Piers Riley-Smith

Profile

Piers has a varied planning, environment, licensing and highways practice. He is regularly instructed by local authorities, developers and the wider public in planning inquiries. He has also been instructed by both local authorities and developers at local plan and neighbourhood plan exams. He appears in the High Court on behalf of local authorities, and private companies or developers. He has also practiced on the Isle of Man on behalf of the Government. 

He is instructed in enforcement proceedings which have ranged from defending enforcement notices in front of Inspectors to justifying s.215 notices to the Magistrates. He has also been involved in securing the relatively uncommon Planning Enforcement Order for a local authority dealing with a concealed underground bunker.

Piers regularly appears in both the Magistrates and Crown Courts on taxi and premises licence appeals. He has also prosecuted and defended environmental prosecutions both in the Magistrates and the Crown Court.

His highway practice has ranged from resisting a s.37 complaint against the public adoption of a highway, to working on a case involving the operation of a s.56 notice relating to the inadequate drainage of the highway, and to appearing at public rights of way inquiries. Piers also advises on issues arising out of village green applications.

Piers has worked with a number of local authorities on Compulsory Purchase Orders. This has included helping local authorities put in place proper systems for bringing forward CPOs (from preparing to make the Order all the way to implementing a confirmed Order) and also appearing on behalf of local authorities at CPO inquires.

Piers is qualified to accept Public Access work.

Piers carries out a number of training sessions for local authorities and developers on planning, enforcement, public sector equality and licensing. He has also given talks at various conferences and RTPI events.

Prior to joining chambers Piers spent a year with Richard Buxton Environment and Public Law Solicitors. This involved working on every part of the judicial review process from taking first inquiries to analysing judgments. Piers retains an active interest in working on planning cases involving environmental issues.

Year of call: 2016

Areas of Expertise

Recent High Court appearances include:

• Junior Counsel on behalf of United Utilities in (on the application of Preston) v Cumbria CC [2019] EWHC 1362 (Admin)

• Successfully resisted Judicial Review proceedings against an enforcement notice issued by Cheshire West and Chester on behalf of the Council.

Examples of recent inquiry experience include:

• Appearing on behalf of a group of Parish Councils to oppose a £75 million Eddie Stobart national distribution centre in the Green Belt.
• Achieving a hat-trick of CPO successes for City of Bradford Council concerning derelict houses in Bradford.
• Appearing as Junior Counsel for Stockport Council resisting a hybrid proposal for a new school and campus for the Seashell Trust alongside up to 325 houses on the Green Belt

Examples of recent Compulsory Purchase Order inquiries:

• Appeared for the acquiring authority at an inquiry which confirmed a CPO against an empty six-bedroom Property which the Owner claimed he had recently moved into and was purporting to carry out work on.
• Appeared for the acquiring authority at an inquiry which confirmed a CPO against half-finished development which had been abandoned in 2012.
• Appeared for the acquiring authority at an inquiry which confirmed a CPO against an empty dwellinghouse which the Owner claimed was not empty due to the presence of his possessions.

Examples of recent development plan examination appearances include;

• Appearing on behalf of Gladman Developments to make representations to the Suffolk Coastal Local Plan
• Appearing on behalf of Wiltshire County Council to support their Housing Site Allocation Plan
• Appearing on behalf of the Isle of Man Government to support their Area Plan for the East.
• Appearing on behalf of Gladman Developments to make representations that the Oundle Neighbourhood Plan could not proceed to Referendum

Memberships 

PEBA

Inner Temple

Northern Circuit

Environmental Law Foundation

Awards

Foundation Scholar: Queens’ College Cambridge

Qualifications

Bar Professional Training Course, City Law School (2015-2016): Very Competent

Graduate Diploma in Law, City University (2014-2015): Commendation

Archaeology and Anthropology BA Hons, University of Cambridge (2011-2014): First Class

Eton College 2005-2010