Ampersand Advocates Celebrates Outstanding 2026 Chambers & Partners Rankings
Ampersand Advocates is proud to celebrate another outstanding year in the Chambers and Partners UK Bar 2026 rankings published date, confirming its position as one of the most highly regarded and comprehensive sets at the Scottish Bar.
This year, Ampersand and its members secures 12 set rankings and an impressive 99 individual rankings across 25 practice areas, including recognition across the London Bar and All Circuits. The stable is further honoured with five Star Individuals, underscoring its depth and quality.
Set Rankings
Ampersand Advocates is ranked as a set in the following areas:
Band 1:
Band 2:
Practice Areas and Ranked Members
Administrative & Public Law – Band 2
Ranked Members:
Aidan O’Neill KC, Douglas Ross KC, Ian S. Forrester KC, Laura-Anne van der Westhuizen KC, Michael Way, Paul Reid KC, Timothy Young, Usman Tariq KC
Star Individual: Aidan O’Neill KC
Highlight: Appearing in landmark constitutional and equality law cases before the Supreme Court and Court of Session.
Civil Liberties & Human Rights – Band 2
Ranked Members:
Aidan O’Neill KC, Douglas Ross KC, Usman Tariq KC
Highlight: Leading advocates in major human rights and discrimination cases, including Billy Graham Evangelistic Association v SMG (UK) Ltd.
Clinical Negligence – Band 1
Ranked Members:
Euan Mackenzie KC, Fiona Drysdale KC, Geoffrey Mitchell KC, Graham Primrose KC, Isla Davie KC, James McConnell KC, Jamie Dawson KC, Jennifer Nicholson-White, Lauren Sutherland KC, Lisa Henderson KC, Maria Maguire KC, Mark Fitzpatrick, Shane Dundas, Simon Bowie KC, Una Doherty KC, Vinit Khurana KC
Star Individual: Maria Maguire KC
Highlight: Described as “the premier stable for clinical negligence in Scotland”, with members leading in complex medical and catastrophic injury cases.
Commercial Dispute Resolution – Band 2
Ranked Members:
Eoghainn MacLean, Giles Reid, Laura-Anne van der Westhuizen KC, Mark Boni, Michael Way, Nicholas McAndrew, Robert Howie KC, Ross G. Anderson, Timothy Young, Usman Tariq KC
Highlight: Recognised for “depth and breadth across civil litigation”, with expertise in commercial, contract, and intellectual property disputes.
Company
Ranked Members:
Ross G. Anderson, Timothy Young
Highlight: Expertise in shareholder and director disputes, representing corporate entities and institutions.
Construction – Band 2
Ranked Members:
Nicholas McAndrew, Robert Howie KC, Timothy Young
Highlight: Trusted for handling large-scale building and delay disputes, including Greater Glasgow Health Board v Multiplex.
Employment
Ranked Members:
Aidan O’Neill KC
Highlight: Leading counsel in discrimination and constitutional employment cases.
Immigration
Ranked Members:
Michael Way
Highlight: Recognised for expertise in judicial reviews and appeals involving immigration and asylum.
Information Technology
Ranked Members:
Usman Tariq KC
Highlight: Specialist in software, data, and technology-related litigation.
Intellectual Property
Ranked Members:
Usman Tariq KC
Highlight: Recognised for IP and tech sector disputes and advisory work.
Media Law
Ranked Members:
Usman Tariq KC
Highlight: Acts in defamation, reputation, and privacy cases.
Personal Injury – Band 1
Ranked Members:
Alan Cowan, Christian Marney, Douglas Ross KC, Euan Mackenzie KC, Usman Tariq KC, Isla Davie KC, Jennifer Nicholson-White, Lisa Henderson KC, Maria Maguire KC, Shane Dundas, Simon Di Rollo KC
Star Individuals: Graham Primrose KC, Maria Maguire KC
Highlight: Described as “a formidable team of injury specialists”, acting in high-value, complex personal injury claims across Scotland.
Planning & Environment – Band 1
Ranked Members:
Ailsa Wilson KC, Laura-Anne van der Westhuizen KC, Marcus McKay KC, Nicholas McAndrew
Highlight: Commended for expertise in renewable energy, development planning, and environmental judicial review.
Product Liability
Ranked Members:
Paul Reid KC
Highlight: Recognised for handling complex product and regulatory disputes.
Professional Discipline
Ranked Members:
Paul Reid KC, Scott Clair
Highlight: Act for regulators and professionals in high-stakes disciplinary proceedings.
