Who is Hugo Keith KC? Wiki, Biography, Age, Net Worth, Wife, Family, Education & More

Hugo Keith KC (born 6 February 1967, Age: 56 years old) is a leading barrister and joint head of chambers at Three Raymond Buildings in London. He is recognized as one of the legal profession’s leading KCs and has been involved in some of the most high-profile cases of recent years. He is currently the lead counsel for the UK public inquiry into the Covid-19 pandemic.

Early Life and Education

Hugo Keith KC was born on 6 February 1967 in Edinburgh, Scotland. He is the son of Henry Keith, Baron Keith of Kinkel, a former judge and law lord, and his wife Jean. He has two brothers, James and Malcolm, and a sister, Fiona. He attended Eton College and then Magdalen College, Oxford, where he studied jurisprudence and graduated with an MA Hons degree in 1989.

Hugo Keith KC Wiki/Bio

Career and Achievements

Hugo Keith KC began his career as a barrister in 1989 and joined Three Raymond Buildings, a set of chambers specializing in criminal, public, and international law. He became a member of the King’s Counsel (KC) in 2009, after winning the Chambers and Partners award for criminal barrister of the year in 2008. He was appointed a Bencher of Gray’s Inn in 2013 and became the joint head of chambers at Three Raymond Buildings in 2015.

He was a member of the ‘A’ Panel of civil Treasury Counsel for eight years, during which time he regularly appeared on matters of public and criminal law both on behalf of government departments and as amicus curiae before the High Court, Court of Appeal, and House of Lords. He has appeared in 15 cases before the House of Lords/Supreme Court.

Notable Cases

He has been instructed in some of the most high-profile cases of recent years, including:

• Representing Princess Anne when she was prosecuted for a dog attack in 2002, and becoming the first member of the royal family to be convicted of a criminal offence.
• Representing The Queen in the inquest into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, in 2007-2008.
• Representing Malcolm Calvert, a former partner at Cazenove, in the insider dealing case in 2010.
• Being appointed the leading counsel to the inquests into the London bombings of 7 July 2005, in 2010-2011.
• Appearing in the Leveson Inquiry on behalf of Rebekah Brooks, the former editor of The Sun and News of the World, in 2011-2012.

• Appearing in the inquests into the deaths of Mark Duggan, Alexander Litvinenko, and the Westminster Bridge terrorist attack, in 2013-2018.
• Representing the Home Secretary in the El-Gizouli judicial review, concerning the mutual legal assistance request for one of the ‘Jihadi Beatles’, in 2018-2019.
• Representing the Electoral Commission in its proceedings against Leave.EU, the pro-Brexit campaign group, in 2019-2020.
• Appearing on behalf of Airbus, the European aerospace company, in the largest deferred prosecution agreement yet concluded, in 2020.
• Advising Chelsea FC about aspects of its sale from Roman Abramovich to Todd Boehly, in 2022.

He is also an expert on extradition, international criminal/corporate liability, sanctions, and criminal judicial review. He has represented clients in some of the most notable extradition and mutual legal assistance cases, such as:

• Berezovsky, the Russian oligarch and political opponent of Vladimir Putin, was wanted for fraud and money laundering in Russia.
• US v Bermingham, the Natwest Three, who were extradited to the US for their involvement in the Enron scandal.
• Abu Hamza, the radical cleric and former imam of Finsbury Park Mosque, was extradited to the US for terrorism charges.
• Gary McKinnon, the computer hacker who accessed US military and NASA systems, was not extradited to the US after a long legal battle.
• Shrien Dewani, the British businessman who was accused of murdering his wife Anni on their honeymoon in South Africa, was extradited to South Africa and later cleared of all charges.
• Hamdi Ipek, the Turkish businessman and media owner, was wanted for alleged links to the failed coup attempt in Turkey in 2016.

High Profile Clients

He has successfully defended clients in every extradition case in which he has been instructed against the Russian State. He is also a recognized specialist on sanctions law and has been consulted by many of London’s leading law firms and by a significant number of global businessmen, industrialists, and corporations about their sanctions exposure. He is acting on behalf of several sanctioned individuals in connection with their challenges to the UK Government.

In the field of financial and international crime, he advised on the UK’s first deferred prosecution agreement (Standard Bank Plc) and appeared in two of the most recent deferred prosecution agreements (Guralp Systems Limited and Airbus). He has been involved on behalf of individuals or corporate bodies in a large number of the Serious Fraud Office’s highest-profile investigations of recent years, such as LIBOR, EURIBOR, FOREX, Alstom, Autonomy, Rolls Royce, Tesco, Unaoil, and ENRC. He is an expert on search and seizure, restraint and confiscation, and appeared in the leading cases of Rawlinson & Hunter Trustees and Others (search warrants), Golfrate (search warrant), Malabu Oil and Gas (international MLA restraint) and SFO v Zlochevsky (restraint against overseas Minister).

