Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry Chair appoints Senior and Junior Counsel 

Lord Brailsford, Chair of the Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry, has appointed Stuart Gale KC as Co-lead Counsel, and Faryma Bahrami, Mary Ellen Stewart and Alan Caskie as Junior Counsel to the Inquiry.

Stuart was called to the Bar in 1980 and took Silk in 1993. He specialises in public and administrative law, with considerable experience of public inquiries. Recently, he has acted in the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry for the organisation representing those who were abused in Quarriers Homes, and he has also lectured in Scotland and the Isle of Man on the form and practice of public inquiries, with particular reference to the Inquiries Act 2005.

Junior Counsel will work closely with Stuart and Laura-Anne van der Westhuizen KC, who will jointly lead the Inquiry’s Counsel team. Together with David Turner, Junior Counsel, they will be responsible for conducting legal research, analysing and reviewing documents, identifying evidence, drafting materials, and assisting with the preparation of hearings.