Professional Negligence – Band 2
Ranked Members:
Paul Reid KC, Scott Clair, Usman Tariq KC
Highlight: Expertise across financial, legal, and technical negligence claims.
Public & Fatal Accident Inquiries – Band 1
Ranked Members:
Ayla Iridag, Fiona Drysdale KC, Geoffrey Mitchell KC, Isla Davie KC, James McConnell KC, Jamie Dawson KC, Jennifer Nicholson-White, Lisa Henderson KC, Michael Way, Paul Reid KC, Shane Dundas, Simon Bowie KC, Susanne Tanner KC, Una Doherty KC
Highlight: Market leader in public inquiries including the UK and Scottish COVID-19 Inquiries, and the Infected Blood Inquiry.
Real Estate Litigation – Band 2
Ranked Members:
Giles Reid, Mark Boni, Michael Way, Robert Howie KC, Ross G. Anderson, Timothy Young
Highlight: Leading expertise in commercial property and access rights disputes.
Restructuring/Insolvency – Band 2
Ranked Members:
Robert Howie KC, Ross G. Anderson, Sheana Campbell, Usman Tariq KC
Highlight: Praised for “excellent knowledge and expertise” in insolvency, breach of duty, and cross-border matters.
Tax – Band 1
Ranked Members:
Julian Ghosh KC, Ross G. Anderson
Star Individual: Julian Ghosh KC
Highlight: Recognised as a Star Individual for Tax (London Bar), handling major tax appeals and IR35 cases such as McCann Media Ltd v HMRC.
Independent Investigations – All Circuits (Band 2)
Ranked Member:
Susanne Tanner KC
Highlight: Recognised across the UK for her leadership in independent investigations and inquiries.
European Law – London Bar (Band 2)
Ranked Member:
Aidan O’Neill KC
Highlight: Noted for constitutional and EU law expertise bridging the Scottish and London Bars.
Tax – London Bar & Private Client
Ranked Member:
Julian Ghosh KC
- Tax: London Bar (Star Individual)
- Tax: Private Client – Band 1
- Tax: Indirect Tax – Band 2
Highlight: Acknowledged as one of the UK’s foremost tax specialists.
Star Individuals
Ampersand Advocates proudly celebrates its five Star Individuals recognised for exceptional excellence and leadership:
Clerking Excellence
Ampersand’s clerking team, led by Alan Moffat, is again commended for professionalism, responsiveness, and efficiency.
“Second to none.”
“Depth and breadth across all disciplines.”
“Incredibly responsive and professional.”
The clerks’ deep understanding of clients’ needs continues to be a cornerstone of Ampersand’s success.
Overall Recognition
With 99 individual rankings, five Star Individuals, and 12 ranked practice areas, Ampersand Advocates cements its reputation as one of Scotland’s leading stable for excellence across the civil Bar. Ampersand stands out for its depth, versatility, and advocacy excellence.
You can view the full rankings and detailed individual feedback here.
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Ampersand Advocates Celebrates Top-Tier Recognition in 2026 Legal 500 Rankings
Ampersand Advocates has once again secured its position among Scotland’s leading sets of counsel in the newly released 2026 edition of The Legal 500 United Kingdom Bar Guide. The rankings, published today, reaffirm Ampersand’s reputation for excellence across a broad spectrum of legal disciplines.
In the 2026 guide, Ampersand Advocates has been ranked in Tier 1 for Administrative and Public Law, Personal Injury and Medical Negligence and Property, Planning and Construction. The set also achieved a Tier 2 ranking in Commercial Disputes, reflecting its growing influence and expertise in high-value and complex litigation.
Administrative and Public Law (Tier 1) Ampersand’s offering is praised for handling high-stakes judicial reviews and public inquiries, with commentators highlighting our members ability to command respect at the highest levels of the judiciary. Ampersand’s expertise in this area is highlighted by the rankings of Aidan O’Neill KC, Douglas Ross KC, Susanne Tanner KC, Paul Reid KC and Usman Tariq KC (2024 silk). The stable’s juniors Timothy Young and Ross Anderson are also recognised, with Michael Way and Scott Clair noted as rising stars.
Personal Injury and Medical Negligence (Tier 1) An impressive roster of silks includes Simon Bowie KC, Una Doherty KC, Lisa Henderson KC, Euan Mackenzie KC, Maria Maguire KC, Geoffrey Mitchell KC, Graham Primrose KC, Lauren Sutherland KC, Alan Dewar KC, Vinit Khurana KC, Douglas Ross KC and James McConnell KC. Jennifer Nicholson-White, Ayla Iridag, and Shane Dundas are recognised as leading juniors.