He is currently the lead counsel for the UK public inquiry into the Covid-19 pandemic, which was announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in May 2023. He is responsible for giving independent legal advice to Baroness Hallett, the chair of the inquiry, presenting evidence, questioning witnesses, and leading the wider counsel team. He has been questioning former government officials, advisers, and ministers, such as Dominic Cummings, Matt Hancock, and Boris Johnson, about their handling of the pandemic.

Marriage, Spouse & Kids

Hugo Keith is married to Lottie Keith, a former model and actress, who is the daughter of the 4th Baron Farnham. They have three children, Henry, Alice, and Edward. They live in a Georgian house in Chelsea, London, and also own a country estate in Norfolk. He is a keen golfer and enjoys skiing and shooting.

Net worth

His net worth is estimated to be around £10 million, according to various sources. He earns a substantial income from his legal practice, as well as from his investments and properties. He is also a beneficiary of his father’s estate, which was valued at £6.5 million in 2002.

How the Covid Inquiry is Wasting Millions on Lawyers and Lefties

 The article claims that the inquiry is spending £750,000 a day on lawyers and solicitors and that the lead counsel, Hugo Keith KC, is charging up to £220 an hour. It also accuses him of being smug, arrogant, and biased towards the left-wing Labour Party. The article questions the independence and the value of the inquiry and suggests that it is a waste of taxpayers’ money.

What is the Covid Inquiry?

The Covid Inquiry is a public inquiry into the UK government’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, which was announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in May 2023. The inquiry is chaired by Baroness Hallett, a former Court of Appeal judge, and is expected to last for two years. The inquiry aims to examine the causes, the response, and the lessons learned from the pandemic, which has killed more than 200,000 people in the UK.

The inquiry will hear evidence from witnesses, such as former and current government officials, advisers, ministers, scientists, health workers, and bereaved families. The inquiry will also review documents, data, and reports related to the pandemic. The inquiry will produce a final report with findings and recommendations for the future.

Why is the inquiry spending so much on lawyers?

The inquiry has hired a team of lawyers to assist the chair and the panel in conducting the inquiry. The lawyers are responsible for giving independent legal advice, presenting evidence, questioning witnesses, and leading the wider counsel team.

The lawyers are also representing the interests of the inquiry and its participants in any legal proceedings, such as judicial reviews or appeals. The inquiry has also appointed solicitors to provide administrative and logistical support, such as managing the documents, the data, and the communications.

The inquiry has also allowed some of the core participants, such as government departments, public bodies, and individuals, to have their legal representation, which is funded by the inquiry. The inquiry has stated that it is committed to ensuring that the legal costs are reasonable and proportionate and that it will publish the details of the expenditure on its website.

Who is Hugo Keith KC and why is he criticised?

Hugo Keith KC is a leading barrister and joint head of chambers at Three Raymond Buildings in London. He is recognized as one of the legal profession’s leading KCs and has been involved in some of the most high-profile cases of recent years. He is currently the lead counsel for the Covid Inquiry, which means that he is the main lawyer who advises the chair, presents the evidence, and questions the witnesses.

He is paid £220 an hour for his work, which is the highest rate allowed by the inquiry. He has been criticized by the Daily Mail for being smug, arrogant, and biased towards the left-wing Labour Party.

The article claims that he has a history of defending Labour politicians, such as Rebekah Brooks in the Leveson Inquiry, and attacking Conservative politicians, such as Boris Johnson and Dominic Cummings in the Covid Inquiry. The article also accuses him of being rude, aggressive, and disrespectful to the witnesses, and of trying to score political points rather than finding the truth.

Hugo Keith KC is a leading barrister and joint head of chambers at Three Raymond Buildings in London. He is recognised as one of the legal profession’s leading KC’s and has been involved in some of the most high-profile cases of recent years. He is currently the lead counsel for the UK public inquiry into the Covid-19 pandemic. He was born in Edinburgh in 1967 and studied at Eton College and Magdalen College, Oxford. He became a barrister in 1989 and a member of the King’s Counsel in 2009. He has appeared in 15 cases before the House of Lords/Supreme Court and has represented clients in various fields of law, such as public, criminal, extradition, international, financial, and sanctions law. He is married to Lottie and has three children. His net worth is estimated to be around £10 million.

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