Josephine Fathers

Year of Call: 2022

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Josephine joined Garden Court as a tenant in October 2023 after successfully completing pupillage under the supervision of Amanda Weston KC and Alex Taylor-Camara.

She is building a broad human rights, public law and civil liberties practice, specialising in judicial review, asylum & immigration, and community care.

Josephine has been appointed as an Executive Committee Member of the Bar Human Rights Committee (BHRC) for 2024-25.

Asylum & Immigration

Josephine is regularly instructed in all areas of immigration law, including in asylum, deportation, EU and human rights appeals. She has extensive experience in obtaining immigration bail for vulnerable clients, including foreign national offenders.  
 
Josephine holds an MA in Near and Middle Eastern Studies (Distinction) from SOAS, University of London. Given her academic background and her previous experience in working in human rights she has particular knowledge of the MENA/SWANA region which she brings to her casework.

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Administrative & Public Law

Overview

Josephine is building a busy multi-disciplinary practice and welcomes instructions in all areas of administrative and public law, including immigration, detention, trafficking, community care, children’s rights and criminal justice cases.
 
During pupillage, Josephine worked with Amanda Weston KC on a number of highly specialist cases spanning the breadth of public law, including care proceedings in the Family Court and wardship proceedings and the use of the inherent jurisdiction in the High Court, often involving complex issues relating to unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) and human trafficking.

Notable Cases

T & Others (Children: Adequacy of Reasons) (Rev1) [2023] EWCA Civ 757
Led by Amanda Weston KC, Josephine recently represented T in the Court of Appeal where he successfully challenged findings of fact against him in the Family Courts.
Read news item here.

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Community Care Law

Josephine welcomes instructions in all areas of community care law, including in asylum support, welfare benefits, and health and social care.

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Education Law

Josephine welcomes instructions in all areas of education law.

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International Human Rights

Josephine has extensive experience working in international human rights law and regularly works on international human rights projects, often pro bono. She has a strong working knowledge of the UN system, including the UN Human Rights Council, Special Procedures, Treaty Bodies, and ad-hoc bodies, as well as the regional bodies across Europe, Africa and the Americas. She has particular regional and country expertise across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA/SWANA).

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Claims Against the Police and Public Authorities

Josephine is building a practice and accepts instructions in civil claims against the police and public authorities.

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Notable Cases & News

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Background

Prior to joining Garden Court, Josephine worked as a research assistant to a leading KC in human rights and civil liberties both domestically and internationally, where she worked on judicial reviews, civil claims, inquests and inquiries and the UN special procedures. She has previously worked in policy, advocacy and project management for international human rights organisations, including the Bar Human Rights Committee of England and Wales and REDRESS.

Josephine is committed to pro bono work and access to justice. She has volunteered for the Free Representation Unit, the City Law School Environmental Law and Policy Clinic, and for several months in the West Bank working on the right to education.

Josephine was awarded scholarships from Lincoln’s Inn and City Law School to fund her training to become a barrister.

Awards

  • Kennedy Scholarship (Lincoln’s Inn)
  • Rosie Keane Memorial Scholarship (City Law School)
  • Ahmad Mustafa Abu-Hakima Scholarship (SOAS)

Education

  • BA (Hons) History, University of Leicester, 1st Class
  • MA Near and Middle Eastern Studies, SOAS, University of London, Distinction
  • GDL, University of Law, Distinction
  • BVS, City Law School, Distinction

Professional Membership

  • Constitutional and Administrative Law Bar Association (ALBA)
  • Bar Human Rights Committee of England & Wales - Executive Committee Member for 2024/25
  • Young Legal Aid Lawyers
  • Liberty
  • Amnesty International

Languages

Arabic (MSA/Levantine): A2 equivalent

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