Property, Planning and Construction (Tier 1) Robert Howie KC, Ailsa Wilson KC, Marcus McKay KC, and Laura-Anne Van Der Westhuizen KC are all ranked as leading silks. Eoghainn MacLean, Nicholas McAndrew, Ross Anderson, Timothy Young, Giles Reid and Louise Cockburn are recognised as leading juniors.
Commercial Disputes (Tier 2) The stable’s commercial disputes team is led by silks Robert Howie KC, Laura-Anne Van Der Westhuizen KC, Paul Reid KC and Usman Tariq KC (2024 silk). Ross Anderson, Eoghainn MacLean, Mark Boni, Timothy Young, Giles Reid and Nicholas McAndrew are ranked as leading juniors, with Michael Way noted as a rising star.
Crime and Regulatory (leading set) The stable has achieved acknowledgement in this category for 2026 as a leading set with a number of members ranked as leading silks including Isla Davie KC, Jamie Dawson KC, Lisa Henderson KC, Geoffrey Mitchell KC, Paul Reid KC, Simon Bowie KC, Una Doherty KC, Fiona Drysdale KC, Susanne Tanner KC, James McConnell KC (2024 silk) and Usman Tariq (2024 silk). Jenny Nicholson-White, Shane Dundas and Ayla Iridag are ranked as leading juniors, with Michael Way noted as a rising star.
Ampersand Advocates is also recommended in the Employment and Private Client and Family categories, with Aidan O’Neill KC ranked as a leading silk in Employment and Mark Boni recognised as a leading junior in Private Client and Family.
Under Alan Moffat’s leadership, the clerking team was commended for its exceptional efficiency, prompt communication, and forward-thinking approach.
These rankings highlight Ampersand’s continued commitment to delivering outstanding advocacy and legal insight across Scotland’s distinct legal landscape.
Full listings, for all of Ampersand’s rankings can be viewed on the Legal 500 website here.
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Ampersand Advocates welcomes 2 new members: Sarah McWhirter and Tony Convery
Ampersand is delighted to welcome Sarah McWhirter and Tony Convery to the stable, following their call to the Bar on Friday, 27th June 2025.
On the new members’ arrival, Stable Director Isla Davie KC, said: “We are delighted that Sarah and Tony are joining Ampersand. They are already highly regarded as lawyers, and this is the start of incredibly promising careers for both at the Bar. Not only does their considerable experience lend itself well to our existing practice areas, but they are also lovely people and we look forward to welcoming them into the stable.”
Ampersand’s Practice Manager, Alan Moffat added “I am delighted to welcome our newest members of Ampersand. Their addition to our set brings the membership to 61 and the experience which each of them brings is a fantastic fit for Ampersand’s core areas of practice. They will be a real asset to those looking to instruct counsel. I am sure that joining Ampersand will offer them rewarding opportunities and collaborative support”.
Sarah and Tony featured in Ampersand’s “& the Devils in the Detail” Hey Legal Live chat in May. You can watch clips of Sarah and Tony discussing their practice areas here.
Sarah McWhirter
Sarah specialises in clinical negligence and personal injury actions. She has extensive experience in complex and high-value claims. She has particular expertise in birth injury, spinal injury, amputation and fatal claims.
Prior to calling to the Bar, Sarah specialised in clinical negligence and personal injury work for over 10 years. Latterly, Sarah was Head of Clinical Negligence (Scotland) and a Principal Lawyer (partner) at a large UK-wide firm. She was ranked ‘Band 1’ in Chambers and Partners for Clinical Negligence: Mainly Claimant (2025). Sarah has experience of representing both pursuers and defenders.
As a solicitor Sarah, appeared in the All-Scotland Sheriff Personal Injury Court and regularly dealt with cases raised in the Court of Session.
During devilling, Sarah enhanced her existing experience in clinical negligence and personal injury work. She expanded her knowledge of specialist personal injury claims, including industrial disease and historical child abuse. She also gained experience in other areas of law, most notably mental health, professional regulation and public law.
Sarah is the Course Organiser for the Personal Injury elective course on the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice at the University of Edinburgh.
Tony Convery
Tony specialises in commercial litigation and public law. He calls to the Bar as the Lord Reid Scholar. That Scholarship is awarded annually to the outstanding candidate. He previously worked at a leading commercial law firm.
