Meeno Kaur Chawla

2019

Meeno prosecutes and defends in a wide range of criminal cases. She has a growing practice in Extradition, Proceeds of Crime and related areas and also accepts instructions in regulatory and family proceedings.

Our specialist clerks can be contacted by email on clerks@5sah.co.uk or phone on 020 7332 5400. To contact our Chambers Director directly in relation to a specific members’ practice, please email dscothern@5sah.co.uk

Overview

Meeno prosecutes and defends in a wide range of criminal cases. She has a growing practice in Extradition, Proceeds of Crime and related areas and also accepts instructions in regulatory and family proceedings.

Meeno is regularly instructed by the Insolvency Service to prosecute individuals and company directors for fraud, reusing the company name after insolvency, and failing to keep company records, amongst other offences. 

Meeno is on the CPS General Crime Advocate Panel at level 2.

Meeno supports pro-bono work and has recently completed working on a case for Advocate and was awarded their Pupil Pledge Pro-Bono Award. This highlights her commitment to access to justice.  

"Many thanks again for your passion, time, efforts and dedication to this case. Your hard work to achieve the best results for the client is inspiring.

No doubt we will be working more often."

Instructing Solicitor Feedback: Partner & Head of Crime at leading London Solicitor's firm

"It was a difficult case with a particularly vulnerable client and anxious family members. You dealt with everything extremely professionally and conscientiously. I am very grateful for all the effort and care you put into the case.....

Feedback from Instructing Solicitor.

.....You are a credit to your profession and your Chambers. I look forward to working with you in the future."

FEEDBACK FROM INSTRUCTING SOLICITOR.

Professional Panel Appointments

  • Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) General Crime Advocate Panel: Level 2.
  • Government Legal Service (GLD): Junior Junior appointed panel counsel.

Criminal Defence

Meeno has a busy defence practice and is regularly instructed in the Crown Court and Magistrates’ Courts dealing with a wide range of offences including drugs, fraud, robbery, domestic violence and sexual crimes.

She has experience in dealing with young and vulnerable defendants in the youth courts and has completed specialist training with the Youth Justice Legal Centre.

Criminal Prosecutions - Private & Public

Meeno accepts instructions to prosecute on behalf of the Crown Prosecution Service and Probation Service. She continues to build upon her experience prosecuting in the Crown Court and Magistrates’ Courts. Meeno regularly prosecutes on behalf of the Insolvency Service. 

Meeno is regularly instructed by the Insolvency Service to prosecute individuals and company directors for fraud, reusing the company name after insolvency, and failing to keep company records, amongst other offences. 

Meeno is on the CPS General Crime Advocate Panel at level 2.

Extradition & International

Meeno is keen to develop her extradition practice and accepts instructions in this area. She has been instructed to act on behalf of clients facing extradition to several different countries.

Interpol

Asset Forfeiture, Confiscation & Civil Fraud

Meeno accepts instructions in Proceeds of Crime.

Meeno appears at enforcement proceedings at the Magistrates’ Court concerning the activation of default sentences for the non-payment of confiscation orders. 

Professional Discipline & Regulatory

Meeno accepts instructions in professional discipline. She has completed her Nursing and Midwifery Council training and is eligible to take on cases on their behalf. 

Family & Children

Meeno accepts instructions in family matters. 

International Family

Additional information

Prior to commencing pupillage, Meeno worked as a paralegal at the Crown Prosecution Service based at Isleworth Crown Court. She gained considerable experience in all Crown Court cases, ranging from driving offences to serious violence, sex offences to murder. Meeno was seconded to the Central Criminal Court and was part of the prosecution team in several high-profile murder cases, which includes the murder of the two sisters Bibaa Henry & Nicole Smallman (Wembley Park stabbings). 

Meeno was a case manager on the Innocence Project and worked on miscarriages of justice. She represented an individual who was convicted of robbery and was challenging his conviction based of mistaken identity. Also, Meeno worked at Ealing Equality Council where she assisted on matters social security, housing and debt issues. 

Additionally, Meeno is the first Afghan Sikh to be Called to the Bar of England and Wales. She has published several articles about her journey to the Bar in ‘The Youth Law Journal’, ‘The Middle Templar Magazine’ and ‘The Lawyer’. 

Education and Awards

  • The University of Portsmouth: Upper Second Class.
  • University of Law: BPTC: Very Competent.

Scholarships

  • The Nicholas Pumfrey Memorial Scholarship: Middle Temple.

Professional Memberships

  • Defence Extradition Lawyers Forum (DELF).
  • Women in Criminal Law (WICL).
  • Criminal Bar Association (CBA).
  • Fellow at the Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA).
  • Sikhs in Law .

Cases of Note

Crime Defence:

R v K [2022]

Successfully made submissions on Crown’s disclosure failures and Crown offered no evidence.

R v I [2022]

Represented a Defendant charged with burglary non-dwelling. Jury were hung and Crown offered no evidence.

R v T [2022]

Represented a Defendant charged with assaulting a security guard who had mistaken the Defendant to be someone else and then assaulted him. Meeno successfully got an acquittal.

R v TY [2023]

Successfully secured a stand-alone suspended order for a Defendant who pleaded guilty to sexual assault.

R v AJ [2023]

Defendant was convicted of sexual assault after trial. The case was committed for sentence to the Crown Court, the judge was minded to give him a longer sentence but with Meeno’s submissions, he was sentenced to 4 months custody.

Extradition

Poland v M [2022]

Meeno made submissions on Article 8 grounds, which successfully secured discharge for client who was due to be extradited to Poland.