Our History

A review of the history of Temple Garden Chambers, formely 1 Temple Gardens, demonstrates some recurring themes. The precise date on which Chambers was founded has been lost in time but can be traced at least to the end of the Second World War.

David Maxwell Fyfe KC was Attorney-General at the end of the War and became the main UK prosecutor at Nuremburg. That echoes through the generations to us now having as a member of chambers the current Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in the Hague, Karim Khan KC.

David Maxwell Fyfe was appointed Lord Chancellor (as Lord Kilmuir) in 1954 and in 2017 Ian Burnett, one of his successors as Head of Chambers, was appointed Lord Chief Justice. Two other members, Patrick Mayhew QC MP (later Lord Mayhew of Twysden) and Dominic Grieve KC MP have also served as the Attorney-General.

In 1954 the set was joined by a group led by John Thompson QC (later Mr Justice Thompson). He was the editor of Redgrave’s Factories Acts and was the doyen of the Personal Injury Bar. This was the start of Chambers’ recognition as experts in this class of work.

John Thompson was appointed a High Court Judge in 1961. Over the years he has been succeeded as Head of Chambers by George Bean QC (later Mr Justice Bean), Colin Fawcett QC, Hugh Carlisle KC, Guy Sankey QC, Sir Geoffrey Nice KC, Ian Burnett QC (now The Rt Hon Lord Burnett of Maldon, former Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales), Nigel Wilkinson KC, Robin Tam KC and currently Keith Morton KC.

Whilst common law work remains at the heart of what many members of chambers do, with many appointments to the Attorney-General’s panels of civil practitioners, other areas such as health and Safety and extradition work are increasingly prominent. The Treasury work has widened to include all aspects of public law, including immigration and anti-terrorism. Also, over the decades since being formed, members of Chambers have been involved in all major public inquiries and inquests, whether concerned with railway disasters, BSE, Bloody Sunday, Iraq, Press Intrusion, Infected Blood or Grenfell.

Chambers’ size has increased from its initial handful and it has taken on extra accommodation. In 2010 the opportunity was taken to reposition the Clerks’ Room in Harcourt Buildings and this led to it being renamed as Temple Garden Chambers. There have been only three Senior Clerks in Chambers’ life, with the present and his predecessor between them having given over 75 years of service to its members. The success and growth of Chambers will continue.

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