Pushpinder Saini, listed in Chambers and Partners 2019 as a ‘Star at the Bar’, is now a High Court judge, taking his seat at the Queen’s Bench Division in October. Called to the Bar in 1991, this 51-year-old legal giant has proven his excellence in all the areas of civil law he has touched, and left his imprint in many a case.
Human rights is one area where he secured landmark judgments that contributed to the development of law. European Court of Human Rights ordering Turkey to pay monetary damages to Cyprus for human rights violations is one such case. This was the first instance the court awarding just satisfaction in an inter-state case. The Catherine Smith proceedings in the Supreme Court concerning the extra-territorial application of the European Convention of Human Rights is his another major case that made a far-reaching impact on law and the society, particularly soldiers. He is also known for his deft handling of cases where commercial disputes, his another specialism, and human rights law overlap.
Pushpinder has extensive experience in commercial disputes and appeared regularly in UK and EU courts. His hands-on trial experience, the cross-examination of expert witnesses in particular, is highly commended. He has also developed expertise in cases related to financial services. He has worked with New York based firms and appeared as lead counsel in the Bars of British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands and the Bahamas in financial services and trusts related disputes. He acted in proceedings arising out of the Lehman collapse and Madoff investment scandal in the US.
Media and entertainment sector considers Pushpinder as its first port of call. He is involved in most of the major cases related to the industry in the recent history and his client list includes the leading names like PolyGram, BMG, Warner Music, Universal Music, Sony, Queen, Michael Jackson and Pink Floyd. The intersection of commercial law, EU law and public law plays large part in Pushpinder’s practice, and he has regularly appeared in high-value and complex cases. One of his recent such cases include the defence of Ofcom's decision against BT on overcharging telecom operators in the Court of Appeal.
He represented the government in many of the leading public law cases prior to his appointment to Silk in 2008, as a member of the Attorney General’s ‘A’ Panel list of counsels. During that time, unlike many barristers of his call, he was regularly instructed to appear as sole or senior counsel in the High Court, the Court of Appeal and Privy Council. He was ranked in Chambers UK’s inaugural Top Silk Bar 100 in 2013.
Pushpinder taught law at Oxford and the London School of Economics, before starting his practicing career at 2 Hare Court and Blackstone Chambers. Born in a Punjabi Sikh family who migrated from Kenya in the early 1970s, he grew up in Southall in west London and studied in a comprehensive school there. He went on to graduate from Oxford and become a Senior Scholar of Gray’s Inn. He was appointed as Bencher of Gray’s Inn in 2014, and as a Deputy High Court Judge in 2017.
