Zoë Barton

Name: Zoë Barton
Chambers: Selborne Chambers
University: Edinburgh, politics (2000)

My background

I became interested in a career at the Bar when I left university and realised I would need to earn a living sooner or later. It wasn’t until near the end of my pupillage that I discovered commercial chancery work and realised how much I enjoyed it. 

Working as a commercial chancery law barrister

I find that commercial chancery law offers a good balance of written work and advocacy and an interesting range of lay clients, from large limited companies and financial institutions to private individuals and trustees. At any one time I will have several different cases live and at different stages in proceedings, which obviously requires some juggling. During a typical week I will draft pleadings, advise solicitors and clients (in writing, in conference or by telephone), appear in court and prepare skeleton arguments. I am usually in court about three times a week, which is perhaps more often than one might expect, especially in comparison to traditional chancery work where advisory work can outweigh advocacy significantly. In the vast majority of matters I work by myself rather than being led. This is rather less common in purely commercial work, where there can be relatively little work suitable for junior tenants to take on by themselves and much more of their time will be spent as a part of a team, often involved in very lengthy arbitrations or litigation. 

Best and worst

The most exciting moments for me are probably those that involve making applications to the court for injunctions on a without-notice basis, because preparation for them is often rushed. The worst moments are those pieces of litigation that are unusually acrimonious and pursued regardless of merit, often because they involve family members, for example disputes concerning family businesses or inheritances.