Clare Montgomery KC

Contact Clare: claremontgomery@matrixlaw.co.uk | +44 (0)20 7404 3447

Contact Clare's Practice Team (Team T): TeamT@matrixlaw.co.uk

Clare is a highly respected specialist in criminal, regulatory and fraud law, perhaps best known for her work on legally and factually complex cases. For the past decade Clare has dealt with the most demanding and difficult legal cases. She has featured in the starred category of KC’s recommended for crime and fraud for the whole of that period.

Formerly a member of the Attorney General’s Panel, Clare has also been concerned in a wide range of public law and due process cases both for and against the Government. Clare has been admitted in Northern Ireland and specially admitted in the courts of Antigua, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Brunei, Hong Kong, Mauritius and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Competition and Regulation

Clare defended in the British Airways/Virgin cartel prosecution where she was instrumental in setting the strategy which saw her client avoid prosecution in the US and secure an acquittal in the UK. She provides incisive strategic advice in connection with cartel investigations and prosecutions.

Governance, Investigations and Solutions

Clare is widely valued as a pre litigation adviser, providing strategic guidance and advice to companies and individuals caught up in regulatory and criminal investigations, particularly those with an international dimension and where civil, administrative and criminal law problems are present. Her recent case work includes Petrofac, Glencore and ENRC. She also led the FCA team in the prosecution of National Westminster Bank.  She was GIR Investigations Professional of the Year 2022.

Directory Recommendation 2024:

High net worth

“Clare Montgomery KC is possibly the best lawyer in financial crime in this country.” “Clare is one of the top practitioners in this area. She is as good as you’ll get, a top barrister.”

Commercial law

Since taking silk, Clare has come to be valued as a trial advocate in complex civil disputes. She continues to work on civil fraud and arbitration cases both as an advocate and an adviser. She acted for News Group Newspapers in the Mobile Telephone Voicemail Interception litigation, for ENRC in its claims against the SFO and Decherts LLP and in Privatbank v Kolomoisky and others. She is valued for her ability to work in a team, her attention to detail and her skill as a cross examiner.

Directory Recommendation 2024:

Fraud – Civil: “Clare is simply outstanding. Her ability as a cross-examiner is nothing short of breathtaking, and she is phenomenally hardworking and a true team-player.” “She brings real criminal cross-examination techniques to the commercial Bar, and is therefore absolutely devastating in cross-examination.” “Clare is one of the absolute standouts at the Bar. She is an old-school advocate who masters every aspect of a case.” “She is quite an extraordinary barrister with a photographic memory, processing vast amounts of factual information, and has it all at her fingertips.”

Crime and Regulatory Law

Clare is able to take a case through from investigation to trial and appeal, as with the high profile investigation and prosecution of the Metropolitan Police Commissioner arising out of the death of Jean Charles de Menezes and her successful defence of the UK Government in the related proceedings in Strasbourg. She represents a range of prosecuting authorities, such as the FCA and SFO as well as acting for private clients and corporations.

She has a very strong appellate practice in the UK and abroad. She represented the Bar when the issue of barristers’ immunity arose in the House of Lords; she appeared for Sally Clark when Clark was finally cleared of murdering her two sons by the Court of Appeal in 2003. She was brought in to lead the argument for the defence when the Court of Appeal confirmed the dismissal of the pharmaceuticals case brought by the SFO in 2008. She has appeared in courts of appeal in Brunei, Bermuda and Hong Kong. In the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal she acted for Mo Yuk Ping, in the leading case on conspiracy to defraud, in HKSAR v Andrew Lam securing the acquittal of a solicitor charged with perverting the course of justice. She led the successful appeal to HKCFA on behalf of Donald Tsang, the former Chief Executive of the HKSAR. She represented the Prime Minister of Mauritius, Pravind Jugnauth, when he was cleared of conflict of interest allegations by the UKPC in 2019. She is currently instructed to defend Bernie Ecclestone on fraud charges.

Directory Recommendation 2024:

Crime: “She’s in a class of her own and can turn her hand to anything and everything.” “Clare is at the top of her game: strong in terms of tactical advice and judgement, she is practical and straightforward.” “The best lawyer at the criminal Bar. She is incredibly cerebral and has a really encyclopaedic knowledge of her own and other areas of law.” “She has the ability to turn a good argument into an exceptional argument and she does it in a way that is very alluring and persuasive.”

