Well, firstly congratulations of winning Chambers of the Year Award at the Lawyer Awards in June this year. What do you think differentiated your Set from other leading chambers in the mix?

I think it was down to our initiative in the Middle East, our public access work and overall our continual growth in the marketplace. We've also performed consistently well in the increasingly prominent areas of Banking & Finance and Professional Regulation, as well as Employment and continued to increase our standing in core chambers areas such as Pensions and Health and Safety. Overall we have increased our directory rankings across the board and seen an increase of 45% of members listed in major directories. Furthermore in our submissions we showed the innovative way we structured chambers, with a well structured clerks room complimented by a much improved and creative approach to the non clerking activities in chambers facilitated by the arrival of Christine Kings as Commercial Director. Her arrival has greatly strengthened the Executive Management Team. We have also revised entirely the way the barristers manage chambers with a three way split: Philip Mott QC is remaining as Head of Chambers, Michael Bowes QC takes charge of Service Development while Richard Lissack QC is taking a newly created role in chambers which is Head of Strategic Development, dealing with the outward face of chambers. It is progress on all fronts.

Outer Temple is one of the first Sets to open in the Gulf. You have an office in Abu Dhabi, and you're considering Dubai and Oman. Why the Middle East?

We looked at it on the basis that a number of chambers have already made an impact in jurisdictions like Hong Kong and Singapore, and New York is for us a long term project. We felt that for a Set as ambitious and creative in its approach to business the emerging legal market in the Gulf seemed logical. Abu Dhabi was chosen because it is the seat of much of the real economic power in the region and pretty sophisticated in its approach to business: we saw the opportunity to make a big impact there. The way the legal system is developing in Abu Dhabi mirrors the strengths we have in chambers.

How has it gone logistically?

It has gone well. We are actively joint pitching at the moment with our local law firm affiliate Salloum & Co, particularly with financial institutions, were trying to set the precedent for how the future structure will be rolled out. Operating under the umbrella of the Salloum license has enabled us to operate freely. We share offices on a reciprocal basis in the region and in London. I have personally worked with Salloum & Co. to set up systems for them that will enable them to be in line with our system in London.

What key challenges are you experiencing in your early days out there?

Gaining the trust and respect of the local business community is imperative and working with Salloum & Co has been beneficial in this regard. Adapting to the different business cultures is key. Approaching our first anniversary we are pleased with results to date and are on line to achieve the goals we set in our 3 yr plan. This includes ultimately having a team of barristers in the region permanently.

How far does chambers want to take their international strategy?

Our US connection is strong via Gerard McDermott QC, Richard Lissack QC, Andrew Spink QC and Robert-Jan Temmink, two are called to the New York Bar. We are now seeing work starting to come through from the US. Seven members of chambers are admitted to the DIFC Courts. In the BVI we have members working closely with a firm there and are looking at further developing BVI work. We are also developing our European network which bodes well for public access work, the objective is to focus on our core existing international network.

Why has Outer Temple embraced direct access work more noticeably than other sets?

I've particularly taken an interest in pushing this as we saw an opportunity, with the Legal Services Act coming, this has been integral to the direction chambers is going in. All of the clerks and 46 out of the 67 members have been trained, 1/2m revenue came from direct access work last year. Public Access is a huge part of chambers strategy going forward and within the set there is a tremendous sense of energy in seeking out opportunities.

What benefits has chambers experienced from this initiative?

The referral business is the most exciting thing to come out of this as it will build and strengthen relationships with a wider base of solicitors. Referral business is the key here as it changes the dynamic between the solicitor/barrister relationship, and for us, further referral work has resulted.

What encourages you most about the changes taking place at the Bar?

A real opportunity for a progressive and innovative set such as ours to be able to move up to join the magic circle sets. The Legal Services Act will be hugely helpful as it unshackles us and Sets that have a vision for the future are those that will grow and strengthen.

Derek Jenkins, Business Development Director of Outer Temple Chambers was interviewed by Guy Hewetson and Anil Shah, of LPA Legal Recruitment's Barristers Chambers division, for Counsel Magazine (October 2008)