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Clare Evans

Year of call: 1995

VAT No: 993735860 | BSB Registration Click Here

Email: Send Email | Download full CV

Areas of Practice

Crime – Criminal commercial/financial fraud, serious crime including drugs, violence and sex for single and multi handed cases. Recognised leading junior

Civil – Includes family/childcare proceedings, international abduction and personal injury cases.

Criminal work

Clare appears as defence counsel in all kinds of cases across all types of courts. She has been instructed in significant high profile drugs, fraud and violence matters which have involved 1 to 35 defendants.

Assault – Clare represents defendants charged with the whole range of assaults from common assault, actual bodily harm, grievous bodily harm, attempted murder and murder. She is extremely experienced in conducting cases via “video link” in cases such as these which often involve vulnerable witnesses, especially in domestic violence allegations.

Sexual offences – Clare has a vast experience in all types of offences from Rape, sexual assault, offences against children under 13, familial child sex offences, historical abuse and indecent photographs to name but a few.  She has successfully defended all but one of rape cases she has been instructed in. Clare is extremely experienced in conducting these cases via “video link” and is used to questioning very young (aged 7) as well as extremely distressed witnesses in a professional and effective manner.

Dishonesty – cases from basic shoplifting to gang related robbery and firearms matters. She has been instructed in countless burglary matter, both domestic and non domestic including several conspiracies involving large commercial premises with actual losses of over £100,000 cases. Clare successfully represented a defendant in a multi handed armed robbery which occurred at a remote petrol station.

Drugs – cases from simple possession of personal amounts of cannabis/cocaine/heroin/amphetamine, to large scale importations of class A and B drugs.  Clare was involved in a £16 million importation of cannabis via a boat coming from the Netherlands as well as a 35 defendant’s conspiracy to import cocaine from Brazil to its end market on the south coast of Britain.

Other – Clare has been instructed in several matters of perverting the course of justice, from giving false details on a claim form to witness intimidation in a high profile murder case. She is also interested in Prison law.

Road Traffic – Clare is experienced in representing clients for driving offences including driving whilst disqualified, without a license, without insurance and whilst under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol. She has also been instructed in several tachograph cases and those involving breaches of statutory weight limits for various axle-sizes of commercial vehicles

Clare represents defendants at all levels including the Magistrates court, Crown court and in the Court of Appeal.

Education & Qualifications

BA (Hons) English and Classical Studies, Queen Mary College, University of London 1990

College of Law, 1994

Called to the Bar 1995 (Inner Temple)

Professional Courses

Vulnerable witnesses, Inner Temple

Excellence in Advocacy, CBA

Annual attendance at the CBA and refresher/updater courses during the year.

Professional Memberships

Member of Inner Temple

Criminal Bar Association

Interests

Keen guitarist and all round amateur musician, hill walking, motocross riding and long boarding.

  • Case Profile

    R v R – alleged homosexual rape, acquitted. Multiple disclosure issues and added difficulty of having a schizophrenic complainant whose symptoms meant an 18 months delay to the trial commencing.

    R v D – mentally challenged 19 year old charged with sexual activity with a minor. Successfully applied for the assistance of an intermediary, matter dropped before trial.

    R v B & H – 2 schoolboys charged with oral and vaginal rape of a 15 year old girl, acquitted.

    R v L & 4 others – junior counsel in Albanian gangland murder trial on the South coast. After a 6 weeks trial the defendant was one of 2 defendants acquitted of all charges, ringleader received 18 years imprisonment.

    R v C & 17 others – sole counsel for female facilitator in a large drugs dealing ring based on the South Coast but spread as far as Brazil. Multiple evidential sources including documentary (statements, bank accounts, tenancy agreements, money transfers) and recordings both audio and visual. Defendant pleaded guilty and received 12 years. Successfully appealed this sentence, reduced to 10 years.

    R v P and R v K & another – both s.18 charges, both allegations of “bottling” complainants in nightclubs. Both defendants acquitted.

    R v H – allegation of armed robbery at a petrol station, the defendant was captured on the forecourt CCTV driving his distinctive works van earlier in the day with 3 others for what the prosecution alleged as being a ‘recce’of the premises. Defendant acquitted.

    R v B & others – junior in C&E prosecution concerning over £200 million of diverted duty and VAT. This was one of a number of nationally prosecuted diversion frauds arising from the London City Bond Warehouse. Preparation for the case involved detailed consideration of over 17,000 pages of evidence. C&E offered no evidence and formal not guilty verdicts entered as abuse argument successfully revealed the participation of an undisclosed C&E ‘mole’ involved in the facilitation of the frauds.