Daniel Irving

Daniel is a Barrister in the firm’s Regulatory and Corporate Defence Team. He joined Birketts in November 2019 bringing a wealth of experience in a number of practice areas from over ten years at the Bar. He offers advice and representation in all areas of corporate and regulatory crime. He appears frequently in the Crown Court and his advisory practice covers the full breadth of regulatory work, with a particular emphasis on financial crime and Public Inquiries.

Daniel was formerly a member at Blackfriars Chambers, London, having been called to the Bar in July 2007.

Principal expertise

• Advising on a breadth of regulatory matters including the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA), FCA enforcement action, international financial sanctions, health and safety and environmental regulations.
• Representing and advising core participants and witnesses to Public Inquiries, including the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, the Iraq Inquiry and the Undercover Policing Inquiry.
• Conducting criminal trials in the Crown Court including extensive experience handling vulnerable witnesses and defendants.
• Acted for the government in relation to national security related civil litigation and previously instructed by the Government Legal Department, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Home Office and Ministry of Defence.
• Extensive experience advising on sensitive and complex issues of disclosure, LPP, PII, and the duty of candour, including in closed material proceedings.

Financial crime

Daniel advises and represents clients in relation to the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA). He appears in confiscation proceedings in the Crown Court and can advise on, and draft, POCA statements on behalf of defendants and “interested persons”.

He has advised clients in relation to FCA enforcement action pursuant to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and on the applicability of US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and EU sanctions.

Public inquiries 

Daniel has considerable experience advising and representing clients at every stage of a Public Inquiry: from the initial request for evidence and/or disclosure, representation at the Inquiry and preparing for giving oral evidence, through to written submissions in relation to the report (the ‘Maxwellisation’ process).

He leads the team from Birketts currently representing a core participant to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry who gave three days of oral evidence to the Inquiry at the end of 2020. He offers clients the benefit of his extensive Public Inquiry experience having previously represented a former Cabinet Minister in their response to the Iraq Inquiry (the ‘Chilcot Inquiry’) and he subsequently served as junior counsel to the ongoing Public Inquiry into undercover policing.

General crime

Daniel advises and represents clients in the Crown Court in relation to serious criminal offences. His ten years at the independent bar, instructed by both the prosecution and defence, has equipped him with the ability to anticipate and pre-empt the strengths and weaknesses of the other side’s case.

Daniel is recommended by Legal 500 [UK 2021].