John maintains a deliberately broad practice. His work primarily encompasses Local Government Public & Regulatory law, Planning & Environmental law, Information law and Social Care law (including inquests concerning social care matters).
John regularly appears in a range of courts and inquiries both on his own and as a junior. He can also be instructed directly as a public access barrister. He is ranked in the Legal 500 2021 as a "rising star" at the Planning Bar.
John is regularly instructed by a wide variety of public and private clients including local authorities, developers, and other public bodies. He is ranked in the Legal 500 Directory as a "rising star" at the Planning Bar.
Before coming to the Bar, John worked at the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and as a paralegal in a leading Irish law firm. He interned at JUSTICE and the Court of Justice of the European Union and tutored Public Law and European Law to undergraduate and postgraduate law students.
John holds a degree in Law and French from Trinity College Dublin and a BCL degree from the University of Oxford (Worcester College).
John enjoys volunteering and is always looking for new volunteering opportunities. He often volunteers for the Bar Pro Bono Unit, the Environmental Law Foundation and Southwark Law Centre. He has previously volunteered for the Free Representation Unit, the Irish Innocence Project, the Voluntary Tuition Programme of Trinity College Dublin and Vocalise Prison Debating.
John is accredited for public access work. This means he can be instructed by anyone directly. Enquiries about this are welcomed.
As well as his work at the Bar, John sits as a non-executive director on the board of Innisfree Housing Association (http://www.innisfree.org.uk) and regularly provides data protection training on behalf of PDP Training to a range of data protection and privacy professionals in both the UK and Ireland.
A "rising star" - Legal 500 2021
John has a broad public law and judicial review practice. He has experience in advising both public bodies and private clients in this area. His public law work spans many of Chambers' practice areas including planning and environmental, licensing, inquests and inquiries, local government and information law. Further details of John's work in these areas of practice can be seen within the 'practice areas' tab on his profile. In brief, John's recent public law experience includes:
Planning Inquiries
John regularly acts in planning inquiries both on his own and as a junior for Parish Councils, District Councils, Rule 6 parties and other private clients. He has experience of section 78 inquiries, enforcement inquiries and informal hearings. Some of his recent experience includes:
Section 78 Inquiries
Enforcement Inquiries
Informal Hearings
Court Experience
John has acted in a wide array of planning and environmental law matters. His recent Higher Courts judicial review experience includes:
John's other recent planning experience includes:
Advisory Work
John regularly undertakes planning and environmental advisory work. Recent advisory work includes issues concerning:
- Noise abatement notices
- Unlawful delegation of powers
- Habitats regulations assessments
- Differences between C2 and C3 use and other instances of change of use
- Allotment land
- Application of s106 planning obligations
- Implementation of a forty year old planning permission
- Enforcement issues and variation of conditions
- Construction of ambiguous conditions and implied conditions
- Various GPDO matters
- Building Regulations
- Fracking
- Planning prosecutions
John regularly provides pro bono advice and assistance to the Environmental Law Foundation and his pro bono work with Southwark Law Centre often involves planning matters.
John has a busy data protection and information law practice. His recent experience includes:
Data Protection
Information Law
John regularly advises clients about information law matters and has experience in representing clients in the First-tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal on appeals. John's recent experience includes:
Publications
John writes the regular case law update for the Freedom of Information Journal. He is also a contributing author to the leading texts on data protection and information law, namely "Information Rights" by Philip Coppel QC (Hart, 5th ed 2020) and "Data Protection: A Practical Guide to UK Law" by Peter Carey (Oxford, 6th ed 2020).
John has a particular interest in inquests and inquiries. He regularly acts for interested persons and supports witnesses in giving evidence at inquests.
Some particular highlights of his recent experience include:
Inquests
Inquiries
As part of his public law and regulatory practice, John regularly represents local authorities and those acting against local authorities in a wide variety of matters. This includes planning matters, information law/data protection, inquests and inquiries, and social care matters (about which more details can be seen within the respective 'practice areas' tabs on his profile). He also takes instructions on the following matters:
Housing, Property and Regulatory Law
John has a broad range of experience in housing, property and regulatory law matters.
