Simon accepts instructions on a variety of regulatory and licensing matters. He has developed a reputation as a persuasive advocate who works hard from beginning to end for his clients. His personable manner and true understanding of client care is frequently commented upon by those who instruct him.
He has been appointed to the “C” list of the List of Specialist Regulatory Advocates in Health and Safety and he accepts instructions to prosecute on behalf of the Health and Safety Executive.
He has experience of both alcohol and taxi licensing cases and has given seminars on behalf of the Institute of Licensing. He appears both at hearings before local authority sub-committees and at appeals in the Magistrates Court.
His particular interest in regulatory work stems from having spent a year prior to pupillage working and training with Bernard Thorogood (also of No5 Barristers’ Chambers) where he gained invaluable experience of a very wide range of regulatory crime, including health and safety, environmental, trading standards, food safety and data protection. He had a significant role assisting in the preparation for a number of cases in the Crown Court and the Court of Appeal.
Since then he has developed experience and a strong reputation in his own right. He has been instructed in cases involving health and safety, environmental protection, noise abatement, food safety, breaches of enforcement notices (and subsequent confiscation proceedings) to name but a few. He is a very experienced Crown Court advocate which often places him at an advantage, particularly in contested cases.
He has considerable experience of representing police officers both in the criminal courts and before their disciplinary bodies.
He also represents the interests of individuals at inquests.
He has recently advised in cases involving:
• compliance notices,
• enforcement notices,
• whether the parents of a child who was removed from school for a month should escape prosecution due the "religious observance" caveat,
• whether a shisha-smoking premises were in contravention of The Smoke-free (Premises and Enforcement) Regulations 2006/3368
Recommendations
“I would like to state at this point that our prosecuting Barrister, Simon Hunka of No5 Chambers in Birmingham, was superb and was a credit to have on board in what was an extremely complicated case with over one thousand pages of evidence originally. He certainly went into minute detail, and his cross examination of the defendants and their witness was brilliant, he countered everything they came up with and had definitely studied the case in exceptional detail in order to do so. I highly recommend him if the Council need a prosecuting Barrister for any other LA case at all - benefits, council tax, housing, planning, regulatory, anti-social behaviour etc - he is willing and able to cover all aspects of cases for LAs, in both Magistrates and Crown Court.”
Beverley Graham, Benefits Investigations Officer, Melton Borough Council.
Notable Cases
R (HSE) v Cruickshank Motors Limited (2021)
Prosecution Counsel in a case involving a s.33 HSWA 1974 offence. Two apprentice mechanics were not adequately protected by their employer from Sodium Hydrochloride held on site at one of the Company’s dealerships - both suffered burns as a result. The Company were fined GBP360,000.
Stratford-upon-Avon District Council v Charlton
Prosecution Counsel in successful trial of a man whose defence to the allegation that he was street trading without appropriate permission relied on the Pedlars Act 1871.
Leicester City Council v Goldens (Leicester) Ltd
Prosecution Counsel in the case of a supermarket in respect of which a number of health and safety offences had been committed. Guilty pleas entered.
Leicester City Council v Khakh & Others
Prosecution Counsel in a very complicated multi-handed case where multiple failures to comply with enforcement notices led to confiscation proceedings. This was a case involving a number of different legal arguments involving case law such as R v Sale and R v del Basso. The case resolved in a successful outcome for the Local Authority, both in terms of final orders and costs.
R v G
Counsel for Local Authority prosecuting a landowner for failure to comply with an enforcement notice - involving complex legal issues relating to the statutory defence (s.179(3) Town and Country Planning Act 1990).
Memberships
Middle Temple
Qualifications
BSc (Hons) Dunelm
GDL (College of Law)
BVC (ICSL)