Extradition and Mutual Assistance

Clare has extensive experience in extradition, international mutual legal assistance and international criminal law, representing both governments and individuals. She works with lawyers outside the UK on national and international criminal cases assisting with strategy and legal challenges. She represented Augusto Pinochet in the House of Lords. She advised the former Prime Minister of Thailand after he was ousted in a military coup. She led the prosecution team in relation to the extradition of the founder of Wikileaks and acted for Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi in relation to Indian extradition requests. She represented Jack Warner on his appeal to the Privy Council She is a co-author of The Law of Extradition and Mutual Assistance (3rd Ed published by OUP, 2012). She regularly advises governments on crimes of universal jurisdiction.

Directory Recommendation 2024:

Extradition: “Montgomery is on all the significant extradition cases; she is a leading KC in this area.” “Clare Montgomery is a courageous advocate.” “Clare is an exceptional advocate able to master complex cases and to have every detail at her fingertips, but with the tactical ability to know when to deploy this.”

Fraud, Financial and Business Crime

Clare is presently advising several FTSE 100 companies in dealing with complex cross border issues. Completed advice has enabled GSK to answer concerns raised by the MHRA in relation to clinical trials procedures by reference to EU and domestic regulation. She acted on behalf of BAE throughout the long running SFO investigation negotiating the groundbreaking settlement that ended the investigation. She represented Tesco and G4S in connection with their deferred prosecution. She also represented Petrofac and Glencore in concluding plea agreements with the SFO. She also prosecuted Nat West Bank on behalf of the FCA.

Directory Recommendation 2024:

Financial Crime (including Corporates): “Clare is very versatile and phenomenally good.” “She is a formidable advocate. She has a wealth of experience and is very responsive.” “The depth of her knowledge is so encyclopaedic.” “Her presence in court and legal knowledge is second to none. She has such command of the court.” “She has great strategic instincts.”

Human Rights

Throughout her time in practice Clare has been closely connected with the development of human right arguments in Strasbourg, from Soering though to Yukos related cases. She represented the Government of Cyprus before the Grand Chamber in Güzelyurtlu and others v Cyprus and Turkey [2019] ECHR 36925/07.

Directory Recommendation 2024:

Civil Liberties & Human Rights: “She can annihilate the other side’s witnesses – she’s on another level. Also, for someone so senior, she still reads every single page.”

Public Law

Formerly a member of the Attorney General’s Panel, Clare has also been concerned in a wide range of public law and due process cases both for and against the Government in the UK and abroad.

Directory Recommendation 2024:

Administrative & Public Law:“Clare is a powerful advocate.” “She is a complete powerhouse in public law.”

Proceeds of crime and asset forfeiture

Clare has been involved in the development of money laundering case law in Hong Kong including the landmark case of Pang Hung Fai.

She has a particular expertise in connection with regulatory obligations. She prosecuted Nat West Bank on behalf of the FCA in relation to offences under the Money Laundering Regulations.

She recently represented respondents in the first successful application to discharge Unexplained Wealth Orders.

Directory Recommendation 2024:

POCA Work & Asset Forfeiture: “A formidable advocate who doesn’t need a reference. Clare is very intelligent and is the first port of call for City firms that have issues. She’s involved in every big case and has such a wealth of experience.” “Brilliant at everything, including POCA.”

Protest law

Clare represented members of the Stansted 15 in their recent appeal to the Court of Appeal and appeared on the reference of the acquittal of the Colston statute protestors in the court of appeal.

Regulatory offences

Clare advises professionals caught up in complex regulatory investigations.

Serious crime

Clare is able to deal with the whole range of serious criminal cases. She was successful in defending Soldier A who was acquitted of the murder of IRA leader Joseph McCann. She has recently secured a retrial in an appeal against a conviction for murder in the Bahamas.

Clare is committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. In order to provide legal services to her clients, including advice and representation services, Clare needs to collect and hold personal data. This includes her client’s personal data and the personal data of others who feature in the matter upon which she is instructed. To read Clare’s privacy notice in full, please see here.

DIRECTORY RECOMMENDATIONS