"an intellectual lawyer and a great jury advocate" "one of the best appellate advocates of his generation" "brave, fearless, relentless with excellent judgment"
Tim is a highly regarded specialist in a wide range of practice areas that span the fields of fraud/regulatory, criminal, public, human rights, sanctions, media and information, extradition/MLA, sports, asset recovery, police and civil law. For the past decade he has been listed by the main Legal Directories as a leading Silk in 6 separate practice areas as well as being included as a one of the Stars at the Bar by Chambers and Partners. A comprehensive list of his most significant current and past cases across the range of his practice areas is to be found on his case list.
His practice embraces pre-litigation advice, trial and appellate work and he is valued as an advocate with specialist knowledge of the criminal, regulatory and civil law aspects of complex investigations who can provide strategic advice to companies, regulators, multi-national corporations, professional bodies, governments and individuals from the earliest stages of an investigation through to trial and appeal.
The Legal Directories (see quotations below) have consistently marked him out as an exceptional advocate who impresses both as a jury and an appellate advocate and who commands huge respect from the Bench at all levels. He is universally praised for his ability to absorb a mass of complex information, his judgment, his outstanding cross-examination skills, his fearlessness, his team working skills, his ability to communicate with and to gain the trust of clients of every kind and the quality of his written advocacy.
In recent years, he has acted both in the UK and Hong Kong in a wide range of business crime cases (at both trial and appellate level) involving bribery/corruption, corporate criminal liability, money laundering, market abuse, sanctions offences, cartel offences, frauds of all kinds, insider dealing and other regulatory offences. His clients include FTSE 100 and 250 companies, foreign governments and corporations, individual clients and the DPP (in the UK, Mauritius and in Hong Kong).
He has appeared in many of the most significant public and human rights law cases over the past three decades covering the fields of criminal law, national security, prisons, terrorism (control orders, TPIMS, SIAC) policing, fair trial rights, freedom of expression/political protest, data protection and privacy, mental health, inquests, regulatory/disciplinary. He has also appeared in recent years in high profile public/family law cases which have raised novel issues of diplomatic and state immunity.
He is a widely acknowledged expert in the fields of policing, confiscation, asset recovery and unexplained wealth orders and is co-editor of one of the leading texts on the law of Asset Recovery (OUP). He has appeared in countless cases concerning police powers, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, misfeasance in public office, surveillance, investigatory powers, search warrants and production/disclosure orders. He is on the list of Counsel instructed by the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
He has appeared in more than 60 appeals to the House of Lords/Supreme Court/Privy Council and in countless appeals to the Court of Appeal in both civil and criminal cases, usually involving novel, complex issues of law. He has been described as “one of the best appellate advocates of his generation” (Legal 500) and regularly provides second opinions on the conduct of trials at first instance.
He has extensive experience of cases involving an international, cross border dimension and has appeared in the courts of Hong Kong and the Cayman Islands in both civil and criminal cases. He has also appeared in numerous cases before the European Court of Human Rights and the International Criminal Court.
He is an Advisory Editor of Blackstone’s Criminal Practice 2021, co-author of Prison Law (5th Ed, OUP), co-editor of Asset Recovery: criminal confiscation and civil recovery (OUP), contributing author (chapter on individual criminal liability/cartel offence) to UK Competition Law: the New Framework (OUP, 2016), contributing author (chapter on owners and directors test) to Football and the Law (Bloomsbury, 2018)
In addition to his practice at the Bar, Tim sits as a Deputy High Court Judge in the Administrative Court, is an Acting Judge to the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands and a Member of the Sports Resolutions Panel of Arbitrators and Mediators. He is a founder member of Matrix Chambers and a Master of the Bench of Middle Temple.
Constitutional and Administrative Law Bar Association (ALBA)
Criminal Bar Association (CBA)
The Fraud Lawyers Association (FLA)
Member of the Bar of Antigua and Barbuda
Tim is committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. In order to provide legal services to his clients, including advice and representation services, Tim needs to collect and hold personal data. This includes his client’s personal data and the personal data of others who feature in the matter upon which he is instructed. To read Tim’s privacy notice in full, please see here.
"Tim is especially strong in cases where criminal justice crosses over to public law." "Tim produces lovely advocacy; he is straightforward, clear and powerful."
"Tim is a solid legal rock. He is a formidable barrister who is respected by the court. His ability to cut through and identify the key issues to focus on is outstanding."
"He is an outstanding KC - commercial and practical with the required gravitas to deal with complex issues. A star of the Bar."
"A heavyweight in the courts" and "extremely knowledgeable about prison conditions."
"He is fantastic and does a lot of very complex and high-profile work." "Tim is really fun to work with and is a great all-round advocate and strategist."
