Kieran O’Rourke

Kieran’s legal foundation was built at Queen Mary University of London, a prestigious Russell Group institution renowned for its commercial law expertise.  Queen Mary consistently ranks highly among global universities and has a long-established reputation as a leader in legal education, particularly in the field of commercial law.  He graduated with Honours in Law (LLB).  Furthering his legal studies, Kieran achieved a Distinction in his Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice at the College of Law (now the University of Law) in Guildford.

As a highly experienced litigator, Kieran has a distinguished track record, handling complex cases at the highest levels of the judiciary. His experience spans the House of Lords, Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, Divisional Court, and High Court.  His international expertise extends to representing clients before the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg and making applications to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

Kieran’s practice encompasses high-stakes commercial litigation, including a multi-million-pound contractual dispute involving the UK Government, an Irish-registered company, a US-registered corporation, and a Chinese producer concerning PPE. His commercial work also includes drafting complex contracts, such as Sale and Purchase Agreements for gold and copper ore.  He was also instructed to work alongside a US legal team on proposed litigation against Boeing for a major international airline carrier.

Beyond commercial work, Kieran has been involved in significant public inquiries, including the Grenfell Tower Inquiry and the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry. He has represented members of the British Parliament and, along with colleagues at Howe+Co, acted for the Shadow Attorney General of England & Wales in the landmark Supreme Court case against then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson regarding the prorogation of Parliament (R (on the application of Miller) v The Prime Minister [2019] UKSC 41).

Currently, Kieran represents numerous claimants in multi-million-pound civil compensation claims arising from the Post Office Horizon IT system scandal, achieving settlements exceeding £2 million in several individual cases.

A skilled defamation lawyer, Kieran has successfully represented numerous high-profile individuals, securing substantial damages awards.  His defamation experience includes cases before the Court of Appeal. He has acted for clients such as BBC DJ Tony Blackburn, BBC and TalkSport radio presenter Jon Gaunt, the Leader of Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition, the Shadow Attorney General, and various MPs and local councillors.

Kieran’s legal acumen has earned him recognition as The Times newspaper’s “Lawyer of the Week” on 11 June 2015 and Law Society Gazette’s “Lawyer of the Week” in the same year.