Kiki Hausdorff

Kiki is undertaking a commercial chancery pupillage under the supervision of Samir Amin.

Kiki read Jurisprudence at Somerville College, Oxford and was awarded Middle Temple’s Astbury Scholarship and BPP University’s Advocacy Award while undertaking the Bar Course in London. She was Called in 2021 and arrives at No5 Chambers having already gained extensive drafting and advocacy experience as a Law Reporter at the Incorporated Council of Law Reporting and as Parliamentary Counsel at the City of London Corporation.

In her role as a Law Reporter, Kiki drafted headnotes and summaries of argument for the leading authority for case law in England and Wales, the Law Reports, the Weekly Law Reports and the Business Law Reports. Having joined the ICLR in the High Court, she was quickly promoted to the Court of Appeal (Civil Division). She assimilated judgments swiftly, often in unfamiliar areas of law, and distilled the judge’s legal reasoning accurately and concisely. To assess whether judgments were reportable, she identified the ratio decidendi and any new points of law or modification of existing legal principles. Kiki managed a fast-paced workstream to strict deadlines and regularly drafted case summaries in short order for the ICLR’s Weekly Law Reports (Daily) product.

In her previous position as Parliamentary Counsel, Kiki gained court advocacy experience, provided legal advice to the Corporation and drafted legislation.

Kiki was regularly instructed by the Corporation’s in-house solicitors in housing and commercial property possession claims in the County Court. In the Magistrates’ Court, she prosecuted street trading offences and planning breaches. Appearing in busy possession lists developed her ability to think quickly on her feet and deliver concise submissions, and her prosecution experience refined her witness-handling and persuasive advocacy skills.

Working in the Remembrancer’s Office, Kiki advised on the application to the Corporation of forthcoming legislation and authored opinions in the names of the Corporation’s Law Officers, including the City Remembrancer and the Recorder of London, on a range of complex matters reflecting the breadth of the Corporation’s powers, privileges and duties.

Kiki’s legislative drafting is described in Hansard as “extremely well designed”, “very comprehensive” and “a tour de force”. Her experience drafting private legislation and amendments to Public Bills developed her ability to construe and apply legislative and contractual clauses. She drafted amendments to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill to address urban exploration and amendments to the Environment Bill to establish a new regulatory regime to control pollution. She also co-drafted the City of London (Markets) Bill, a Private Bill to relocate the Corporation’s wholesale markets, and was responsible for developing legal submissions to support the Bill’s passage.

Kiki is an avid theatre-goer and achieved Distinction in Grade 8 Speech and Drama. She enjoys writing and performing sketches and songs for Revels, Middle Temple’s annual Christmas cabaret show, and representing Middle Temple in the inter-Inn Shakespeare Cup (affectionately known as the “Shake-Off”).