Tara O'Leary | Cornerstone Barristers

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Tara O’Leary specialises in public law, social housing, the Court of Protection, and licensing.

Tara is a member of the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s C Panel of Counsel, and is ranked in Chambers and Partners. She has appeared across all levels of courts and specialist tribunals up to the Court of Appeal. She undertakes a broad range of advocacy, drafting and advisory work for all types of clients.

Tara has particular experience in complex cases involving public law challenges, human rights, discrimination and mental capacity. She is direct access licensed and undertakes work on a legally-aided and pro bono basis.

In 2022, Tara completed a Pegasus Scholarship at Fordham University School of Law in New York City. As a Visting Scholar, she conducted research and advised on human rights projects at the Leitner Centre for International Law and Justice.

Prior to coming to the Bar, Tara worked in the UK and abroad as a legal adviser and researcher specialising in human rights and international law. She was appointed research assistant to the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, having been awarded the Frank Jennings Fellowship by Front Line Defenders. She worked at Amnesty International and the OSCE Missions in Bosnia & Herzegovina and Kosovo, before leading a two-year project at REDRESS on improving access to justice and reparations for victims of crime across the EU.

Tara graduated with an LLB (First Class Honours) in Law & European Studies from the University of Limerick. She has an LLM (Distinction) in Public International Law from the London School of Economics, where she received the Lauterpacht Higgins Prize for Public International Law.

Expertise

Housing
Tara O’Leary is ranked in Chambers and Partners for housing.

She has significant experience in all aspects of housing law at first instance and on appeal, including possession, homelessness, anti-social behaviour, discrimination, unlawful eviction and housing conditions. She also regularly advises local authorities and private registered providers on the formulation and implementation of policies and procedures, including housing allocation schemes and equality impact assessments.

Tara frequently acts for local authorities and landlords on the regulation and licensing of private sector accommodation under the Housing Act 2004, including mandatory, additional and selective licensing. She appears regularly before the First Tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal.

Tara is joint editor of Cornerstone’s Housing Newsletter, and regularly gives training on all aspects of housing law.

Examples of Tara’s work in this area includes:
- Hodge v Folkestone and Hythe DC [2023] EWCA Civ 896: the Court of Appeal confirmed that supported ‘move on’ housing is capable of being used as ‘accommodation’ under Part VII Housing Act 1996.
- Global Guardians Management v Hounslow LBC [2022] UKUT 259 (LC): the Upper Tribunal confirmed that premises occupied by ‘property guardians’ are licensable as HMOs, and that the companies managing those premises can be held liable for failures to license under the Housing Act 2004. An appeal from this decision will be heard by the Court of Appeal in October 2023.
- In a separate case, advising a local authority freeholder faced with claims for unlawful eviction by ‘property guardians’ who had occupied one of its buildings pursuant to an agreement with a third party company offering ‘guardianship’ security services.
- Waltham Forest LBC v Marshall and Ustek [2020] UKUT 35 (LC): the Upper Tribunal provided important guidance on the correct approach to appeals against civil penalty notices under s.249A Housing Act 2004.
- During the pandemic, Tara advised extensively on complex homelessness issues including the ‘Everyone In’ initiative, use of ‘move on’ accommodation and addressing anti-social behaviour.
- Tara was instructed by the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea on matters relating to the fire at Grenfell Tower including homelessness applications, supplementary housing allocation policies, equality impact assessments, regulation of TMOs and the public inquiry.
- Hertfordshire CC v Davies [2017] HLR 33 and [2018] HLR 21: the High Court and Court of Appeal reaffirmed the law on service occupancies and dismissed numerous defences concerning compatibility with Art. 14 ECHR and s.11 Children Act 2004.
- Hotak v LB Southwark LBC [2015] UKSC 30: as a pupil, Tara assisted her supervisor Kelvin Rutledge KC in representing the local authorities in this seminal appeal concerning the definition of ‘priority need’ within Part VII Housing Act 1996.
Public Law and Judicial Review
Tara O’Leary is instructed to bring and defend public law challenges in the Administrative Court across all of her practice areas. She also deals regularly with public law, equality and human rights issues in all areas of her work.

Tara’s caseload has included judicial review challenges and statutory appeals relating to housing allocations and homelessness under Parts VI and VII Housing Act 1996; children in need and age assessments under the Children Act 1989; care packages under the Care Act 2014; use of statutory powers under the Housing Act 2004 and Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014; and other local government powers.

