Sandesh Singh specialises in criminal regulatory law, inquests and professional disciplinary law. He is known for his thorough preparation, attention to detail and incisive advocacy. He is listed as a leading junior in the Chambers and Partners and Legal 500 directories in the fields of health and safety, inquests and professional discipline and has been described in the following ways:
- “pretty much the complete package …. technically excellent …. a great advocate and great with clients”
- “responsive, commercial and user-friendly with excellent strategic insight and strong advocacy”
- “his attention to detail and preparation are first class and he has great client care but can be firm when necessary …. he will always ensure that the client’s position is protected and stand his ground”
- “an effective advocate even when pitched against silks and senior juniors twice his call”
- “an extremely impressive individual …. bright, super-knowledgeable, measured, reasonable and easy to deal with”
- “very clever, insightful and has a great manner with clients”
- “brilliant, incredibly hard-working and pleasant to work with”
- “extremely clever, thorough, positive and always responsive to queries”
- “always thinking about the bigger picture and understands the commercial implications for clients”
Sandesh is currently instructed in connection with some of the UK’s most significant cases, such as the Grenfell Tower fire and the Brixton Academy incident.
Current/recent safety cases include defending:
- An engineering inspection body in respect of a health and safety offence following the death of an employee, who fell from height whilst surveying a customer’s complex 3-story structure. Acquitted by the jury.
- The Managing Director of Wood Treatment Ltd., who faced four counts of gross negligence manslaughter following an explosion at Bosley Mill in Cheshire. Before May J. Acquitted of all manslaughter counts following a successful submission of no case to answer. Acquittals upheld by the Court of Appeal (R v WTL & Boden [2021] EWCA Crim 618).
- Planet Coconut Ltd., a company charged with food safety offences alongside Pret a Manger in relation to the death of a customer who had consumed food purchased from the Pret a Manger shop in Bath. Acquitted upon the Prosecution offering no evidence following service of expert evidence.
- William Hill in relation to a prosecution brought by LB Camden. The case concerned a fatal accident in which a large metal advertising sign fell from above the branch of William Hill on Camden Road in North London and struck a member of the public. Acquitted.
- Priory Healthcare in relation to a prosecution brought by the HSE following the death of Amy El-Keria at the Priory Hospital Ticehurst House. Before Dingemans J. Guilty plea, causation of the death successfully challenged.
Sandesh has considerable experience of defending in cases of gross negligence manslaughter. He was junior counsel (at trial and on appeal) for Honey Rose, the optometrist whose conviction for manslaughter was quashed by the Court of Appeal in July 2017. Now one of the leading cases in the area, the Court of Appeal clarified the law in respect of reasonable foreseeability and ruled that the defence submission of no case to answer made to the trial judge, Stuart-Smith J, ought to have been allowed (R v Rose [2017] 3 WLR 1461).
View full profile »Awards
Professional Discipline Junior of the year (Chambers & Partners Bar Awards 2018)
News
- Jury acquittal in long running fatal accident prosecution
- Sandesh Singh & DWF successful in representation of charity at Article 2 ligature inquest
Events
Qualifications
- LLB (Hons), University of Bristol
- BVC, College of Law, London
Memberships
- ARDL
- HSLA
Recommendations
“Extremely bright, very thorough and has great attention to detail. He gets right to the heart of a case. His advocacy is clear and very impressive.”
(2023)
“His attention to detail and preparation are first class and he has great client care but can be firm when necessary …. he will always ensure that the client’s position is protected and stand his ground.”
(2023)
“Really gets into the detail and is very methodical. He has a great eye for detail and is able to anticipate the issues in advance.”
(2022)
“A very smooth and effective advocate.”
(2022)
“He is extremely diligent, thorough and very good with clients.”
(2022)
“He is incredibly impressive, a brilliant advocate. He is meticulous, thorough and one of the most hard-working barristers I know.”
(2022)
“He is very clever, insightful and has a great manner with clients.”
(2022)
“Responsive, commercial and user-friendly with excellent strategic insight and strong advocacy.”
(2022)
“Whether leading or being led, Sandesh has an intimate knowledge of the documents and facts from the very outset in a case. This ability to “get into” the case stand him apart from his competitors and his preparation is unrivalled. He is able to adapt and think on his feet at a moments notice and it really gives clients faith that they are in good hands. He is always thinking about the bigger picture and understands the commercial implications for clients.”
(2021)
“He’s incredibly diligent, hard-working, and his attention to detail is second to none. A brilliant junior.”
(2021)
“He is very smooth, pragmatic and efficient.”
(2021)
“He’s organised, meticulous and very good at getting into the details of a case and working through a large amount of documents.”
(2021)
