Year of call: 2021
Shemuel Sheikh practises across all areas of administrative and public law, with a particular specialism in planning, local government, licensing and regulatory law.
He acts for both developers and local authorities. He has acted in a range of public inquiries and hearings, judicial review proceedings, enforcement appeals and local authority prosecutions. He has experience in a variety of areas from planning applications (including NSIPs, major applications and those with particular focuses on permitted development rights, amendment applications, changes of use, discharge of conditions, s.106 agreements and listed buildings) to village green applications, compulsory purchase orders and development consent orders. With prior experience assisting NGOs he is also well placed and regularly acts in cases involving human rights matters, especially in relation to the exercise of local authority powers and governance including emergency powers and obtaining injunctions. Shem also regularly acts in licensing appeals.
Shem successfully completed a specialist planning and public law pupillage at Kings under the supervision of Jonathan Easton KC and John Hunter. Before joining Chambers, Shem specialised in judicial review at masters level.
Shem is on the Attorney General’s Panel of Junior Junior Counsel, is direct accss qualified and part of Advocate’s Pro-Bono Pledge.
Shem has a particular specialism in planning and environmental law. He acts for both developers and local authorities. He is also direct access qualified and accepts instructions from members of the public.
Shem regularly acts in public inquiries and hearings, including enforcement notice appeals. He has experience in a variety of areas from large residential, industrial and employment scheme appeals, to permitted development rights, lawful development certificates, amendment applications, changes of use, discharge of conditions, s.106 agreements, listed buildings, village green applications, compulsory purchase orders and development consent orders. He also assists with written representations, including CIL appeals.
Shem already has notable experience in development consent order examinations, where he has been sole counsel for local planning authorities in four solar farm Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects this year.
Shem regularly acts for local planning authorities in both the Magistrates and Crown Court, prosecuting planning and environmental offences including breach of enforcement notices, temporary stop notices, breach of condition notices, tree preservation orders and untidy land notice appeals.
Shem has experience successfully obtaining injunctions, including against persons unknown, and is regularly instructed to advise and act in judicial review proceedings. He is also well versed in dealing with cases which involve human rights issues.
Shem practises in all areas of public and administrative law. He regularly acts for and advises local authorities. He is also a member of the Attorney General’s Panel of Junior Junior Counsel, and is direct access qualified and therefore accepts instructions from the public.
Shem has a wide range of experience, including in landmark national inquiries, where he is currently involved in the ongoing UK Covid-19 Inquiry. He also regularly advises and represents both local government and private clients in claims for judicial review. He is particularly well-placed to do so with an academic background specialising in judicial review.
Shem has successfully secured injunctions in both the County and High Court, including for anti-social behaviour and against persons unknown in a variety of contexts. He is well placed, with a background advising NGOs, to assist with cases involving human rights considerations. In light of this, he has experience advising across the range of local authority powers and governance, including in relation to the public sector equality duty and equality laws, emergency powers, housing and even data protection.
Shem regularly acts for and advises local authorities in relation to housing, taxi and premise licence cases. He is also direct access qualified and therefore accepts instructions from the public.
Shem has considerable experience in both Magistrates and subsequent Crown Court appeals in relation to taxi licence appeals. He is well placed to assist local authorities having also acted as a legal advisor to sub-committees.
Shem also has experience acting for private commercial clients seeking premises licences, and both advises and acts on behalf of applicants through the application and appeal process.