She regularly acts for public bodies in claims for damages under the Equality Act 2010 as well as judicial review equality challenges. These cases have alleged discrimination or failure to make reasonable adjustments in the exercise of public functions and delivery of services including homelessness and allocations, housing management, parking, funding schemes and accessibility in public buildings.

Tara also regularly advises on the formulation and adoption of policies. Recent work has included advice on Public Space Protection Orders (‘PSPOs’); housing allocation schemes and tenancy policies; homelessness procedures during the pandemic; and policies implementing the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.

Some of Tara’s recent cases include:
- R (BAA) v Liverpool CC [2023] EWHC 252 (Admin): the High Court was persuaded to set aside an order for interim relief requiring the local authority to accommodate an asylum seeker as a child pending the final hearing of his age assessment dispute.
- Dulgheriu and Orthova v Ealing LBC [2018] EWHC 1667 (Admin) and [2019] EWCA Civ 1490: successfully defending a challenge to a PSPO creating a ‘buffer zone’ that restricted protest and prayer outside an abortion clinic.
- Advising on allegations of discrimination against a women’s group on the basis that the group operated ‘gender critical’ policies and did not admit trans members.
- Advising the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea on public law issues arising from the fire at Grenfell Tower, including its housing allocation policies, equality impact assessments, TMOs, and the public
Court of Protection
- Overview
- News
Tara O’Leary appears regularly before the Court of Protection and advises on the full range of mental capacity law, including best interests, welfare applications and deprivations of liberty. Tara’s mental capacity expertise is complemented by her experience of community care, health and housing law, and she has a growing practice in relation to matters where there is interplay between these complex areas.

She accepts instructions from all parties including local authorities, statutory agencies, health and social care providers, and family members.

Some of Tara’s recent experience includes:
- Acting for the local authority in urgent High Court proceedings seeking a best interests order and injunction to authorise removal of P from the care of her family following allegations of criminal behaviour in the home.
- Representing a vulnerable family member in welfare proceedings which concerned allegations she had sexually abused P.
- Acting for the local authority in a case involving DOLS, welfare and property applications where P’s lack of capacity, and considerable difficulties in her care and treatment, arose from her diagnosis of hoarding disorder.
- Acting for the Official Solicitor in a DOLS and best interests application where the central issue was P’s capacity to make decisions regarding contact with his parents, whose own capacity to make decisions about their contact with him was also in dispute.
- Successfully defending repeated applications for permission to judicially review the outcome of Care Act assessments: for example R (Baksh) v Brent LBC [2017] EWHC 894 (Admin).
- Cornerstone Barristers ranked as a leading set by Chambers & Partners 202419 Oct 2023
Licensing
Tara O’Leary is regularly instructed in relation to premises (public houses, restaurants, nightclubs and off-licences), taxis and street trading, amongst other areas. Tara has been instructed by licence holders, applicants, local authorities and the police. She appears before committees, and in appeal hearings and prosecutions at the Magistrates’ Court. Her practice is complemented by her expertise on matters related to anti-social behaviour, closure orders and housing regulation such as HMO, additional and selective licensing. Tara has provided training to local authorities and the Institute of Licensing on a range of licensing issues.

Some of Tara’s recent work in this area includes:
- Acting on behalf of local authorities in complex taxi licensing appeals that concerned historic or repeated allegations of sexual offences.
- Advising local authorities on the effect of amendments to premises licensing during the pandemic. Representing Uber London in a number of county court claims involving Uber drivers and passengers.
- With Ranjit Bhose KC and Joe Cannon, representing Islington LBC in the widely reported proceedings related to the closure of Fabric nightclub.
Tara was a member of a team from Cornerstone Barristers which advised on the possibility of prosecuting landlords for “sex for rent”, i.e. the practice of offering free or discounted housing in exchange for sexual services. In November 2018 the CPS changed its guidance on Prostitution and Exploitation of Prostitution to acknowledge that this behaviour could constitute the offence of causing or inciting prostitution for gain under Section 52 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

Tara and colleagues also previously advised a national feminist organization appearing in a parliamentary inquiry into prostitution, specifically into whether the UK should adopt a so-called ‘sex buyer law’ under which the law criminalises the buyer rather than the seller of sexual services.
Inquests and Inquiries
- Overview
- News
Tara O’Leary has a particular interest in this area of law and is keen to develop this area of her practice. She has acted for a number of housing and adult social care departments of local authorities in inquests into the death of persons who passed away during their involvement with social services.

Tara was instructed as a member of the legal team for the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea at the Grenfell Tower Inquiry.
- Parliamentary Inquiry into Prostitution01 Jan 2018