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  • "Robin is brilliant. He has a fabulous manner, is a good writer and is able to analyse and simplify the situation. He is a strong and persuasive advocate."

    Chambers UK Bar, 2026

  • "Robin's advocacy is praised by clients, and he's very effective at unravelling cases via cross-examination. He is also approachable and very easy to work with."

    Chambers UK Bar, 2026

  • "He is serene under fire."

    Chambers UK Bar, 2025

  • "Robin was able both to bring a sense of calm and energy on his feet and to quickly and efficiently dismantle the arguments of the other side. He is very inventive and insightful."

    Chambers UK Bar, 2026

  • "Robin is a brilliant barrister."

    Chambers UK Bar, 2026

  • "Robin has a wealth of knowledge in his field and an impressive advocacy style."

    Legal 500, 2026

  • "Robin Kingham is a great communicator. He is able to explain things clearly and transmit them to writing."

    Chambers UK Bar, 2024

    • Robin is a specialist regulatory barrister. He represents corporate clients and regulators in complex litigation, enforcement proceedings, and investigations. His work spans consumer law, financial services regulation, and life sciences regulation.

    He is ranked by the legal directories as a leading practitioner in seven areas:

    • Banking and finance (including consumer credit)
    • Business and regulatory crime (including global investigations)
    • Consumer finance
    • Consumer law
    • Financial services and fintech regulation
    • Health and safety
    • Life sciences regulatory
    • Consumer

      Robin is ranked as a leading practitioner in Consumer Law by Chambers & Partners. In 2023, he was shortlisted for the Legal 500 Group Litigation and Consumer Junior of the Year Award.

      Robin acts across the full spectrum of consumer protection work. He advises and represents clients in CMA investigations, Trading Standards prosecutions, and ASA investigations. His recent experience includes supporting a corporate client through a CMA investigation, assisting with written submissions and developing a mitigation strategy that contributed to a significantly reduced penalty.

      He also has extensive experience in major Trading Standards prosecutions and ASA challenges involving advertising claims and marketing practices. Many of his consumer matters involve technical issues related to product claims and regulatory standards, complementing his wider work in food and life sciences regulation.

      Robin is regularly instructed to advise businesses on unfair contract terms, unfair commercial practices, pricing practices, distance selling, cancellation rights, and consumer rights.

      Robin is a contributing editor of Consumer and Trading Standards: Law and Practice, 4th-12th editions (“the Pink Book”) and editor of the Consumer and Trading Law Cases law reports (2015 – 2018, 2024 – present). He has delivered seminars on related subjects, including to the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, and is a regular contributor to Gough Square Live.

      Selected cases include:

      • Competition and Markets Authority v a Retail Group (2022): advised a major retail group subject to a CMA investigation (led by Jonathan Kirk KC).
      • National Trading Standards v Chique Makeovers & Photography Ltd, Earnshaw, and Crainer (Hull Crown Court) (2022): NTS prosecution of a company and two directors for offences under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. The case involved 48 complainant witnesses and a complex financial investigation (press coverage here) (sole counsel).
      • Re Covid-19 Pricing Practices (2020): advised two national regulators on price gouging during the Covid-19 pandemic. This was a high-level regulatory advice considering the regulators’ powers under existing consumer law to address sharp increases in retail prices for certain health products during the pandemic (together with Daniel Brayley).
      • National Trading Standards v Kingstown Associates Ltd (York Crown Court / York & Selby Magistrates Court) (2020): NTS e-Crime Team prosecution of a company for two charges of engaging in unfair commercial practices banned under Schedule 1 of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. Conviction on both charges following trial resulted in a £150,000 fine plus prosecution costs (upheld on appeal) (press coverage here) (sole counsel).
    • Consumer finance

      Robin has in-depth knowledge of consumer credit law. He is ranked as a leading practitioner in Consumer Finance by Chambers & Partners and in Banking & Finance (including Consumer Credit) by The Legal 500.

      Robin has expertise in retail lending requirements and compliance with the technical requirements of the Consumer Credit Act 1974, its subordinate regulations, and CONC. He represents retail lenders and high street banks in consumer credit cases across England & Wales on an essentially constant basis.