"Tim is an excellent barrister. He is strategic, knowledgeable and a team player. He has a great legal mind and is a fearless advocate."
"He is an outstanding KC - commercial and practical with the required gravitas to deal with complex issues. A star of the Bar."
"Tim Owen KC provides exceptional written advice. He articulates his views in a clear and direct way."
"Tim's advocacy is outstanding. He destroys his opponents' arguments due to the clarity and precision of his own submissions."
"He is approachable, amenable and really gets the commercial issues at play. He is always available and provides very helpful advice."
"Tim is a real heavyweight, particularly when it comes to matters of national security. He is a powerhouse with a presence that makes people sit up and listen."
"His advocacy is outstanding." "Tim is clear, concise and decisive."
"Very helpful to solicitors and has an excellent client manner; very persuasive is court, both in terms of his advocacy skills and his written arguments; highly experienced, calm under pressure and international in scope and vision."
"He is a powerhouse of knowledge and experience. Very well respected by judges and opponents. His views rightly carry a lot of weight. A privilege to work with."
"Tim is hard-working, with great judgement."
"Tim is a very bright guy, very accessible and easy to work with. He focuses on issues very quickly."
"Tim is highly regarded for his work on the Proceeds of Crime Act and in particular its application to companies in the emerging cannabis sector, particularly those with complex overseas operations that need to be considered in light of POCA."
"A first-rate lawyer and a devastating cross-examiner."
"Tim is exceptionally hard working, conscientious and has excellent judgement. He gets on very well with the clients and the junior counsel."
"He provides excellent all-round advice."
"Tim is at the top of his game as a very experienced, hard working and talented advocate in the fields of regulatory and public law and judicial review. He works expeditiously, meets deadlines and is a team player whom its a pleasure to instruct."
"He has superb judgement and knows exactly how to distil a case into a written document. The court really listens to him."
"Very helpful to solicitors and has an excellent client manner; very persuasive is court, both in terms of his advocacy skills and his written arguments; highly experienced, calm under pressure and international in scope and vision."
"He is a very good strategist." "He constantly has the ear of the court." "He has a lovely court manner."
"He is extremely efficient and a pleasure to work with."
"He's very well regarded, well prepared, and knows his brief." "At the top of his game and an expert in public law. He's also efficient in his work and a pleasure to work with."
"Very pragmatic and clear in his advice, which is always based on strong legal analysis and logic."
"Very personable - he has a very easygoing manner about him and he's lovely to work with."
"He is really highly regarded, enormously intelligent and brilliant at complex cases. He gets on top of the detail incredibly quickly. I would definitely recommend him."
"Incredibly good manner with the court”. “a brilliant appellate advocate”, commenting that “he’s really easy to listen to, which makes him such a dangerous opponent”. A “wise tactician”
"Extremely bright and someone with an astonishing work rate."
"A devastating cross examiner, excellent with clients and quickly establishes a relationship of trust and confidence with them."
"Always sees the wood for the trees, a first rate lawyer and devastating cross examiner."
"An excellent lawyer with superb advocacy skills"
"He is on top of his game. A consummate team player and tactician”, “an accomplished Silk with a burgeoning corporate fraud practice that covers a multitude of criminal activities."
"An affable easy-going guy and a dreamy advocate. He is just fabulous in court – it’s like watching Federer in court; it looks easy but it’s not. Articulate and quick thinking but also very brave and robust"
"Calm and collected in difficult situations."
"One of the biggest legal brains at the criminal Bar. He’s very forceful when he has to be and stands up for both professional and lay clients – he will not be intimidated by any judge."
"An utterly tenacious advocate."
"An intellectual lawyer and a great jury advocate."
"He is the consummate advocate and commands tremendous respect from the Bench."
"Always calm and collected in difficult situations."
"A strategic thinker."
"Has a wealth of experience in handling serious crime cases, including human trafficking and sensitive fraud and corruption matters. His practice has a notably international outlook."
"Displays a massive amount of attention to detail and fights incredibly hard for his clients."
"An utterly tenacious advocate."
"Absolutely excellent on his feet."
"Instructed in the most sensitive cases."
"A very good advocate who is well respected by the court. Has a real trial lawyer’s sense of how to run a case and he’s very easy to work with. Brilliant intellect."
"Superb judgment and knows exactly how to distil a case into a written document. The court really listens to him."
"Tim is well respected by the court. He has an easy manner and a real trial lawyer’s sense of how to run a case."
"A brilliant Silk with a wonderful manner; good at streamlining a case with a measured approach."
