Dawn Pritchard
Head of CrimeA highly capable specialist in complex and serious criminal cases, whether for the prosecution or defence, notably rapes, armed robbery, attempted murder and serious assaults of all kinds.
Dawn Pritchard specialises in high-profile, complex and serious prosecution and criminal defence work, in particular rapes, child abuse and exploitation, and serious violence towards adults and children, particularly babies. She has many years of experience as a Grade 4 prosecutor, dealing in cases such as armed robbery, attempted murder and serious assault.
She is empathetic and uses her compassionate, down-to-earth manner to achieve an excellent relationship with witnesses throughout the trial process. She is a fierce advocate in the courtroom as well as being fair to all parties involved.
Rape and serious sexual assault
Dawn is a member of the CPS rape panel and prosecutes or defends all types of cases involving sexual offences, rapes, familial abuse and child abuse. She has been a leading junior on a number of complex sexual cases with multiple complainants, including the historic abuse of young children in children’s homes.
Murder
Dawn has considerable experience as a junior barrister in murder trials, primarily for the prosecution, including a number of high-profile cases. Her success in such cases was recognised in 2016 when she received a commendation from East Midlands Police Special Operations Unit for her part in securing a conviction in Operation Hearth (the murder of Danny Parek). She has also prosecuted murder cases where the defendants have pleaded guilty and been sentenced, as well as one murder case where no QC was granted for the Crown.
Sensitivity
Dawn has a particular interest in cases involving defendants with mental health difficulties, and has conducted cases for the prosecution and defence where fitness to plead, finding of fact and hospital orders have been relevant considerations. She has particular expertise in cases with a large amount of sensitive disclosure under the CPIA test. This includes social services material, educational records, and social media material (a fast-growing area of disclosure).
Significant Cases
R v Eddy Brown aka Edward Latham – Prosecution of a Rampton hospital patient who attempted to kill another patient. His intention was to obtain a full life sentence as he already had two life sentences. He was convicted.
R v Markham and Edwards [2016] – Junior counsel for the Crown in this high-profile case in which two 14-year-olds – the youngest double murderers in English legal history – killed the mother and sister of the female defendant as they slept in their beds. Working as part of a team, helped to secure the convictions and imprisonment for life. The team was highly commended by the presiding judge for the Midlands Circuit.
R v Stuart Hooper [2018] – Leading junior counsel for the prosecution, securing the conviction of Stuart Hooper, who had raped his daughter multiple times from the age of 6, his step-son from 5, his wife, and then – many years later – his girlfriend. The case involved the analysis of a vast amount of disclosure from social media accounts. Hooper received an extended sentence of 42 years imprisonment, comprising 34 years’ custody and 8 years’ extended licence.
R v Norman Sully [2018] – Leading junior for Rosemary Kavanagh, successfully prosecuting Sully in a fitness-to-plead and finding-of-fact trial. This was a very historic children’s home sexual abuse case, with several victims and a huge amount of sensitive disclosure.
How much will Dawn Pritchard’s services cost?
Dawn mostly works on a fixed-fee basis for the main hearing, with a daily refresher rate for any subsequent date of hearing, although this depends on the type of work you request. If you’d like a quotation for her legal services in a particular matter, please contact our clerk using the details below and we’ll be very happy to help. Please also refer to Bank House Chambers’ standard terms & conditions.
What might influence the timescales of the services Dawn offers?
Dawn would normally expect to arrange a preliminary conference with your client within 7 days of first contact from you. After that, despite our best intentions, we can’t always control timescales or the amount of time we spend on a case. These can be affected by factors such as urgency; complexity; your own (or your client’s) availability; Dawn’s availability and that of any third parties; the volume of documents she needs to review or must request; and the court’s availability.
Can you have confidence in Dawn’s work?
She is regulated by the Bar Standards Board.
How can you contact Dawn Pritchard?
In the first instance, please contact our senior clerk, Wayne Digby, on 0114 275 1223 or email him at w.digby@bankhousechambers.co.uk.
