Andrew Warnock KC

Call: 1993     |    Silk: 2012

Over the course of his 30 years in practice, Andrew  has represented clients in numerous high profile, sensitive and complex cases. He is often instructed in cases which raise a novel point of law, including in the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. He has a particular expertise in duty of care issues, and his practice encompasses personal injury, professional liability, Human Rights Act claims and contractual issues.

He was Chambers & Partners Personal Injury Silk of the Year in 2020, and has been shortlisted for the Public Services and Charities Silk of the Year at the Legal 500 Bar Awards 2024. He is recognised as one of the top silks in both police and personal injury law in Best Lawyers United Kingdom 2025.  He is a Governing Bencher of the Inner Temple and sits as a Recorder on the Midland Circuit.

Andrew has a particular specialism in cases involving duty of care issues. He is regularly instructed in cases which are sensitive, complex and high profile or involve catastrophic injuries. He is regularly instructed in claims involving non-recent child abuse and has represented a range of educational, religious, governmental and commercial organisations, including representing the BBC in the claims arising out of the Jimmy Savile affair. He is often instructed in cases which raise a novel point of law, including in the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court in cases in which he was not involved at first instance. Andrew was awarded the prestigious title of Chambers & Partners Personal Injury Silk of the Year in 2020. He is recognised as a leading personal injury silk in Best Lawyers United Kingdom (2025).

Notable Personal Injury cases

  • Lewis-Ranwell v G4S (2024, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court)

    Concerns the application of the illegality defence where the claimant killed 3 people but was acquitted of murder due to insanity. Andrew represents Devon County Council, who provided mental health services. The case is going to the Supreme Court.

  • Tindall v Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police (2024, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court)

    Andrew represented the Chief Constable in this case, which concerns whether police officers who attended a road traffic accident caused by ice and assisted the victim owed a duty of care to future users of the road to make the road safe.

  • Various Claimants v Secretary of State for Health (2024)

    Advised the Secretary of State for Health and negotiated a compensation Scheme in respect of multiple claims brought by former patients of a paediatric psychiatric unit.

  • Pawley v Petrie Tucker & Partners Ltd (2021)

    Acted for a dental practice in a case concerning whether there was jurisdiction under the Civil Procedure Rules to join a defendant to a personal injury claim against the Claimant’s will.

  • James-Bowen v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis [2018] Supreme Court

    Successfully represented the Commissioner in the Supreme Court in this case concerning whether employers owe a duty of care to their employees in the way in which they conduct litigation.

  • Piepenbrock v London School of Economics (2018)

    Defended the LSE in a £multi-million claim for occupational stress brought by a former lecturer, arising out of a harassment complaint.

Andrew is recognised as one of the leading police silks in the country in the Best Lawyers United Kingdom 2025. He regularly represents police forces in complex and sensitive claims, as demonstrated by the examples below.

Notable Police Law cases

  • Tindall v Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police (2024, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court)

    Andrew represented the Chief Constable in this case, which concerns whether police officers who attended a road traffic accident caused by ice and assisted the victim owed a duty of care to future users of the road to make the road safe.

  • Archer v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis (2021 Court of Appeal)

    Successfully defended a challenge under the Human Rights Act 1998 to the lawfulness of police powers to detain juveniles in custody under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984.

  • Hillsborough Victims Misfeasance Litigation (2021)

    Represented the chief constables of South Yorkshire and West Midlands police in the negotiation of a settlement scheme for the resolution of 600 claims arising out the Hillsborough football stadium tragedy.

  • James-Bowen v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis [2018] Supreme Court

    Successfully represented the Commissioner in the Supreme Court in this case concerning whether chief constables owe a duty of care not to settle litigation if doing so would affect the reputation of particular police officers.

Andrew has acted in many cases involving alleged negligence or breach of duty by solicitors, surveyors and construction professionals over the course of his career.

Notable Professional Negligence cases

  • Stoffel v Grondona (Supreme Court, 2020)

    Successfully represented the Respondent client in a claim arising out of a negligently conducted conveyancing transaction where there had been mortgage fraud. The issue concerned the applicability of the illegality defence.

  • Miller v Irwin Mitchell (2024)

    Successfully represented a leading personal injury law firm in the High Court and Court of Appeal in a claim concerning the existence and scope of a duty of care arising out of a call by a prospective client to a legal helpline.

  • Alexander House (High Court)

    Represented a housing association in litigation against contractors and construction professionals arising out of cladding.

Andrew has often represented police and local authority clients at inquests over his career, bringing to bear his expertise on public sector duties and his huge experience in handling sensitive cases. Most recently he has been representing clients at two high profile public inquiries.

Notable Inquests & Inquiries cases

  • Manchester Arena Inquiry

    Represented and advised the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service. The inquiry examined the emergency response on the night of the terrorist bombing which killed 22 members of the public.

  • The Grenfell Tower Inquiry

    Representing and advising the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police in the inquiry into the disaster in which 72 people died in the tower block fire.

