Professor Panos Koutrakos has been mentioned in the Opinion of Advocate General Ćapeta of the European Court of Justice in Case C‑538/25 Flugzeugherstellerin EU:C:2026:790.

This case was referred to the Court of Justice by the Federal Administrative Court of Austria. It is about the definition of dual-use items under Regulation (EU) 2021/821 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2021 setting up a Union regime for the control of exports, brokering, technical assistance, transit and transfer of dual-use items. The Regulation sets out a system of export controls on items and technologies ‘which can be used for both civil and military purposes’ (Article 2(1)). The questions by the referring court are about the export to Myanmar of a civilian aircraft designed for basic pilot training, and related items and technology: given that they could be used for reconnaissance flights and to train military pilots and, therefore, in connection with human rights violations, are these items of dual-use with the meaning of Regulation 2021/821?

In her Opinion, delivered on 24 September 2026, Advocate General Ćapeta proposed that the term ‘dual-use’ be interpreted on the basis solely of the item’s objective capabilities by reference to its physical characteristics at the time of exportation. According to her analysis, considerations such as the end-user, the (situation in the) country of destination, the potential for diversion, and other factors are not relevant to the definition of the product but, rather, to whether a Member State may require an authorisation for such product.

In her Opinion, she referred to the book written by Professor Koutrakos entitled Trade, Foreign Policy and Defence in EU Constitutional Law: The Legal Regulation of Sanctions, Exports of Dual-use Goods and Armaments (Hart Publishing, London, 2001).

Professor Koutrakos has written widely and advised on EU law governing exports, sanctions, and defence industries.  He is the author, amongst others, of the authoritative books EU International Relations Law 2^nd edition and The EU Common Security and Defence Policy.

Monckton Chambers is delighted to announce that Valentina Sloane KC was named ‘Tax Silk of the Year’ at the Legal 500 Bar Awards 2026.

The awards recognise those who are at the top of the profession, identified by extensive objective research.

Congratulations to all our colleagues across the Bar who were shortlisted for awards and won in their categories.

Monckton Chambers is delighted to have been recognised and shortlisted for this year’s upcoming Chambers UK Bar Awards 2026.

The set has been nominated for ‘Competition Set of the Year’ and two members shortlisted for individual awards:

• Competition Silk of the Year – Tim Ward KC
• Competition Junior of the Year – Anneliese Blackwood

The shortlists are a result of extensive objective research and reflect achievements over the past 12 months including outstanding work, impressive strategic growth and excellence in client service. They honour the work of Chambers across the country based on the research for the most recent edition of Chambers UK Bar.

Thank you to our professional clients for their ongoing support and for taking part in this year’s research cycle and congratulations to all those shortlisted.

The winners will be announced at the awards ceremony on 12th November.

The full shortlist can be seen here.

The members of Monckton Chambers congratulate pupil barristers Kyle Johnson and James Fraser on being invited to join Chambers following successful completion of pupillage, during which they have experienced a wide range of Chambers practice areas. All are delighted they have accepted.

Kyle and James will join Chambers as tenants in October 2026.

We are pleased to announce that 6 members of chambers have been appointed to the Attorney General’s Panels of Counsel following the competition launched this year.

Laura John, Michael Armitage and Kristina Lukacova have been appointed to the A Panel, Khatija Hafesji and Will Perry have been appointed to the B Panel and Clíodhna Kelleher have been appointed to the C Panel.

The Attorney General maintains three panels of junior counsel to undertake civil and EU work for all government departments in addition to its regional panels. The new appointments commence in September and last for a term of 5 years.

The current list of Monckton Chambers panel members is:

• A Panel: Andrew Macnab, Peter Mantle, Raymond Hill, Laura John, Jonathan Lewis, Michael Armitage, Kristina Lukacova, William Buck (Regional Panel).
• B Panel: Julianne Kerr Morrison, Conor McCarthy, James Bourke, Khatija Hafesji, Jen Coyne, Will Perry.
• C Panel:  Alfred Artley, Cliodhna Kelleher.
• Public International Law A Panel: Thomas Sebastian.

Lord Christopher Bellamy KC  has been appointed to the Panel of Arbitrators of the BVI International Arbitration Centre (BVI IAC).

The BVI International Arbitration Centre (BVI IAC), an independent not-for-profit institution, was established to meet the demands of the international business community for a neutral, impartial, efficient and reliable dispute resolution institution in the Caribbean, Latin America and beyond.

The BVI IAC aims to become the go-to institution for International Arbitration and all other forms of dispute resolution in the Caribbean, The Americas and beyond. The IAC will be a nerve centre for dispute resolution, thought leadership, seminars and trainings as well as various other initiatives that contribute to the expansion of Arbitration worldwide.

Monckton Chambers is pleased to welcome back Tom Sebastian, who rejoins chambers on Monday, 22nd June.

Tom acts in substantial regulatory and commercial disputes, often with an international element. He has a diverse practice which spans competition law, public international law and international commercial arbitration. Tom is a member of the CMA’s Panel of Standing Counsel and the Attorney-General’s PIL-A panel.

Tom said: “It is great to be returning to Monckton Chambers. I look forward to developing my practice alongside old, and new, Monckton colleagues in the years to come.”

Joint Heads of Chambers Tim Ward KC and Philip Moser KC said “We are delighted to welcome Tom back to Chambers. He adds strength and depth to Monckton’s practice in competition law and in the complementary areas of public international law and commercial arbitration”

The Legal 500 Bar Awards UK seeks to recognise chambers as a whole and individuals (barristers of all levels of seniority), clerks, other chambers professionals and arbitrators from London and across England, Scotland and Wales.

The shortlist for the 2026 awards has been announced and we are delighted to have been nominated for 15 awards, across 14 categories

• Competition silk of the year  – Philip Moser KC, Michael Bowsher KC
• Competition junior of the year – Alan Bates
• Competition set of the year     
• Group Litigation set of the year
• Immigration silk of the year – Robert Palmer KC
• International Law set of the year
• Property and housing silk of the year – Ian Wise KC
• Public services and charities set of the year
• Tax silk of the year – Valentina Sloane KC
• Tax junior of the year – Peter Mantle
• Tax set of the year     
• Technology, data and crypto set of the year     
• Front of house team of the year
• Clerk of the year – Chris O’Brien

Congratulations to everyone that has been shortlisted! The winners will be announced at the awards ceremony on the 22^nd September 2026.

The full shortlist can be found on the Legal 500 website here.

Monckton Chambers is pleased to announce that Ian Rogers KC has been appointed to the Expert Panel of the Independent Football Regulator (IFR).

The Football Governance Act 2025  establishes an internal review function as an important part of the IFR regime. It provides clubs, owners and other persons directly affected by specified IFR decisions with the opportunity to request a review of those decisions by a panel of decision-makers who were not involved in the original decision. It offers a quicker and less costly route for persons seeking to challenge a decision of the IFR, without the need to incur the costs and follow the procedures involved in an appeal to the Competition Appeal Tribunal.

For the majority of reviewable decisions listed in Schedule 10 of the Act, the applicable reviewer is a committee of the IFR’s Expert Panel. The Expert Panel consists of individuals with a broad range of skills, knowledge and experience in areas relating to the operation, organisation or governance of football clubs or competitions, financial or other regulation, and four KCs.

During the course of the term of his appointment, Ian will be unable to represent or advise individuals, clubs or competition owners in relation to their obligations under the Act, including any proceedings against the IFR, but will otherwise continue to accept sports law and other instructions.