He is fearless with a brilliant tactical mind. He sees arguments that others don't and is great at getting results.
Overview
Richard is a solicitor-advocate who has worked independently in environmental law since 1990. Getting his firm to where it is has meant fighting many cases which are significant both for the advancement of environmental law and “on the ground”. These include establishing principles relating to classification of Special Protection Areas for birds, seeing proper application of rules on EIA, keeping night flights down at Heathrow Airport, improving government accountability in planning decisions, and improving access to justice by reducing worries about costs exposure. Much of his work is planning-related and (perhaps in recognition of establishment tweaked) he is recognised as an influential individual in the planning field.
Richard has been able to help clients in all sorts of situations, including large and small development proposals, wind farms, telecommunication masts, aircraft noise, road, airport and port proposals, pipelines, industrial plants, green spaces, and in cases relating to the marine environment. Besides challenging local and central government decisions, his work involves claims against bad neighbours, particularly for noise and other pollution, as well as before tribunals and with ombudsmen. Cases that have caught the public eye include battles about night flying, excessive noise from Harrier aircraft training, and noise from the Alton Towers theme park. More recently, government proposals for a huge Holocaust memorial in a small park in central London were found to be unlawful and Warren Farm, 25 hectares of green space in west London, was protected from development.
The work has taken him to most levels of court, including several cases in the House of Lords and Supreme Court, the European Court of Human Rights, and (before Brexit) in the European Court of Justice.
Richard went to Trinity College, Cambridge, and qualified as a solicitor in 1978 with Farrer & Co. He worked as a shipping lawyer in London and Tokyo, took time off to obtain a master’s degree in environmental science and policy from Yale University and gain practical environmental consultancy experience in Canada in fisheries and geoscience, before returning to work in England in 1989. He set up on his own in 1990 and has worked ever since helping clients use the law to help their own and the wider environment.
Key Cases
Enforcement challenge to Barn, Melton
R (Andrews) v Melton Borough Council
Successful challenge to Breach of Condition notice on barn conversion
Holocaust Memorial for Victoria Tower Gardens
London Historic Parks and Gardens Trust v Minister for Housing
Proposed Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre contravenes Act of Parliament
Challenge to Dogger Bank trawler licensing
Dogger Bank MPA & SAC
Pressure results in prompt implementation of ban in protected area
Challenge to pet crematorium, Cotswolds
R (Claridge) v Gloucestershire County Council
Successful challenge to Pet Crematorium in Cotswolds AONB.
Motocross racing CLEUD in AONB quashed
Healey Parish Council v Northumberland County Council
County Council’s grant of Certificate of Lawful Use quashed.
Obstructive fence in National Park stopped
Network Rail 1.8m fencing PD application, Hope Valley, Peak District
Objection stops installation of unsightly railway fencing in Peak District beauty spot.
Former BSE cattle disposal facility challenge
R (Swire) v SoS HCLG
Lack of expert evidence for housing application on former rendering site unlawful.
Protection of Marine Conservation Zones
R (Thompson) v Marine Management Organisation and Others
Court considers lawfulness of granting a dredging licence in Marine Conservation Zone
Housing development in ancient woodland quashed
R(Swire) v Canterbury City Council
Council failed to consider ecology officer’s advice and Ancient Woodland buffer zone.
London park barbeques statutory nuisance challenge
Hazell, Kuhn & O’Brien v London Borough of Islington
Residents use statutory nuisance procedure to limit barbeques in small London park.
Loss of light challenge, Bow, London
R (Rainbird) v London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Flawed assessment and advice on daylight and sunlight effects: planning permission quashed.
Suffolk barn conversion prior approval quashed
R (Semer Parish Council) v Babergh District Council
Parish Council’s successful challenge to Council’s unlawful grant of barn prior approval.
Consent Order for wrongly submitted certificate
R (Elizabeth Inglis Aitken) v London Borough of Ealing
Ealing Council consent to quash due to incorrect ownership certificate.
Waterside Drive Sportshub green belt policy
R (Boot) v Elmbridge Borough Council
Challenge to Waterside Drive Sports Hub for conflict with green belt policy
Noise nuisance from model aircraft club
Sellars v Aldershot Model Club
Statutory nuisance claim against model aircraft in rural Hampshire.
Barker - EIA at reserved matters stage
R v LB Bromley ex parte Diane Barker
EIA can be required at later stages in planning process.
SS Storaa recognised as war grave
Fogg and Ledgard v Secretary of State for Defence
Government failure to designate WWII merchant ship as war grave successfully challenged
Conygar Quarry minerals challenge
R. (Wells) v. SoS for Transport, Local Government and the Regions
Important case as to requirement of State to remedy non-compliance
Night flights at the London Airports
Hatton and others v. United Kingdom
Government challenged on proposals to increase night flights at the London airports
Burkett - Imperial Wharf - JR timing
R (Burkett) v Hammersmith and Fulham London Borough Council
Burkett – Imperial Wharf, London – EIA challenge – from when time runs for judicial review.
Berkeley - Fulham Football Club
Berkeley v Secretary of State For The Environment and Others
Berkeley - Fulham FC - redevelopment intruding into Thames - EIA requirements to be followed.
Lappel Bank – site protection nature first
R. v. Secretary of State for the Environment exp. RSPB
CJEU ruling on economic and social interests when developing Habitats Directive sites
Directory Quotes
He is top of the field and fights fearlessly for his clients.
The thing about Richard is that he is able to articulate and helps you to take points that no one else sees in a brave and clever way. He is basically a legal deity.
He is knowledgeable and great to work with; he also has a fantastic ability to take on and handle cases at speed.
Ranked as a "Star Individual" for many years.
Always approachable and pragmatic and someone who knows his cases... knows the field and is easy to work with.
He is fearless with a brilliant tactical mind. He sees arguments that others don't and is great at getting results.
Leading authority on claimant-side disputes work, borne out by his tremendous track record in precedent-setting environmental law claims.
Has a deservedly brilliant reputation. An effective litigator for judicial reviews in environment and planning. He takes on difficult cases and really changes the law.
Determined, courageous visionary with absolutely dogged persistence.
Qualifications
- BA and MA Cambridge University (Economics and Law)
- MES Yale (Master of Environmental Studies)
Memberships
- UK Environmental Law Association
- Law Society
- Royal Geographical Society
Personal interests
Walking, sea kayaking.