James Badenoch KC

James Badenoch KC is the son of the late Sir John Badenoch, sometime Director of Clinical Studies (Dean of the Medical School) of Oxford University, and is a renegade from a far-flung medical dynasty.

He was pupil to John (later Mr Justice) Alliott, and Harry (Lord) Woolf at 1 Crown Office Row where he has practised ever since. For some 35 years he has specialised in clinical negligence, medical law, and medical discipline.

He took silk in 1989. He has appeared in a succession of major cases in the Supreme Court, the House of Lords, The Privy Council, The Court of Appeal, The High Court, The GMC and The GDC, and the Hong Kong High Court and  Hong Kong Court of  Final Appeal.

James was counsel in the landmark case of Montgomery v Lanarkshire Health Board [2015] which has huge implications for the way the law deals with consent.

He has been a Deputy High Court Judge, a Recorder of the Crown Court, and a President of the Mental Health Review Tribunal, and is a Bencher of Lincoln’s Inn and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine.  He has been admitted to the Hong Kong Bar.  He retired recently from the Chairmanship of the Expert Witness Institute.

His practice covers medically related matters of all kinds. He is the author of numerous articles and chapters on medico-legal subjects, a regular lecturer and speaker after dinner to learned (and less learned) societies, and an occasional broadcaster on TV and radio.

“I have known and supported AvMA from its inception and watched it become a vital champion of patient safety, and a powerful force for good in clinical care. I am proud to become a Patron at a time when AvMA’s work is needed more than ever.” James Badenoch KC