Profile
Abhijit became a member of chambers in October 2022 following completion of his pupillage. He accepts instructions in a range of Chambers’ practice areas including crime, regulatory and professional discipline, and public law.
He is a CPS Grade 3 prosecutor, a member of the CPS serious crime panel and is frequently instructed in cases involving the Insolvency Service, Immigration Advice Authority and healthcare regulators. Abhijit is a member of the GLD ‘Junior Junior’ scheme.
Prior to joining chambers, Abhijit worked as a criminal lawyer in New Zealand, before completing his LLM at the University of Cambridge in 2021.
Expertise
Abhijit has been regularly instructed as both prosecution and defence counsel in the Crown Court. He has conducted numerous Crown Court trials where individuals have been charged with a wide range of offences, including terrorism offences, offences involving serious violence, drug trafficking, and sexual offences.
Recent instructions in the Crown Court include prosecuting individuals who have been charged, supplying class A drugs, possession of firearms, and sexual offences. Abhijit also regularly defends in serious and complex cases in the Crown Court, having recently been instructed as a led junior where a defendant was prosecuted for preparing to engage in an act of terrorism under s.5 of the Terrorism Act 2006.
Abhijit regularly tackles complex cases involving sensitive issues. He has been instructed in large multi-defendant conspiracies raising complex issues of law. He is adept at addressing issues which can arise when undercover policing techniques are utilised.
Abhijit is regularly instructed by the CPS Appeals Review Unit and has conducted a number of full hearings before the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division).
His keen eye for detail is well suited to both prosecuting and defending in cases involving financial crime. He has experience working as part of a large team defending an individual charged by the SFO with conspiracy to bribe a foreign public official. He is instructed as a led junior by the Insolvency Service in a complex multi-handed prosecution of individuals who are accused of fraudulent trading and dishonest conduct in bankruptcy proceedings.
Abhijit has been instructed in connection with the Infected Blood Inquiry. He has been instructed to advise witnesses subject to a rule 9 request, and to carefully analyse and review documents included in any such request.
He has also been instructed in connection with the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry, reviewing and analysing documents provided to the Inquiry by core participants.
Abhijit is often instructed to advise the Police or other investigative bodies in relation to the exercise of their investigative powers and the prospects of a successful judicial review of their decisions.
Abhijit is familiar with the processes which apply in the Coroner’s Court, having been instructed to assist the family of deceased at the pre-inquest stage.
Abhijit is regularly instructed by the Immigration Advice Authority (IAA) to prosecute individuals for offences under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. He has experience dealing with unregulated advisors and has appeared in both the County Court and Crown Court in such matters. As a result of this work, he is familiar with the regulatory framework governing immigration advice and services.
He was successful in obtaining the first ever injunction against an unregulated immigration advisor in the County Court under s. 92 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.
Abhijit regularly appears in healthcare and disciplinary proceedings. He has appeared before the Nursing and Midwifery Council and General Optical Council. He is instructed regularly to present cases both at the interim order stage and the fitness to practise stage.
In the healthcare disciplinary setting, Abhijit has appeared in a wide range of cases from allegations of sexual harassment to complex clinical cases.
Abhijit accepts instructions to represent both registrants and the regulator.
In 2020, Abhijit commenced a LLM at the University of Cambridge. He was a project manager for the Cambridge Pro Bono Project, assisting in analysing both domestic and international jurisprudence concerning the scope of “cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment” under Article 3 of the ECHR, He graduated First Class and completed the Bar Transfer Test in 2021.
In 2018, Abhijit was admitted to the legal profession in New Zealand. He spent the next two-and-a-half years gaining experience as a criminal defence lawyer in New Zealand, appearing at first instance, and on appeal, representing individuals charged with a range of criminal offences. In the Court of Appeal, he appeared as a led junior in criminal appeals concerning issues such as the admissibility of novel expert evidence, the impact of procedural failures at trial, and the relevance of significant personal mitigation on sentence.
In 2017, Abhijit graduated with an LLB (Honours). During his undergraduate studies, he won the New Zealand Bar Association Sentencing Advocacy moot. He graduated with First Class Honours upon completing a dissertation examining the admissibility of defendants’ statements at trial.
- The use of section 66 of the Courts Act 2003 following R. v Gould: Part 2” Arch. Rev. 2023, 4, 5-9
- The use of section 66 of the Courts Act 2003 following R. v Gould: Part 1” Arch. Rev. 2023, 3, 8-10
- Master of Law (First Class), Clare College, University of Cambridge
- Bar Transfer Test, BPP University
- Bachelor of Laws (Honours, First Class) Auckland University of Technology
- Bachelor of Business (Economics) Auckland University of Technology
- Honourable Society of Inner Temple
- Criminal Bar Association
- Association of Regulatory and Disciplinary Lawyers
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Recognition