Tony has considerable commercial litigation experience, including in professional negligence, company and property law disputes. He also has experience of group proceedings, procurement litigation and proceedings before the Competition Appeal Tribunal.
Tony has a broad public law practice. As well as core constitutional and administrative law, Tony has experience in: (i) equality and human rights, (ii) planning and (iii) information law (including data protection and freedom of information). He has a wealth of experience in advising on legislative competence challenges.
Tony also has experience of acting in environmental, regulatory, education and media law disputes, as well as inquiries. He provides advice on trade/financial sanctions and related regulatory schemes.
Tony was a research assistant to Professor Jim Murdoch CBE in relation to the fourth edition of the leading textbook, Human Rights Law in Scotland. He has also published in his own right. He is a tutor at the University of Glasgow.
For further information about their practices view their profiles on the Ampersand Advocates website: Our People – Ampersand Advocates
To instruct either of them, please contact the Ampersand Clerking Team: ampersandclerks@advocates.org.uk.
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Tony Convery
Tony Convery specialises in commercial litigation and public law. He called to the Bar in 2025 as the Lord Reid Scholar. That Scholarship is awarded annually to the outstanding candidate. He previously worked at a leading commercial law firm.
Tony has considerable commercial litigation experience, including in professional negligence, company and property law disputes. He also has experience of group proceedings, procurement litigation and proceedings before the Competition Appeal Tribunal.
Tony has a broad public law practice. As well as core constitutional and administrative law, Tony has experience in: (i) equality and human rights, (ii) planning and (iii) information law (including data protection and freedom of information). He has a wealth of experience in advising on legislative competence challenges.
Tony also has experience of acting in environmental, regulatory, education and media law disputes, as well as inquiries. He provides advice on trade/financial sanctions and related regulatory schemes.
Tony was a research assistant to Professor Jim Murdoch CBE in relation to the fourth edition of the leading textbook, Human Rights Law in Scotland. He has also published in his own right. He is a tutor at the University of Glasgow.
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Sean White
Sean White called to the Bar in 2024, having enjoyed a varied civil litigation practice as a solicitor.
He practices mainly in commercial litigation, with particular interest in construction and property disputes, commercial contracts and professional and clinical negligence.
Sean came to the Bar with already impressive representative experience, having appeared in various courts and tribunals in Scotland, where he has conducted proofs, debates and other contentious and non-contentious hearings for pursuers and defenders. He has represented businesses and individuals in a range of complex and high-value cases.
Before calling to the Bar, Sean worked as a Senior Solicitor in the commercial disputes team of a well-known Scottish firm, where he focussed principally on construction and energy sector disputes. During this time, he worked on many Court of Session litigations and gained experience in different forms of alternative dispute resolution, including mediation, arbitration and adjudication.
He previously trained and worked with an Edinburgh-based litigation firm, during which time he represented clients in a range of cases, covering commercial contracts, professional and clinical negligence, personal injury, interdict and judicial review, amongst other things.
During devilling, Sean gained further experience in construction, property, professional and clinical negligence, commercial contract, company and insolvency litigation.
Selected cases:
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Ampersand Advocates Ian Forrester KC appointed Ordinary Member of the Competition Appeal Tribunal
Ampersand Advocates is proud to announce the appointment of Ian Forrester KC as an Ordinary Member of the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT).
The Competition Appeal Tribunal is a specialist judicial body with cross-disciplinary expertise in law, economics, business and accountancy whose function is to hear and decide cases involving competition or economic regulatory issues. The Tribunal’s jurisdiction extends to the whole of the United Kingdom. As an Ordinary Member, Ian Forrester KC will bring his extensive legal expertise and experience to bear on these important matters.
Ian Forrester KC has experience as a practitioner of competition law controversies in Europe, Asia and North America, and has argued important cases on behalf of the public authority and large and small companies during a long career as an advocate. His writings and teaching on due process, sport, cartels, compulsory licensing and procedural reform have made useful contributions to the development of the law and practice. He was nominated by the UK to be a judge in the General Court of the European Union in 2015, and served till his mandate was ended by Brexit. He has returned to the Bar as a practitioner and arbitrator and will continue to alongside this appointment.
Ian Forrester KC’s appointment was announced by the President of the Competition Appeal Tribunal advising that the Minister for Enterprise, Markets and Small Business, Mr Kevin Hollinrake MP has appointed thirteen new members to the Tribunal’s panel of Ordinary Members.
The full announcement can be viewed here.
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