Eleanor Lucas specialises in criminal law, public inquiries, and inquests.
In her criminal practice, Eleanor prosecutes and defends, appearing in the Crown Courts in relation to a wide range of criminal matters, acting as both a junior alone and a led junior. Recent instructions have included murder and GBH, serious sexual offences including rape and historic child sex offences, weapons offences, and drug offences. Eleanor is a Grade 3 CPS prosecutor. She was instructed for a number of years by Peters & Peters as junior counsel in relation to the Post Office ‘Horizon’ Appeals, reviewing hundreds of convictions originating from the Post Office’s use of data from the Horizon computer system in prosecutions between 2000 and 2014. Eleanor appeared in the Court of Appeal with Simon Baker KC in the case of Hawkes & Others v Post Office Ltd [2022] EWCA Crim 1197.
In her work on public inquiries, Eleanor was instructed on behalf of Post Office Ltd in relation to the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry, chaired by Sir Wyn Williams. She is currently instructed on behalf of the UK Health Security Agency in relation to the UK Covid-19 Inquiry, chaired by the Rt Hon Baroness Hallett. Eleanor acts for families and other Interested Persons in inquest proceedings, most recently acting as a led junior for the family in a five-week Article 2 inquest concerning the death of an individual in prison.
Eleanor has a busy and varied defence practice and acts both alone and as a led junior. She has experience acting in complex and multi-handed matters. Her recent instructions include murder and GBH, serious sexual offences including rape and historic child sex offences, weapons offences, and drug offences. Eleanor has also defended military personnel in Court Martial proceedings.
Eleanor has completed the Vulnerable Witness Training course at Middle Temple and has experience handling vulnerable witnesses in sensitive cases.
R v KJ
Led junior for first defendant in multi-handed multi-kilo conspiracy to supply cocaine via EncroChat.
R v AC
Led junior for a defendant charged with 27 historic child sex offences including rape of a child under 13.
TPR MN
Successfully defended a British Army soldier in a two-handed trial at Bulford Court Martial Centre. Eleanor’s client faced charges of racially aggravated burglary, conduct prejudicial to good order and service discipline, two charges of racially aggravated battery, and three charges of battery. At the conclusion of the trial, Eleanor’s client was acquitted of all charges he faced.
R v JH
Defence counsel for defendant charged with S18 wounding and assault emergency worker at actus reus trial. Crown agreed to offer no evidence in relation to the latter charge following cross-examination of the police officer.
R v ML
Led junior for first defendant in multi-handed multi-kilo conspiracy to supply cocaine via EncroChat.
Eleanor is currently instructed on behalf of the UK Health Security Agency in relation to the UK Covid-19 Inquiry. She previously worked on Module 5, which related to procurement, and is currently instructed on Module 8, which relates to children and young people.
Eleanor was instructed for a number of years as junior counsel for Post Office Ltd in relation to the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry chaired by Sir Wyn Williams. She was instructed on Phase 4, which related to actions against sub-postmasters and others: policy making, audits and investigations, civil and criminal proceedings, knowledge of and responsibility for, failures in investigation and disclosure.
Eleanor acts for families and other Interested Persons at inquest hearings. Most recently, she acted as a led junior on behalf of the family in a five-week Article 2 jury inquest relating to an individual who died in prison.
Inquest into the death of DG
Acted as a led junior with King’s Counsel for the family of DG, who died in prison while suffering a relapse of paranoid schizophrenia and symptoms of psychosis. The jury found that DG’s death was probably contributed to more than minimally by failures on the part of the Psychiatric Liaison Team in hospital prior to DG’s remand in custody, as well as subsequent failures by the prison.
Inquest into the death of CN
Acted for the Trust in an inquest into the death of CN, who had a long-term diagnosis of schizophrenia and took his own life.
Inquest into the death of ON
Acted for the GP Practice in an inquest into the death of ON, a university student who took his own life whilst suffering from a mental health crisis.
Inquest into the death of SM
Acted for the Trust in an inquest into the death of SM, who took his own life whilst under significant stress due to an ongoing disciplinary investigation by his employer.
Inquest into the death of AC
Acted for a supermarket in an inquest into the death of AC who died as a result of a brain injury sustained during a fall in store.
Eleanor was instructed for a number of years by Peters & Peters as junior counsel in relation to the Post Office ‘Horizon’ Appeals, reviewing hundreds of convictions originating from the Post Office’s use of data from the Horizon computer system in prosecutions between 2000 and 2014.
Hawkes & Others v Post Office Ltd [2022] EWCA Crim 1197
Appeared, led by Simon Baker KC, on behalf of the Post Office in Hawkes & Others in which the convictions of five sub-postmasters were overturned.
Eleanor is a Grade 3 CPS prosecutor and regularly acts for the CPS in a wide range of matters. She previously spent three months on secondment to CPS London South, where she worked as a Senior Crown Prosecutor on the Prosecution Review Unit. Eleanor was responsible for charging decisions, reviewing cases pre-trial, and prosecuting trials on behalf of the CPS. Eleanor also prosecutes on behalf of local authorities.
R v GA
Prosecuted defendant for arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered and false imprisonment.
LBI v AH
Prosecuted both an individual and limited company for multiple food hygiene offences on behalf of the local authority.
R v JC
Successfully prosecuted defendant charged with s.18 GBH against an elderly man.
R v MS
Successfully prosecuted defendant charged with sexually assaulting two women in separate but identical attacks.
Scholarships/Awards
It has long been recognised that youths in the criminal justice system require a different…
We are delighted to announce that Harry Laidlaw and Eleanor Lucas, both formerly of 2 Bedford Row, have…
