“Quick to grasp the important issues of any case.”
The Legal 500
Tom won the Pro Bono Chambers’ Professional of the Year Award 2022 by Advocate.
experience & expertise
Tom has been clerking at Serjeants’ Inn for over 20 years, having first worked in the clerking teams at both criminal and common law sets to obtain a grounding in the role. Tom previously worked as a researcher in the House of Lords after graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in history and politics.
Tom leads one of our two Chambers clerking teams. His role covers the allocation of new work, practice management, diary issues and staff training and recruitment.
Recommendations
“The clerks at Serjeants Inn are easy to work with and prompt in their responses. Tom O’Connor in particular is excellent at keeping solicitors up to date and responding clearly and quickly to requests made.”
The Legal 500
“Tom O’Connor stand out as approachable, knowledgeable and reliable.”
The Legal 500
‘The clerking team are excellent and go above and beyond. Lee Johnson and Tom O’Connor in particular are very responsive and can usually find a solution to any dilemma we come across.’
The Legal 500
“Tom O’Connor always gets the right person for the job; he is affable and a pleasure to work with.”
Chambers & Partners
‘Excellent service – Tom O Connor is brilliant to have as a clerk if you need urgent input. Always friendly and helpful.’
The Legal 500
‘Tom O’Connor is a brilliant clerk, again very personable, working well with solicitors and making sure things happen.’
The Legal 500
‘Tom O’Connor and Joe Ralph also stand out as savvy, sensible clerks who always have the right options available to their clients.’
The Legal 500
‘Tom O’Connor and Joe Ralph have excellent vision for what is needed in complex welfare cases.’
The Legal 500
‘The clerks know their barristers and understand the clients. Lee Johnson, Joe Ralph, Natasha Southgate and Tom O’Connor stand out as approachable, knowledgeable and reliable’
The Legal 500
‘Tom O’Connor has been a huge help on many occasions.’
Chambers & Partners
Qualifications
University of Wales, Cardiff – BSc Econ Modern History and Politics
Professional memberships
Member of the Institute of Barristers’ Clerks (IBC)
Reflections
This job has so many different facets, from management, to coaching, to promotion. It’s a job where you have to like dealing with people and I’ve always been good at understanding what makes people tick.
“When you meet the solicitors who work in this field you can see how driven they are, and I’m really proud that we show that same commitment.”
Clerking has taught me that you can never assume anything. I’m conscious of the need always to try and question things: you can’t afford to just be robotic in your approach, you need to think of ways you can improve processes. It’s one of the things that I like about working here – we’re striving to get better all the time, we’re not complacent. We really want to make sure we remain at the top of our game.
It’s impossible not to be proud of our Court of Protection work – it’s cutting edge law which establishes what is in the best interests of the patient. I am available 24/7 to take those calls: these cases can be literally life or death. When you meet the solicitors who work in this field you can see how driven they are, and I’m really proud that we show that same commitment. I genuinely believe there isn’t another chambers in the country which is as strong in this area as we are.