property law, public law, trusts and tax. Ross is a standing junior counsel to the UK Government (having been assigned to HM Revenue & Customs from 2015-2024). He appears regularly in UK tribunals as well as in the Court of Session.
Selected cases:
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