Chambers is currently hosting a rolling programme of seminars. These are directed towards professional clients and to relevant lay clients. Materials and published recordings from recent past webinars are available here.
If you wish to receive notification of these events please sign up to our mailing lists here.
For further information please contact Deirdre Mahon, Marketing Manager or one of our clerks.
An afternoon seminar comprised of two expert panel sessions.
The first panel will examine the key issues currently shaping the water sector, including recent legislation, policy developments, regulatory investigations and notable cases.
The second panel will explore water infrastructure planning, addressing the challenges facing the sector in an infrastructure context and the strategic needs for the future.
FTB contributors include Michael Humphries KC, James Pereira KC, Rebecca Clutten, Charles Streeten, Jonathan Welch and Claire Nevin.
Guest contributors are Tom Carpen, Thames Water, Tom Henderson, TLT, Alice Puritz-Evans, OEP and Simon Tilling, Burges Salmon.
Practical Information
Date: 16 September 2026
Time: Registration from 1.45pm. Seminar from 2.00 to 6.00pm followed by a drinks reception until 7.00pm.
Venue: Pewterers' Hall, Oat Lane, London, EC2V 7DE.
Booking: There is no charge to attend but places must be reserved in advance using the Book Now button below.
This hybrid breakfast briefing will focus on the recent judgment of the Court of Appeal in the Principled Offsite Logistics Limited ("POLL") case concerning rates mitigation and consideration of "occupation" more generally (The Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London v 48th Street Holdings Ltd & Anor [2026] EWCA Civ 970 (29 July 2026)).
The Court of Appeal's decision to overrule the earlier High Court authority that had validated these schemes marks a significant shift in the law on non-domestic rates mitigation, and its reasoning has implications that reach far beyond rates. For property owners, occupiers, local authorities, insolvency practitioners, and tax and rates advisers and consultants who structure or rely on mitigation arrangements more generally, the judgment offers a fresh and authoritative illustration of how the courts will treat schemes that are legally genuine but commercially hollow.
It will be chaired by Cain Ormondroyd. Confirmed speakers: Jonathan Welch, Michael Rhimes.
Practical Information
Date: 18 September 2026.
Time: Registration over coffee and pastries from 8.30-9.00am. Briefing from 9.00-10.00am.
Format: The seminar will be run as a hybrid event enabling either in-person or virtual attendance. Please select the relevant option when booking.
Venue: In person at Francis Taylor Building, Inner Temple, London, EC4Y 7BY. Online via Zoom.
Cost: There is no charge to attend but in person places are limited and will be offered on a first come, first served basis.
Booking: to attend in person, complete this online booking form or use the Book Now button below. To attend virtually, please complete this form.
This session will clarify how the updated Framework approaches grey belt, emphasising that it is not a free‑standing permission in principle, and will set out the definitions, policy routes and decision‑making steps that now govern Green Belt release.
The briefing will explore the relationship between Green Belt policy, housing need and station‑led development, alongside the development obligations that may follow. It is designed for planning authorities, promoters, consultants and developers seeking a clear and authoritative explanation of how Green Belt policy now operates in practice.
Francis Taylor Building is uniquely placed to provide early insight into what the updated Framework means in practice, drawing on our market‑leading planning expertise and the direct experience of barristers who advised on its development.
Practical Information
An afternoon seminar followed by a drinks reception. The full programme will be available soon. If you would like to recieve details by email, please sign up to our mailing list here.
Keynote address by Sir Keith Lindblom.
Confirmed speakers: Gregory Jones KC, Andrew Fraser-Urquhart KC, Hereward Phillpot KC, Cain Ormondroyd, Caroline Daly, Charles Merrett, Stephanie Bruce-Smith
Venue: 30 Euston Square, London, NW1 2FB
Time: Registration from 1.30pm. Seminar from 2.30-5.30pm followed by a drinks party until 8.00pm
Cost: There is no charge to attend either in person or virtually but places must be reserved in advance.
This session will provide the essential introduction to the series, offering a structured overview of the August 2026 NPPF and its shift to a rules‑based system for both plan‑making and decision‑taking. The updated Framework now separates plan‑making policies from national decision‑making policies and introduces new provisions on preparing applications, information requirements, viability, conditions and obligations, other regulatory regimes, enforcement and development orders.
The Government describes these reforms as intended to make policy easier to use, support faster and simpler local plans, and provide a clearer basis for decisions. This briefing will examine the practical implications of those changes and what they mean for planning strategy, applications and delivery.
Francis Taylor Building is uniquely placed to provide early insight into what the updated Framework means in practice, drawing on our market‑leading planning expertise and the direct experience of barristers who advised on its development.
Practical Information
Are you interested in public and administrative law, environmental law, or the legal process governing what gets built where and how? Then you may be interested in a career at the public and environmental Bar.
We will be offering interested students an opportunity to attend and participate in a Virtual Mini Pupillage Day on 09 October 2026.
During the course of the day, participants will hear from members and staff about pupillage and tenancy in FTB, including the application and interview process and insights from all levels of seniority about practice in FTB’s areas of specialism. There will also be opportunities to take part in interactive advocacy exercises, discuss leading cases Chambers has been involved in and ask any burning questions about FTB, pupillage and the Bar in general.
Those who are at least in their second year of a qualifying law degree or who have commenced the GDL or other graduate-entry LLB courses are eligible to apply. Prospective applicants should send their CV and a cover letter by email to pupillage@ftbchambers.co.uk by 4pm on 14 August 2026.
We will let participants know if they have secured a place by w/c 7 September 2026.
Are you interested in public and administrative law, environmental law, or the legal process governing what gets built, where and how? Then you may be interested in a career at the public, planning and environmental Bar.
Francis Taylor Building (FTB) is a leading London chambers, specialising in all areas of planning and environmental law. FTB is pleased to invite you to its Pupillage Open Evening, which will provide a great opportunity to learn about life at the planning and environmental Bar, practice at FTB and chambers' recruitment process.
It will take the form of a panel discussion with members of chambers with different specialisms within chambers’ practice areas and at different stages of their career. For those attending in person, there will be an opportunity to chat to members in a more informal setting after the panel discussion.
Students are encouraged to submit questions for the panel in advance to events@ftbchambers.co.uk and by 14 October. These will be answered anonymously by the panel on the evening.
Topics covered will include:
Eligibility, registration and other practical information
In person places are limited and are only available to individuals who are currently undertaking or who have already passed the Bar Practice Course*. All other interested individuals are welcome to join online. Places must be booked in advance by emailing events@ftbchambers.co.uk. When booking, please state relevant stage (i.e. whether you are an undergraduate, post graduate, Bar student or have already completed the Bar Practice Course and institution/s. Please also state if you will attend in person or virtually (*relevant only to BPC students or graduates). Places for in person attendance will be offered on a first come, first served basis. If the number of people who wish to attend in-person exceeds the number of places, we will operate a waiting list.
Date: 22 October 2026
Venue: In person at Francis Taylor Building and online via Zoom.
Time: Panel discussion from 6-7pm followed by informal drinks with members until 8pm.
Information regarding practical arrangements will be sent to all registered attendees closer to the date.
An afternoon seminar followed by a drinks reception. The full programme and booking information will be available soon. If you would like to recieve details by email, please sign up to our mailing list here.
An afternoon seminar followed by a drinks reception. The full programme and booking information will be available soon. If you would like to recieve details by email, please sign up to our mailing list here.
An all day seminar to be held in central London. The full programme and booking inforamation will be available soon. If you would like to receive details by email, please sign up to our mailing list here.