He often appears on behalf of landlords in possession claims against tenants and trespassers. His housing experience also extends to drafting proceedings and advising clients on prospects of success, particularly in the context of s204 homelessness appeals. He has represented clients successfully in a variety of trials concerning matters such as tenancy fraud and succession.
John also has experience acting on behalf of landlords in applications for injunctions whether for breach of tenancy agreements or to prohibit anti-social behaviour and he has more general experience in landlord and tenant disputes concerning service charges and housing licensing matters. John often acts for local authorities in FTT (Property) matters concerning appeals under the Housing Act 2004 and under the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015.
Although the majority of John's housing work is for private and social landlords, he has successfully represented tenants and licensees (including on appeal to the Court of Appeal) and is registered for such work with the Legal Aid Agency. He is happy to consider requests for pro bono assistance in housing matters and has provided pro bono housing assistance to Advocate.
John sits as a non-executive director on the board of Innisfree Housing Association.
Licensing
John accepts instructions in all areas of licensing law. Some of his experience to date includes:
• Acting with Philip Kolvin QC in Delta Meryside and Uber Britannia Ltd v Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council [2018] EWHC 757 (Admin), in which he and Philip acted for Uber and successfully quashed the Council's 'predominant use' policy directed at private hire drivers.
• Assisting Philip Kolvin QC in drafting written submissions on Article 49 TFEU in the case of Rostrun v Guildford Borough Council [2017] EWHC 3141 (Admin), in which Philip acted for the successful local authority in resisting a taxi driver's appeal.
• Advising potential applicants for gambling licences about the requirements for such applications.
• Advising about the scope of disclosure obligations involved in regulatory investigations conducted by the Gambling Commission's Panel.
• Providing training to Licensing Committee members on taxi licensing and premises licensing issues.
• Successfully acting for a local authority in defending an appeal against the suspension of a premises licence.
• Successfully acting for a SEV in an application for renewal of a licence.
• Regularly acting as legal advisor to Licensing Committees to assist them in their determination of licensing matters.
• Assisting Philip Kolvin QC with a wide-ranging review of employment practices within the taxi and private hire industry for a well-known private hire company.
John has also provided pro bono support and advice to street traders through his membership of Southwark Law Centre's pro bono panel of barristers. In particular, he has advised traders who have been relocated in the Peckham Rye Station redevelopment and Elephant and Castle shopping centre redevelopment.
John often appears on behalf of local authorities and other parties in the Court of Protection and he provides advice on the full range of mental capacity law including best interests, welfare applications and deprivations of liberty. He also has experience in the Court of Protection dealing with complex property and affairs matters.
His Court of Protection practice is complemented by his in-depth knowledge and experience of social housing matters and social care issues, particularly those that arise in the context of his work in inquests
John accepts instructions from all parties that may appear before the Court of Protection including local authorities, statutory agencies, health and social care providers, family members and individuals.
Some of his recent instructions include:
• Responding to s21A applications on behalf of local authorities
• Contested applications for deputyship of both property and affairs and welfare
• Applications to revoke P's LPA on the basis that the attorney is not acting in P's best interests
John also appears in other welfare proceedings relating to adults, including applications for forced marriage protection orders in the Family Division.
22nd February 2021
John Fitszimons has written an article for the Housing Newsletter looking at the ICO's new data sharing Code of Practice which provides practical advice to businesses and organisations on how to carry out responsible data sharing.
The article looks at some of the practical questions that this raises for local housing authorities and social housing providers in dealing with their tenants' information and managing their properties.
Read the article HERE.
31st January 2021
John Fitzsimons has written a piece highlighting points of interest from decisions of the Upper Tribunal and First-tier Tribunal from January 2021 in the Freedom of Infromation Journal.
Read the piece HERE.
15th January 2021
In a new article published in the Freedom of Information Journal, John Fitzsimons highlights points of interest from decisions of the First-Tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal in October 2020.
