This is a deliberately simple website.

It tries to use plain English to make it easier to understand.

It tries to give brief details of the professional legal services provided by Andrew Parsons.

If you have any queries, please call 07973 507483 or email ap@portsmouthbar.com

Andrew Parsons is an experienced barrister, mediator and arbitrator. He founded the Portsmouth Barristers’ Chambers in 1990. Prior to practising at the Bar he worked as a money and corporate finance broker in the City of London. He has a purely civil practice. He has for many years been committed to the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) processes such as mediation as a more sensible and civilised way to resolve disputes. He sits on the ADR Committee of the Bar Council and on the Committee of the Southern Branch of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

LLB (Hons) (London)

Called to the Bar by The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, 1985

Accredited Commercial Mediator, 1998

Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, 2000

(Listed with brief details in alphabetical order)

In real life, cases do not fit into neat categories. Nor do the means of resolving them. A key advantage to instructing Andrew is that he is versatile, having experience and expertise in overlapping categories of work, not only in litigation but also in mediation and arbitration.

Andrew has been involved in a number of notable cases. Some examples, where appropriate with details changed to preserve confidentiality, are shown below.

Although based in Portsmouth on the South Coast, as his work is specialised, Andrew travels widely to undertake his work. For example, he has conducted conferences and appeared at court hearings or mediation meetings in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Exeter, Leeds, London, Maidstone, Manchester, Oxford, Preston and Stoke-on-Trent.

The fact that a case involves parties, Solicitors and/or other representatives who are nowhere near Portsmouth or the South Coast is therefore not a problem.

Fees vary according the value of the dispute and/or how complicated it is. Hourly rates of charge generally vary from £150 to £250 per hour, although special fee rates may apply in respect of cases were substantial work is required. All fees are subject to negotiation with Senior Clerk & Executive Manager, Jackie Morrison. By prior arrangement, work may be sent without obligation for consideration by Andrew and if no fee can be agreed will be returned without charge. Fees as an arbitrator or mediator also vary, but as a rough guide are approximately £1,500 per day.

Some examples are as follows:

These fees add UK Value Added Tax “VAT” at the current rate of 17.5%.

As a general rule, Andrew’s fees need to be paid in advance, or at least money paid on account of his fees to the instructing solicitor.

As a matter of principle, Andrew does not undertake any work on a conditional fee agreement (CFA) basis. He works completely free-lance and independently, trying to give objective advice and other services.

Jackie is an experienced senior barrister’s clerk who has worked closely with Andrew for over 15 years. She manages his practice as a barrister, mediator and arbitrator, as his Senior Clerk and Executive Manager. Prior to becoming a barrister’s clerk she worked as the practice manager for a large firm of solicitors with many offices on the South Coast. She therefore has first-hand knowledge of what an instructing solicitor needs.

We will do our best to provide a fast, friendly and efficient service.

Andrew may be able to help you in various ways:

1) As a barrister:

Andrew likes to become involved in a case at the earliest possible stage, long before the dispute escalates to expensive litigation.

A particular specialist area of his drafting work is preparing standard terms and conditions of contract, pre-nuptial agreements, cohabitation agreements and separation agreements.

A particular specialist area of his advocacy work is appearing at emergency hearings where time is of the essence, for example emergency injunction hearings, and appearing for parties at mediation meetings, where he is able to use his experience as a mediator to good effect.

In some cases it may be possible to instruct him direct without instructing a Solicitor, because he is qualified under the Public Access scheme. Generally speaking however, as most of the cases he deals with are fairly complicated and the sums in dispute and/or issues in dispute are important for the parties, he prefers to act on instructions from a Solicitor or other professional person suitably qualified for the particular case, such as an Accountant, Architect or Surveyor.

2) As a Mediator:

Andrew is an experienced mediator. He was one of the first barristers to become qualified as a commercial mediator nearly 10 years ago. He is a founder member (and now chairman) of a multi-disciplinary mediation service provider – Solent Mediation.

3) As an Arbitrator: