Serle Court says a warm farewell to Bar Council China Trainee, Richard Cao
For the past few weeks, Serle Court had the pleasure of hosting a lawyer in chambers as part of the Bar Council’s China Training Scheme. This year was the 29th year of the Bar Council organising the scheme which brought together a number of international lawyers, offering placements in chambers which are arranged in a very similar format to the bar’s mini-pupillages. The Bar Council initiative ensures that training is available to Chinese Lawyers who wish to come to England, so that lawyers from both countries can learn from one another about their respective legal systems and areas of practice.
As part of their time in London, the 15 lawyers visited various courts, and attended academic and social events organised by the Bar Council and chambers.
We had the pleasure of hosting Richard Cao from Jiangsu Yongheng Partners, based in Nanjing, Jiangsu, who is a specialist commercial litigator focussing on domestic and foreign related dispute resolution, and cross-border mergers and acquisitions. Richard worked alongside our barristers; attended court to hear trials and conferences with clients. He attended our chambers seminars and networking events, as well as receiving written work on some of our ongoing cases.
On Thursday 18th July, members of chambers attended a closing reception for the lawyers, with welcome remarks from Richard Atkins QC, Chair of the Bar of England and Wales where the lawyers were presented with certificates.
Following his placement is chambers, Richard commented that:
“This is a once in a lifetime, unique experience for a practicing lawyer like me to spend a few weeks in a London Barristers’ Chambers.”
“I had so many of your barristers supporting me throughout, and I want to thank every single one of them who has been friendly and supportive to me.”
For more information regarding the scheme, please visit the Bar Council’s web page here.
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Lance Ashworth KC
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Rupert Reed KC
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Silk: 2014
Zoe O’Sullivan KC
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As part of a broad Chancery-Commercial practice, Daniel Lightman KC engages with challenging and novel issues of law and civil procedure, in particular concerning shareholder disputes (having appeared in a number of landmark unfair prejudice petitions and derivative claims), company law (including in matrimonial proceedings), insolvency, civil fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and professional negligence.
Shortlisted for Company/Insolvency Silk of the Year in the Chambers & Partners UK Bar Awards in both 2026 and 2024 and shortlisted for Chancery Silk of the Year in the Legal 500 Bar Awards 2026, Daniel is recommended in Band 1 for Silks for Company by both Chambers UK, 2027 and the Legal 500, 2027 – and in Band 1 for Chancery Commercial by Chambers. Chambers UK, 2027 describes him as “A go-to silk for high value, complex disputes who leads the pack on shareholder disputes. He has great judgement and always furnishes reliable advice” and praises him for “constantly identifying innovative solutions to complex problems” and building “outstanding relationships with the wider legal team.”
Daniel has an extensive international practice, including current or recent shareholder litigation in the courts of Abu Dhabi, Bermuda, Cayman, Guernsey and Qatar, and a multi-shareholder arbitration in Hong Kong.
Daniel Lightman KC
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Constance McDonnell KC
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James Weale KC has a very busy commercial chancery practice with a focus on domestic and international commercial and trusts disputes.
He is recognised as a leading practitioner in those fields by Chambers & Partners, Legal 500, Chambers Global, Chambers High Net Worth, and Who’s Who Legal, where they describe him as a “brilliant lawyer” and a “Superstar”. He was Chambers & Partners’ Chancery Junior of the Year in 2023.
He regularly appears (both as sole and junior counsel) in the English High Court and has appeared several times in the Court of Appeal. He also has considerable experience in overseas jurisdictions (including as sole counsel), including Bermuda, the DIFC, the BVI, Cayman, Jersey, Guernsey, Gibraltar and Panama.
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David Drake
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Gareth Tilley
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Jamie Randall has a practice spanning a wide range of disputes concerning commercial and personal interests, and frequently the interconnection between the two. His recent trust and probate work covers the full spectrum of traditional chancery proceedings, including claims for breach of trust, accounts and removal of trustees, proprietary estoppel, 1975 Act claims, and probate disputes. Those cases often have an international element and he has acted on cases in numerous jurisdictions, including Jersey, Guernsey, Singapore, The Bahamas and Bermuda. His commercial work often includes claims for breach of fiduciary duty, deceit, unfair prejudice and insolvency-related issues.
Prior to coming to the Bar, Jamie worked in strategy consulting focused on the financial services sector. He approaches cases with pragmatism and always maintains a focus on the commercial outcome for clients. He also still enjoys being able to apply his financial experience to complex claims concerning valuation and forensic accounting issues.
Jamie Randall
Call: 2017
