Star Individuals
Band 1
About
Provided by Murdo Macleod KC
Practice Areas
Murdo is ranked as a “Star Individual” in the field of Health and Safety and Regulatory crime, and has acted for major clients in the energy, construction, healthcare and transport sectors. He has also been instructed by numerous public authorities, including: Police Scotland, the NHS, the Scottish Prison Service, the Care Inspectorate and various local authorities and health boards. In financial crime, he is regularly instructed to represent individuals in trials and to assist companies with investigations.
Murdo has appeared in many statutory public inquiries, including: the Billy Wright Inquiry (serving as Counsel to the Inquiry in Northern Ireland between 2005 and 2010), the Edinburgh Tram Inquiry, the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry, the Scottish and UK Covid inquiries, the Undercover Policing Inquiry and the Sheku Bayoh Inquiry.
He served as Crown Counsel and Senior Crown Counsel between 2001 and 2005.
Murdo represented the second accused, Lamin Fhimah, in the Pan-Am/Lockerbie bombing trial in the Netherlands. Other notable High Court acquittals include Andy Coulson in his perjury trial, and Yousif Badri, a Doctor charged with terrorism. He recently defended Police Scotland’s Chief Constable in a landmark prosecution following a missed '999' call.
Murdo is also a practising barrister (Temple Garden Chambers).
Chambers Review
UK Bar
Murdo Macleod KC is an expert criminal silk with extensive experience of health and safety proceedings. He is regularly instructed to defend major corporate entities in high-profile health and safety prosecutions and fatal accident inquiries. He is also sought out for non-contentious health and safety matters.
Murdo Macleod KC is a distinguished silk in the health and safety field and a go-to choice of counsel for Scottish public authorities and private companies. Recently, he has represented core participants in several high-stakes inquiries. Macleod is also licensed to practise as a barrister in England and Wales.
Strengths
Provided by Chambers
"Murdo Macleod KC is very a friendly counsel who is particularly good on his feet in court. He's very good at questioning witnesses and extracting key info."
"Murdo really knows what he is doing. He's very supportive of the team, great with clients and always organised."
"Murdo provides excellent and wise advice across the board. He's highly skilled, effective and a pleasure to work work with."
"Murdo's encyclopaedic knowledge of immensely large and complex matters is particularly impressive."
"Murdo is a fierce defence advocate with a crucial eye for detail in complex, information-heavy cases."
"He is particularly good on his feet and has a very clever style in court."
"Murdo is the premier choice. He has great gravitas, both in meetings with opponents and in court. You can easily see that he is one of the most sought-after and highly regarded silks of his time."
"Murdo is pre-eminent in Scotland. He is capable of assimilating vast quantities of information, which only the top people can do. He is terrific with clients. He's calming and authoritative."
"Murdo Macleod KC is very a friendly counsel who is particularly good on his feet in court. He's very good at questioning witnesses and extracting key info."
"Murdo really knows what he is doing. He's very supportive of the team, great with clients and always organised."
"Murdo provides excellent and wise advice across the board. He's highly skilled, effective and a pleasure to work with."
"Murdo's encyclopaedic knowledge of immensely large and complex matters is particularly impressive."
"Murdo Macleod KC is very a friendly counsel who is particularly good on his feet in court. He's very good at questioning witnesses and extracting key info."
"Murdo really knows what he is doing. He's very supportive of the team, great with clients and always organised."
"Murdo provides excellent and wise advice across the board. He's highly skilled, effective and a pleasure to work work with."
"Murdo's encyclopaedic knowledge of immensely large and complex matters is particularly impressive."
"Murdo is a fierce defence advocate with a crucial eye for detail in complex, information-heavy cases."
"He is particularly good on his feet and has a very clever style in court."
"Murdo is the premier choice. He has great gravitas, both in meetings with opponents and in court. You can easily see that he is one of the most sought-after and highly regarded silks of his time."
"Murdo is pre-eminent in Scotland. He is capable of assimilating vast quantities of information, which only the top people can do. He is terrific with clients. He's calming and authoritative."
"Murdo Macleod KC is very a friendly counsel who is particularly good on his feet in court. He's very good at questioning witnesses and extracting key info."
"Murdo really knows what he is doing. He's very supportive of the team, great with clients and always organised."
"Murdo provides excellent and wise advice across the board. He's highly skilled, effective and a pleasure to work with."
"Murdo's encyclopaedic knowledge of immensely large and complex matters is particularly impressive."
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