Andrew has a particular specialism in cases involving duty of care and human rights issues. He is regularly instructed in cases which are sensitive, complex and high profile. He is frequently instructed in claims involving non-recent child abuse and has represented a range of educational, religious, commercial and governmental bodies, including the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. He has particular experience of claims involving education, social services, highway authorities and police forces, including claims for alleged misfeasance. He is often instructed in cases which raise a novel point of law, including in the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court in cases in which he was not involved at first instance.

Notable Public Sector & Human Rights cases

  • Lewis-Ranwell v G4S (2024, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court)

    Concerns the application of the illegality defence where the claimant killed 3 people but was acquitted of murder due to insanity. Andrew represents Devon County Council, who provided mental health services. The case is going to the Supreme Court.

  • Tindall v Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police (2024, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court)

    Andrew represented the Chief Constable in this case, which concerns whether police officers who attended a road traffic accident caused by ice and assisted the victim owed a duty of care to future users of the road to make the road safe.

  • Archer v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis (2021)

    Successfully defended a challenge under the Human Rights Act 1998 to the lawfulness of police powers to detain juveniles in custody under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984.

  • Sumner v Colborne [2018] EWCA Civ 1006

    Successfully represented the highway authority in this case which considered whether owners of property abutting the highway owe a duty of care to road users to maintain vegetation so as to preserve highway sight-lines.

  • James-Bowen v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis [2018] Supreme Court

    Successfully represented the Commissioner in the Supreme Court in this novel case concerning whether a chief constable owes a duty of care to police officers for whom she is vicariously liable when settling litigation involving allegations against them.

  • Lugano Ltd v Northumberland County Council (2019)

    Successfully defended two councillors and a chief executive in a claim for alleged misfeasance in public office brought by a property development company. This was a very high profile claim locally, arising out of the developer’s controversial desire to build a new garden village in Green Belt land. The developer alleged that councillors and officials had misused their powers to prevent the development. going ahead, an allegation which was hotly denied. The claim was for over £10 million. The Claimant discontinued after service of a strike out application

Endorsements

“Andrew Warnock is approachable, responsive and great to work with.”

Chambers and Partners 2025

“Andrew's particular strength is that he's understated, which adds value to emotive cases because he takes the heat out of the situation.”

Chambers and Partners 2025

“Andrew is very clever and responsive, good on strategy and evidence.”

Chambers and Partners 2025

“Andrew is intellectually astute but also has a good antenna for the sensitivities of the case he is handling.”

Chambers and Partners 2025

“Andrew is intellectually astute but also has a good antenna for the sensitivities of the case he is handling.”

Chambers and Partners 2025

“Andrew is an exceptional leader. He is very user-friendly and approachable. He reads the room very well and has a very novel way of establishing his credibility in proceedings.”

Chambers and Partners 2025

“Andrew is an exceptionally technical and knowledgeable lawyer.”

Chambers and Partners 2025

“Andrew is an exceptional advocate. He has very sound judgement. He is extremely thorough and hardworking.”

Legal 500 2025

“Andrew is an exceptional advocate and a leader in his field in duty of care cases. His knowledge of the law is second-to-none and he is able to communicate his analysis succinctly and clearly to clients.”

Legal 500 2025

“Attention to detail, calm and measured responses, incisive cross examination taking into account vulnerabilities of parties and witnesses, excellent knowledge of complex legal issues.”

Legal 500 2025

“He is master of law and the facts.”

Chambers & Partners 2024

“Andrew's attention to detail is second-to-none. He picks up complex cases with relative ease and quickly understands all the issues. His advice throughout is simple, sound and clearly reasoned. His advocacy at court is fantastic and a joy to watch.”

Legal 500 2024

“Andrew is intellectually brilliant, personable and unflappable.”

Chambers & Partners 2023

“On his feet, he thinks two steps ahead.”

Chambers & Partners 2023

“He has an incredibly measured and thorough approach to everything - very valuable when it comes to public inquiries.”

Chambers & Partners 2023

“He is quite simply in my opinion the brightest and best silk dealing with duty of care and Human Rights Act issues insofar as they impact upon the police.”

Legal 500 2023

“Andrew is, or should be, the first port of call for complex personal injury cases, especially those with multiple parties, or a notable historic element.”

Legal 500 2023

“He delivers clear and practical advice.”

Legal 500, 2022

“A good strategist who is able to assimilate large amounts of information and is liked by insurers and clients.”

Legal 500, 2022

“He is very quick to respond and forensic in his analysis.”

Chambers & Partners, 2022

“A determined yet calm silk.”

Legal 500, 2022

“A really brilliant barrister whose advocacy at a high level was very impressive. He is excellent on the interface of public law and tort law.”

Chambers & Partners, 2022

Regulated by the Bar Standards Board (BSB)

Regulated by the Bar Standards Board (BSB) and holds a current practising certificate.


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Regulated by the Bar Standards Board (BSB)

Regulated by the Bar Standards Board (BSB) and holds a current practising certificate.


View my privacy policy.

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Deka Chambers: 5 Norwich Street, London EC4A 1DR

© Deka Chambers 2024

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