1st October 2020
In a new article published in the Freedom of Information Journal, John Fitzsimons highlights points of interest from decisions of the First-Tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal in August and September 2020.
1st July 2020
In a new article published in the Freedom of Information Journal, John Fitzsimons highlight points of interest from decisions of the Court of Appeal and Upper Tribunal in June and July.
1st May 2020
In this article published in the Freedom of Information Journal, Ruchi Parekh and John Fitzsimons highlight points of interest from decisions of the Court of Appeal and Upper Tribunal in the last three months.
1st February 2020
In this article published by PDP Journals, Ruchi Parekh and John Fitzsimons highlight points of interest from decisions of the Court of Appeal and Upper Tribunal in December 2019.
1st July 2019
Josef and John have published a new article on the Journal of Licensing, Public nuisance in licensing.
The article seeks to provide a background to the law of public nuisance, both in its wider context and within the context of licensing. It seeks to assist decision-makers and applicants to understand how best to approach public nuisance issues in a licensing context. In doing so, it will also examine the more recent arrival of the agent of change principle in the planning context and consider how this and other matters may affect licensing in the future.
The article can be purchased on the Journal of Licensing website.
John is a member of JUSTICE, UK Environmental Law Association (UKELA), the Human Rights Lawyers Association (HRLA), the Planning and Environment Bar Association (PEBA), and the Administrative Law Bar Association (ALBA).
He is a member of Lincoln's Inn and is a recipient of the Inn's Hardwicke Entrance Award, Lord Denning Scholarship, Buchanan prize and Hubert Greenland Scholarship.
John sits as a non-executive director on the board of Innisfree Housing Association.
Case: Planning and Environment
Legal Challenges to neighbourhood plans and orders: the Supreme Court has the final word
14th May 2021
Today the Supreme Court has delivered judgment in R(on the application of Fylde Coast Farms Ltd) v Fylde Borough Council [2021] UKSC 18. The case concerned the short point on the interpretation....News: Information Law
New article: Case Update in the Freedom of Information Journal
23rd March 2021
John Fitzsimons has written a piece highlighting points of interest from decisions of the Upper Tribunal and First-tier Tribunal from January 2021 in the Freedom of Infromation Journal. Read the piece....Case: Public Law and Judicial Review, Planning and Environment
Inadequate Environmental Impact Assessment in Intensive Chicken Farming
11th March 2021
The High Court has quashed a planning permission for an intensive chicken farming facility in Shadingfield, East Suffolk. In Keating v East Suffolk Council [CO/4377/2020] the Claimant applied for permission to....Case: Planning and Environment
Supreme Court hears R (on the application of Fylde Coast Farms Ltd) v Fylde Borough Council
8th March 2021
On 9 March 2021, the Supreme Court will hear R (on the application of Fylde Coast Farms Ltd) v Fylde Borough Council. The Court will consider the correct interpretation of....News: Housing
New Statutory Guidance on Data Sharing
19th February 2021
By John Fitzsimons In December 2020 the Information Commissioner’s Office (‘the ICO”) published its new Data Sharing Code of Practice. The Code aims to provide practical guidance for organisations about sharing....News: Information Law
15th January 2021
In a new article published in the Freedom of Information Journal, John Fitzsimons highlights points of interest from decisions of the First-Tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal in October 2020. To read....News: Information Law
New article: Case Update in the Freedom of Information Journal
21st July 2020
In this article published in the Freedom of Information Journal, Ruchi Parekh and John Fitzsimons highlight points of interest from information law decisions in April and May 2020.....News: Information Law
Schrems II – Say goodbye to the EU-US Privacy Shield
17th July 2020
Yesterday, the European Court of Justice handed down its eagerly anticipated judgment in Data Protection Commissioner v Facebook Ireland and Max Schrems (Case C-311/18). The decision will come as a....News: Public Law and Judicial Review, Planning and Environment, Housing, Licensing, Information Law, Court of Protection, Health and Social Care, Local Government
NEW BRIEFING - Local authorities post COVID-19. All you need to know