"an intellectual lawyer and a great jury advocate" "one of the best appellate advocates of his generation" "brave, fearless, relentless with excellent judgment"
Chambers and Partners/Legal 500, 2018-2021
Contact Tim: timowen@matrixlaw.co.uk | +44 (0)20 7404 3447
Contact Tim's Practice Team (Team T): TeamT@matrixlaw.co.uk
Tim is a highly regarded specialist in a wide range of practice areas that span the fields of fraud/regulatory, criminal, public, human rights, sanctions, media and information, extradition/MLA, sports, asset recovery, police and civil law. For the past decade he has been listed by the main Legal Directories as a leading Silk in 6 separate practice areas as well as being included as a one of the Stars at the Bar by Chambers and Partners. A comprehensive list of his most significant current and past cases across the range of his practice areas is to be found on his case list.
His practice embraces pre-litigation advice, trial and appellate work and he is valued as an advocate with specialist knowledge of the criminal, regulatory and civil law aspects of complex investigations who can provide strategic advice to companies, regulators, multi-national corporations, professional bodies, governments and individuals from the earliest stages of an investigation through to trial and appeal.
The Legal Directories (see quotations below) have consistently marked him out as an exceptional advocate who impresses both as a jury and an appellate advocate and who commands huge respect from the Bench at all levels. He is universally praised for his ability to absorb a mass of complex information, his judgment, his outstanding cross-examination skills, his fearlessness, his team working skills, his ability to communicate with and to gain the trust of clients of every kind and the quality of his written advocacy.
In recent years, he has acted both in the UK and Hong Kong in a wide range of business crime cases (at both trial and appellate level) involving bribery/corruption, corporate criminal liability, money laundering, market abuse, sanctions offences, cartel offences, frauds of all kinds, insider dealing and other regulatory offences. His clients include FTSE 100 and 250 companies, foreign governments and corporations, individual clients and the DPP (in the UK, Mauritius and in Hong Kong).
He has appeared in many of the most significant public and human rights law cases over the past three decades covering the fields of criminal law, national security, prisons, terrorism (control orders, TPIMS, SIAC) policing, fair trial rights, freedom of expression/political protest, data protection and privacy, mental health, inquests, regulatory/disciplinary. He has also appeared in recent years in high profile public/family law cases which have raised novel issues of diplomatic and state immunity.
He is a widely acknowledged expert in the fields of policing, confiscation, asset recovery and unexplained wealth orders and is co-editor of one of the leading texts on the law of Asset Recovery (OUP). He has appeared in countless cases concerning police powers, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, misfeasance in public office, surveillance, investigatory powers, search warrants and production/disclosure orders. He is on the list of Counsel instructed by the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
He has appeared in more than 60 appeals to the House of Lords/Supreme Court/Privy Council and in countless appeals to the Court of Appeal in both civil and criminal cases, usually involving novel, complex issues of law. He has been described as “one of the best appellate advocates of his generation” (Legal 500) and regularly provides second opinions on the conduct of trials at first instance.
He has extensive experience of cases involving an international, cross border dimension and has appeared in the courts of Hong Kong and the Cayman Islands in both civil and criminal cases. He has also appeared in numerous cases before the European Court of Human Rights and the International Criminal Court.
He is an Advisory Editor of Blackstone’s Criminal Practice 2021, co-author of Prison Law (5th Ed, OUP), co-editor of Asset Recovery: criminal confiscation and civil recovery (OUP), contributing author (chapter on individual criminal liability/cartel offence) to UK Competition Law: the New Framework (OUP, 2016), contributing author (chapter on owners and directors test) to Football and the Law (Bloomsbury, 2018)
In addition to his practice at the Bar, Tim sits as a Deputy High Court Judge in the Administrative Court, is an Acting Judge to the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands and a Member of the Sports Resolutions Panel of Arbitrators and Mediators. He is a founder member of Matrix Chambers and a Master of the Bench of Middle Temple.
Constitutional and Administrative Law Bar Association (ALBA)
Criminal Bar Association (CBA)
The Fraud Lawyers Association (FLA)
Member of the Bar of Antigua and Barbuda
Tim is committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. In order to provide legal services to his clients, including advice and representation services, Tim needs to collect and hold personal data. This includes his client’s personal data and the personal data of others who feature in the matter upon which he is instructed. To read Tim’s privacy notice in full, please see here.
"Tim is especially strong in cases where criminal justice crosses over to public law." "Tim produces lovely advocacy; he is straightforward, clear and powerful."
"Tim is a solid legal rock. He is a formidable barrister who is respected by the court. His ability to cut through and identify the key issues to focus on is outstanding."
"He is an outstanding KC - commercial and practical with the required gravitas to deal with complex issues. A star of the Bar."
"A heavyweight in the courts" and "extremely knowledgeable about prison conditions."
