James Dawes KC
YEAR OF CALL 1993
SILK 2018
APPOINTED RECORDER OF THE CROWN COURT 2023
Direct Access Qualified
‘James is a prosecutor to the core. He's detailed and hardcore from beginning to end, but charming. You are in for a fight.’ Chambers UK Bar 2025
'James is never underprepared. He is direct and determined. His cross-examination is forceful and effective and his legal submissions are uncompromising. Despite his strong approach to prosecution he is delightful company and has a great sense of humour.' The Legal 500 2025
James Dawes KC is one of the UK's most experienced and versatile silks in criminal law, trusted to lead in some of the most sensitive and technically demanding trials of the last decade. His expertise spans homicide, gang-related violence, terrorism, infant deaths, serious organised crime, cyber blackmail, international law, and financial crime. He is regularly instructed by CPS Homicide Units, Complex Casework Units, and international law enforcement bodies.
His practice is defined by precision, tactical leadership, and courtroom excellence. Known for commanding complex joint enterprise prosecutions, novel defences such as automatism and sleepwalking, and sensitive trials involving youth defendants and cultural or psychiatric complexity, James is regularly briefed in cases of national significance. He appears almost exclusively in multi-handed trials at The Old Bailey (the Central Criminal Court) and beyond and is known for bringing clarity and impact to the most serious criminal trials.
Notable Cases
HOMICIDE AND OTHER VIOLENCE
R v Charles and 6 others (2025) this trial is ongoing.
R v TH (2024)
This 10-week trial at Exeter Crown Court involved a schoolboy at Blundell’s School, Devon who attacked his housemates and a teacher with two hammers in the middle of the night, claiming he was sleepwalking. James led for the prosecution in what became a nationally reported case on automatism and sleep violence. Led James Caldwell.
R v TR and AP (2024)
James prosecuted the four-week retrial at the Central Criminal Court involving the murder of a 22-year-old and grievous bodily harm against a 16-year-old during a gang-related house invasion in Croydon. Four masked men wielding swords and zombie knives forced entry into the flat and launched a brutal assault. The trial included complex issues of identification, gang context, joint enterprise, and witness intimidation.
R v KW & Others (2024)
James led the prosecution of a gang-related stabbing in Croydon, where a 22-year-old was murdered in the street. The trial ran for eight weeks and included issues of gang loyalty, joint enterprise, and witness anonymity. Led Paul Casey.
R v IK (2024)
James prosecuted the lone defendant in a murder trial where the victim was fatally stabbed in New Cross after being lured into an ambush. The principal fled abroad, and the case turned on the legal framework of secondary liability. The trial ran for four weeks and was marked by significant circumstantial and forensic evidence.
R v JA (2024)
James prosecuted a woman accused of manslaughter and illegally importing phosphine from Bangladesh via Italy, and deploying it in her flat to kill bed bugs. The chemical rose to the flat above, fatally poisoning an 11-year-old girl. The case included arguments over unlawful act manslaughter, product regulation, and causation.
R v KP (2023)
James defended a father accused of murdering his 11-week-old daughter. The trial included evidence from six medical disciplines including radiology, haematology, and paediatric pathology. The jury returned a verdict of manslaughter. The AG reference on sentence was defeated. Led Julian Jones.
R v P, R, R & WP (2023)
James prosecuted a three-month, four-defendant gang murder at a block of flats in Peckham. One victim was killed and another seriously injured with a zombie knife. Issues of presence, CCTV, and joint enterprise were central.
R v A (2023)
Prosecuted a youth who stabbed one person at 14 and killed another at 15. Both incidents relied on self-defence claims and involved extensive youth witness handling.
R v G (2023)
James prosecuted a man who killed his friend in a sudden attack, raising diminished responsibility. The trial involved complex psychiatric evidence, and he was convicted of murder.
FINANCIAL CRIME, BRIBERY AND FRAUD
R v MB, AB, MH, RK, TP and AB (2025)
James prosecuted 7 individuals for Bribery and fraud offences. There were tens of thousands of pages of evidence and the case took 9 years to come to trial. Eventually all convicted defendants pleaded guilty, three of them 4 days into the trial. The bribery concerned a total of £2 million paid in bribes over the grant and management of construction contracts in the construction of Cranbrook, Exeter, Devon. The prosecution required attention to detail and a knowledge of accountancy. Led James Caldwell
R v R, 2023; a 4 week trial concerning claims for Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) within the armed forces.
MISCONDUCT IN PUBLIC OFFICE
R v NF & 5 Others (2024)
James prosecuted six prison officers for kicking and assaulting an inmate at HMP Thamesside. CCTV showed sustained group violence. The 6-week trial required sensitive handling of closed material and internal policy evidence. Led James Caldwell.
INTERNATIONAL
James has been advising Royal Bermuda Police on sensitive cases.
R v JL, 2019; James was instructed by the CPS International Justice and Organised Crime Division, opposing a claim of abuse of process made by JL against the National Crime Agency (NCA) relating to the removal of a UK citizen from northern Cyprus into the Republic of Cyprus and her subsequent deportation to the UK. A controversial and developing area of law dealing with two antipathetic jurisdictions.
DRUGS OFFENCES
R v JA (2024)
James prosecuted a woman accused of manslaughter and illegally importing phosphine from Bangladesh via Italy, and deploying it in her flat to kill bed bugs. The chemical rose to the flat above, fatally poisoning an 11-year-old girl. The case included arguments over unlawful act manslaughter, product regulation, and causation.
SEXUAL OFFENCES
R v R, 2022: James was involved in a 2 week trial of an allegation of historic sexual abuse. A highly charged case with allegations dating back many years.
R v B, 2021: a rape trial at Warwick Crown Court of a young victim in a tent on common land. The witnesses were young and with social disadvantages which required considerable sensitivity to navigate.
R v G and C, 2019: a 2 month long trial alleging historic sexual abuse by members of staff on boys in care spanning Lambeth, Kingston and South Wales council run children’s homes. James led for the prosecution securing convictions against both defendants. The trial required an attention to detail to the vast amount of source material dating back to the early 1970s and the review of 3 previous police investigations and inquiries.
‘James was a master of the material; he was very detailed and forensic in his presentation of the psychiatric matters involved and also in full command of the facts of the case generally.’
‘James is an affable, likable advocate, who's on top of the papers. He's a good speech maker and a good cross-examiner.’ Chambers UK Bar 2024
Ranked as a Leading Silk in Crime The Legal 500 2024
‘Completely charming and infinitely disarming when he cross-examines.’
Chambers UK Bar 2023
‘James is a great detail man. He is incredibly hard-working. He knows his case and the papers inside out.’
The Legal 500 2023
‘A well-prepared, fair and clear advocate who is a smooth operator.’
Chambers UK Bar 2022