1st July 2020
Local authorities have been instrumental in tackling the COVID-19 crisis and will play a pivotal role in the post-lockdown recovery. As a result, they are experiencing a surge in duties....News: Information Law
Information Rights by Philip Coppel QC will be published this month
18th May 2020
On 28 May Hart Publishing will be publishing the latest edition of Information Rights by Philip Coppel QC. Retaining the position it has held since first publication, the fifth edition of this....News: Information Law
Information Law – Guidance in the COVID-19 era
16th April 2020
By John Fitzsimons There has been plenty of guidance and other information published over the past few weeks to assist clients with managing data protection issues and we thought it may....News: Information Law
New article: Case Update in the Freedom of Information Journal
14th February 2020
In this article published in the Freedom of Information Journal, Ruchi Parekh and John Fitzsimons highlight points of interest from decisions of the Court of Appeal and Upper Tribunal in....News: Planning and Environment, Licensing
New article: Journal of Licensing, Public nuisance in licensing
1st July 2019
Josef and John have published a new article on the Journal of Licensing, Public nuisance in licensing. The article seeks to provide a background to the law of public nuisance, both....Case: Public Law and Judicial Review, Planning and Environment
How high the permission hurdle? or When is an argument not arguable?
1st April 2019
Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales (Brecon and Radnor Branch) v Welsh Ministers, Powys County Council and Hendy Windfarm Ltd [2019] EWHC 621 (Admin)
....News: Licensing
27th February 2019
By Riccardo Calzavara Uber, founded in San Francisco in 2009 and operating in London since 2012, is ubiquitous. Since then, it has been the subject of significant judicial consideration in a....News: Housing, Licensing
22nd January 2019
In September 2018 a team from Cornerstone Barristers provided legal advice to Peter Kyle MP concerning the phenomenon of sex for rent, whereby landlords offer free or discounted accommodation in....Case: Planning and Environment
19th November 2018
A planning Inspector has dismissed an appeal concerning a proposed housing scheme of up to 245 dwellings on land in South Oxfordshire adjacent to Reading. The decision is of particular note....News: Planning and Environment
Response to the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee's inquiry on fracking
24th April 2018
Some of our planning barristers have responded to the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee's inquiry into planning guidance on fracking. You can read the response here. Our barristers have extensive experience in....News: Housing
29th March 2018
It will not surprise anybody to hear that this has been a busy period for all those involved in housing. On a personal level, that has included a successful appearance....Case: Licensing
8th February 2018
On Wednesday 7th February, the High Court quashed Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council's intended use policy for private hire drivers. The case will be of interest to licensing authorities and industry....Case: Planning and Environment
Housing scheme refused in-spite of 3-year land supply
11th September 2017
Ashley Bowes and John Fitzsimons have successfully represented Braintree District Council to resist an appeal for 65 residential units at Finchingfield Road, Steeple Bumpstead, Essex. The Inspector accepted the Council's submission....News: Housing
Cornerstone Housing Newsletter May 2017
4th May 2017
The Cornerstone Housing Newsletter includes...News: Housing, Property
Cornerstone Housing Newsletter - February 2017
6th February 2017
The Editor Speaks - Andy Lane The Housing and Planning Act 2016 Update - Tara O'Leary Homelessness Reduction Bill update 2016/17 - Matt Lewin Neighbourhood Planning Bill 2016/17 - Liam Wells Recent Housing....Legal Challenges to neighbourhood plans and orders: the Supreme Court has the final word
14th May 2021
Today the Supreme Court has delivered judgment in R(on the application of Fylde Coast Farms Ltd) v Fylde Borough Council [2021] UKSC 18. The case concerned the short point on the interpretation....New article: Case Update in the Freedom of Information Journal
23rd March 2021
John Fitzsimons has written a piece highlighting points of interest from decisions of the Upper Tribunal and First-tier Tribunal from January 2021 in the Freedom of Infromation Journal. Read the piece....