      In 2020, he appeared in the landmark month-long payday lending test case of Kerrigan v Elevate Credit International Ltd T/A Sunny [2020] EWHC 2169 (Comm) (led by Ruth Bala). The case remains one of the leading authorities on the unfair relationship regime under ss.140A-C of the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

      Robin is the co-editor (together with Fred Philpott) of Consumer Credit, Atkin’s Court Forms, Vol 11(2) (2023). He and Fred also jointly edit Consumer Credit, The Encyclopaedia of Forms and Precedents, Vol 12(1)A (2023). Robin is also the author of the chapter on the Consumer Credit Sourcebook (CONC) in the Practitioner’s Guide to the UK’s Financial Services Rulebooks.

      Selected cases include:

      • Kerrigan & ors v Elevate Credit International Ltd T/A Sunny [2020] EWHC 2169 (Comm): acted for the defendant in this landmark month-long payday lending test case (led by Ruth Bala).
      • Notting Hill Finance Ltd v Sheikh [2019] 4 W.L.R. 146; [2019] EWCA Civ 1337: represented the respondent in a procedural appeal arising out of a bridging loan. The Court of Appeal’s judgment resulted in substantive amendment to the relevant White Book commentary (sole counsel).
    • Financial services

      Twice seconded to the Financial Conduct Authority, Robin undertakes the full scope of advisory, drafting, and court work in this area. Robin regularly advises and acts for firms and individuals in their dealings with the FCA relating to enforcement, supervision, and authorisation issues. He is ranked as a leading practitioner in Financial Services and Fintech Regulation by The Legal 500.

      Robin has significant advocacy experience in this area, appearing as sole counsel on behalf of firms in contested matters before the FCA’s Regulatory Decisions Committee (RDC) and the Upper Tribunal.

      Robin is one of the two general editors of The Encyclopedia of Financial Services Law (Sweet & Maxwell), one of the two authors of Financial Services Litigation (Oxford University Press), a contributing author to A Practitioner’s Guide to the UK Financial Services Rulebooks (Sweet & Maxwell), and author of a number of published articles on related topics.

      Selected cases include:

      • Financial Conduct Authority v a Firm (RDC / UT) (2020): represented a firm facing imposition of an OIREQ in oral representations before the FCA’s Regulatory Decisions Committee and on reference to the Upper Tribunal (sole counsel).
      • Joanne Properties Ltd v Moneything Capital Ltd & anr [2020] EWCA Civ 1541: successfully represented the appellant in the Court of Appeal in a case involving a disputed settlement agreement arising out of a corporate financing arrangement (sole counsel).
    • Life sciences and food

      Robin is ranked as one of the few leading practitioners in Life Sciences Regulatory by Chambers & Partners. He has extensive experience representing businesses in regulatory investigations, criminal prosecutions, and judicial review proceedings.

      Robin advises and represents clients in their dealings with local and national regulators, including the FSA and the MHRA – often in matters involving the regulatory classification of products (e.g. novel foods, borderline medicinal products, and traditional herbal medicines).

      His expertise covers a wide range of life sciences matters, including:

      • Borderline medicinal products
      • Cannabidiol (CBD) and medical cannabis
      • Cosmetics
      • Food standards
      • Food supplements
      • Health and nutrition claims
      • Novel foods
      • Tobacco products
      • Traditional herbal medicines
      • Vaping products

      Selected cases include:

      • R v Z Ltd (2025): represented an online food retailer in criminal proceedings concerning the alleged sale of novel foods (Ashwagandha, CBD, and Cordyceps) and use of unauthorised health/nutrition claims. Written representations resulted in the prosecution offering no evidence in relation to the majority of the charges brought (sole counsel).
      • Odysea Ltd v London Borough of Waltham Forest [2024] UKFTT 157 (GRC): successfully represented a food retailer in what is believed to be the first UK case considering use of the term “raw honey”. The judgment disapproved national guidance issued by the Association of Chief Trading Standards Officers (ACTSO) (press coverage here) (sole counsel).
      • R (Healthspan Ltd) v Food Standards Authority (High Court, Admin) (2022): judicial review of the FSA’s regulatory amnesty concerning Cannabidiol (CBD) products. This was the first such policy implemented by the FSA since the transfer of responsibility for novel foods regulation from EFSA and the European Commission following Brexit (led by Jonathan Kirk KC).
    • Product safety and liability

      Robin has a strong track record in product safety enforcement and compliance, acting for both corporate clients and regulators in criminal proceedings, regulatory investigations, and related civil challenges. His work spans a wide range of industries (including toys, cosmetics, and construction products) and involves advising on both UK and EU product safety regimes.