"He is fantastic and does a lot of very complex and high-profile work." "Tim is really fun to work with and is a great all-round advocate and strategist."
"Tim is an excellent barrister. He is strategic, knowledgeable and a team player. He has a great legal mind and is a fearless advocate."
"He is an outstanding KC - commercial and practical with the required gravitas to deal with complex issues. A star of the Bar."
"Tim Owen KC provides exceptional written advice. He articulates his views in a clear and direct way."
"Tim's advocacy is outstanding. He destroys his opponents' arguments due to the clarity and precision of his own submissions."
"He is approachable, amenable and really gets the commercial issues at play. He is always available and provides very helpful advice."
"Tim is a real heavyweight, particularly when it comes to matters of national security. He is a powerhouse with a presence that makes people sit up and listen."
"His advocacy is outstanding." "Tim is clear, concise and decisive."
"Very helpful to solicitors and has an excellent client manner; very persuasive is court, both in terms of his advocacy skills and his written arguments; highly experienced, calm under pressure and international in scope and vision."
"He is a powerhouse of knowledge and experience. Very well respected by judges and opponents. His views rightly carry a lot of weight. A privilege to work with."
"Tim is hard-working, with great judgement."
"Tim is a very bright guy, very accessible and easy to work with. He focuses on issues very quickly."
"Tim is highly regarded for his work on the Proceeds of Crime Act and in particular its application to companies in the emerging cannabis sector, particularly those with complex overseas operations that need to be considered in light of POCA."
"A first-rate lawyer and a devastating cross-examiner."
"Tim is exceptionally hard working, conscientious and has excellent judgement. He gets on very well with the clients and the junior counsel."
"He provides excellent all-round advice."
"Tim is at the top of his game as a very experienced, hard working and talented advocate in the fields of regulatory and public law and judicial review. He works expeditiously, meets deadlines and is a team player whom its a pleasure to instruct."
"He has superb judgement and knows exactly how to distil a case into a written document. The court really listens to him."
"Very helpful to solicitors and has an excellent client manner; very persuasive is court, both in terms of his advocacy skills and his written arguments; highly experienced, calm under pressure and international in scope and vision."
"He is a very good strategist." "He constantly has the ear of the court." "He has a lovely court manner."
"He is extremely efficient and a pleasure to work with."
"He's very well regarded, well prepared, and knows his brief." "At the top of his game and an expert in public law. He's also efficient in his work and a pleasure to work with."
"Very pragmatic and clear in his advice, which is always based on strong legal analysis and logic."
"Very personable - he has a very easygoing manner about him and he's lovely to work with."
"He is really highly regarded, enormously intelligent and brilliant at complex cases. He gets on top of the detail incredibly quickly. I would definitely recommend him."
"Incredibly good manner with the court”. “a brilliant appellate advocate”, commenting that “he’s really easy to listen to, which makes him such a dangerous opponent”. A “wise tactician”
"Extremely bright and someone with an astonishing work rate."
"A devastating cross examiner, excellent with clients and quickly establishes a relationship of trust and confidence with them."
"Always sees the wood for the trees, a first rate lawyer and devastating cross examiner."
"An excellent lawyer with superb advocacy skills"
"He is on top of his game. A consummate team player and tactician”, “an accomplished Silk with a burgeoning corporate fraud practice that covers a multitude of criminal activities."
"An affable easy-going guy and a dreamy advocate. He is just fabulous in court – it’s like watching Federer in court; it looks easy but it’s not. Articulate and quick thinking but also very brave and robust"
"Calm and collected in difficult situations."
"One of the biggest legal brains at the criminal Bar. He’s very forceful when he has to be and stands up for both professional and lay clients – he will not be intimidated by any judge."
"An utterly tenacious advocate."
"An intellectual lawyer and a great jury advocate."
"He is the consummate advocate and commands tremendous respect from the Bench."
"Always calm and collected in difficult situations."
"A strategic thinker."
"Has a wealth of experience in handling serious crime cases, including human trafficking and sensitive fraud and corruption matters. His practice has a notably international outlook."
"Displays a massive amount of attention to detail and fights incredibly hard for his clients."
"An utterly tenacious advocate."
"Absolutely excellent on his feet."
"Instructed in the most sensitive cases."
"A very good advocate who is well respected by the court. Has a real trial lawyer’s sense of how to run a case and he’s very easy to work with. Brilliant intellect."
"Superb judgment and knows exactly how to distil a case into a written document. The court really listens to him."
"Tim is well respected by the court. He has an easy manner and a real trial lawyer’s sense of how to run a case."
"A brilliant Silk with a wonderful manner; good at streamlining a case with a measured approach."