Anne Asfaw
Anne is a barrister specialising in criminal law, based in London. She brings prior experience in immigration law and in business and psychology. She was awarded a distinction on the Graduate Law Diploma from Nottingham Law School and she completed pupillage, a barrister’s apprenticeship, at a busy criminal set.
She has represented people from all over the world across the full range of immigration appeals work before the First and Upper Tier tribunals and across the criminal justice system, from the police station to the crown court and appeals. She has a particular interest in improvements to the youth justice system.
She is a persuasive advocate with a robust and committed approach to each and every case that she undertakes. In complex matters, against the odds, her calm tenacity has delivered results for clients who are pitted against the system.
Mindful of the strain caused by hearings, Anne puts clients at their ease to elicit their best evidence. She can harness personal stories and complex legal argument to make an impact on work-weary courtrooms and tribunals. She ensures non-English speakers are properly supported and can consult with French-speaking clients in their own language. She quickly identifies barriers for clients coping with traumatic experiences, mental illness and learning disabilities, which have sometimes lain previously undetected. She makes a point of harnessing other professionals who can assist the case. Her ability to decipher and navigate systems of support for her clients has helped her to focus the court’s mind on a positive, problem-solving approach, rather than a judgmental and punitive one.