      Robin is the former author of the criminal law chapter in Miller: Product Liability and Safety Encyclopaedia. He has delivered seminars on related subjects, including to the Chartered Trading Standards Institute and the Office of Product Safety and Standards, and is a regular contributor to Gough Square Live.

    • Business and regulatory crime

      Robin is an experienced trial advocate and regularly appears in the Crown Court. Known for providing clear strategic advice, he is instructed by a wide range of corporate, institutional, and public sector clients. Robin is ranked as a leading practitioner in Business and Regulatory Crime (including Global Investigations) by The Legal 500.

      Particular experience includes:

      • Companies Act 2006 offences
      • Fraud
      • Fraudulent trading
      • Money laundering
      • Proceeds of crime

      Selected cases include:

      • National Trading Standards v Gall & Parvez (Bristol Crown Court) (2025): NTS prosecution of two men charged with fraudulent trading in connection with operating over 40 misleading websites re-selling government services at inflated prices. The business generated over £2.25m in revenue between January 2018 and November 2019 (press coverage here) (led by Stuart Jessop).
      • National Trading Standards v Grigg & ors (Leeds Crown Court) (2024): NTS prosecution of five company directors charged with entering into an international money laundering arrangement to disperse the proceeds of a £1.2m fraud. All five defendants were convicted following a four-week trial (press coverage here) (led by Jonathan Goulding).
      • Choi v Park & Park [2019] EWHC 3191 (QB): civil fraud and conspiracy claim arising out of a commercial property transaction. Successfully represented the claimant at trial in the QBD (sole counsel).
      • National Trading Standards v Arif & ors (Leeds Crown Court) (2019): NTS prosecution of two individuals charged with fraudulent trading and money laundering following three-week trial. The defendants had participated in a sophisticated fraud perpetrated on merchant service providers through the exploitation of the charge back system and then laundered the proceeds through a telecoms company (led by Cameron Crowe).
    • Health & safety

      Robin is ranked as a leading practitioner in Health and Safety by the Legal 500. He brings in-depth regulatory expertise and courtroom experience to complex enforcement work – often at the intersection of product safety and mainstream health & safety regulation.

      Robin represents businesses, regulators, and individuals in matters involving corporate risk, regulatory compliance, and health and safety enforcement. He is well placed to assist both businesses and regulators in Crown Court prosecutions, inquests, and related High Court challenges.

    • Professional disciplinary

      Robin acts in serious professional disciplinary proceedings across a range of sectors. He advises professionals from the earliest stages of investigation through to contested hearings and appeals, combining technical understanding of complex regulatory regimes with a calm and strategic approach to advocacy. He has particular experience of matters before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal, the Financial Conduct Authority’s Regulatory Decisions Committee, and the Upper Tribunal.

      Selected cases include:

      • SRA v Junius Ho (2020) SDT 12115: successfully defended a prominent Hong Kong politician accused of inciting violence at a public rally (press coverage here and here) (sole counsel).
      • Financial Conduct Authority v a Firm (RDC / UT) (2020): represented a firm facing imposition of an OIREQ in oral representations before the FCA’s Regulatory Decisions Committee and on reference to the Upper Tribunal (sole counsel).
    • Events
    • News
    • Selected Cases
      • National Trading Standards v Gall & Parvez (Bristol Crown Court) (2025): successful NTS prosecution of two men charged with fraudulent trading in connection with operating over 40 misleading websites re-selling government services at inflated prices. The business generated over £2.25m in revenue between January 2018 and November 2019 (press coverage here) (led by Stuart Jessop);
      • R v Z Ltd (2025): represented an online food retailer in criminal proceedings concerning the alleged sale of novel foods (Ashwagandha, CBD, and Cordyceps) and use of unauthorised health/nutrition claims. Written representations resulted in the prosecution offering no evidence in relation to the majority of the charges brought (sole counsel);
      • National Trading Standards v Grigg & ors (Leeds Crown Court) (2024): successful NTS prosecution of five company directors charged with entering into an international money laundering arrangement to disperse the proceeds of a £1.2m consumer scam. All five defendants were convicted following a four-week trial (press coverage here) (led by Jonathan Goulding);
      • Odysea Ltd v London Borough of Waltham Forest [2024] UKFTT 157 (GRC): successfully represented a food retailer in what is believed to be the first UK case considering use of the term “raw honey”. The judgment disapproved national guidance issued by the Association of Chief Trading Standards Officers (ACTSO) (press coverage here) (sole counsel);
      • Competition and Markets Authority v a Retail Group (2022): advised a major retail group subject to a CMA investigation (led by Jonathan Kirk KC).
      • National Trading Standards v Chique Makeovers & Photography Ltd, Earnshaw, and Crainer (Hull Crown Court) (2022): successful NTS prosecution of a company and two directors for offences under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. The case involved 48 complainant witnesses and a complex financial investigation (press coverage here) (sole counsel);
      • R (Healthspan Ltd) v Food Standards Authority (High Court, Admin) (2022): judicial review of the FSA’s regulatory amnesty concerning Cannabidiol (CBD) products. This was the first such policy implemented by the FSA since the transfer of responsibility for novel foods regulation from EFSA and the European Commission following Brexit (led by Jonathan Kirk KC);
      • Re Covid-19 Pricing Practices (2020): advised two national regulators on price gouging during the Covid-19 pandemic. This was a high-level regulatory advice considering the regulators’ powers under existing consumer law to address sharp increases in retail prices for certain health products during the pandemic (together with Daniel Brayley).
      • Joanne Properties Ltd v Moneything Capital Ltd & anr [2020] EWCA Civ 1541: successfully represented the appellant in the Court of Appeal in a case involving a disputed settlement agreement arising out of a corporate financing arrangement (sole counsel);
      • Kerrigan & ors v Elevate Credit International Ltd T/A Sunny [2020] EWHC 2169 (Comm): acted for the defendant in this landmark month-long payday lending test case (led by Ruth Bala);
      • SRA v Junius Ho (2020) SDT 12115: successfully defended a prominent Hong Kong politician accused of inciting violence at a public rally (sole counsel);
      • Financial Conduct Authority v a Firm (RDC / UT) (2020): represented a firm facing imposition of an OIREQ in oral representations before the FCA’s Regulatory Decisions Committee and on reference to the Upper Tribunal (sole counsel);
      • Notting Hill Finance Ltd v Sheikh [2019] 4 W.L.R. 146; [2019] EWCA Civ 1337: successfully represented the respondent in a procedural appeal arising out of a commercial bridging loan. The Court of Appeal’s judgment resulted in substantive amendment to the relevant White Book commentary (sole counsel);
      • National Trading Standards v Kingstown Associates Ltd (York Crown Court / York & Selby Magistrates Court) (2020): prosecution on behalf of the National Trading Standards e-Crime Team (hosted by the City of York) of a company for two charges of engaging in unfair commercial practices banned under Schedule 1 of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. Conviction on both charges following trial resulted in a £150,000 fine plus prosecution costs (upheld on appeal) (press coverage here) (sole counsel);
      • Choi v Park & Park [2019] EWHC 3191 (QB): civil fraud and conspiracy claim arising out of a commercial property sale. Successfully represented the claimant at trial in the QBD (sole counsel);
      • AB Ltd v CD Ltd (High Court, Ch D) (2019): acted for the claimant property developer in a c.£6 million claim for breach of a joint venture agreement (led by Simon Popplewell);
      • National Trading Standards v Arif & ors (Leeds Crown Court) (2019): successful prosecution of two individuals charged with fraudulent trading and money laundering following three-week trial. The defendants had participated in a sophisticated fraud perpetrated on merchant service providers through the exploitation of the charge back system and then laundered the proceeds through a telecoms company (led by Cameron Crowe);
      • X v Y Ltd (High Court, QBD) (2018): successfully defended a major high street lender in contempt of court proceedings (sole counsel)
    • Publications

      Financial Services

      Consumer and Regulatory

    • Education, qualifications, memberships
      • Called Middle Temple 2013
      • BA in Jurisprudence at University of Oxford
      • Financial Services Lawyers Association
      • Food Law Group
    • Privacy Notice

      Robin’s privacy notice may be viewed here: Privacy Notice

    VAT number: 290 3275 06