Lily Walker-Parr

Lily joined Chambers in 2019 and represents both claimants and defendants across all areas of Chambers’ practice, including libel, misuse of private information, data protection, reporting restrictions and open justice, copyright, contempt and harassment by publication.

Lily has significant experience providing pre-publication legal and regulatory advice in respect of print, broadcast and social media. Her clients include leading publishing houses, newspapers, broadcasters, academic journals, and PR for companies, public figures and celebrities. She has worked as a night lawyer for The Times, legalled live broadcasts on TalkTV, and spent two years on secondment at Channel 5 advising in respect of the production and content of over 200 commissioned shows.

Lily has appeared in the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, High Court and County Court and has experience of trials, injunctions and complex interlocutory hearings. She is ranked as ‘Up and Coming’ in defamation and privacy in Chambers and Partners 2024, where she is described as “a surprisingly bold advocate for her years”.

Examples of recent work include:

Misuse of Private Information and Breach of Confidence

• Phone Hacking Litigation (2022): Acting for Mirror Group Newspapers (D) in claims brought by numerous celebrities and other individuals concerning accusations of unlawful news-gathering activities, including voicemail interception and blagging.
• Blauel v John: Settlement following a claim for breach of a Non-Disclosure Agreement against the Claimant’s ex-husband, Sir Elton John (for C, led by Adam Wolanski KC).

Reporting restrictions

• Hinduja v Hinduja [2022] EWCA Civ 1492: Partially successful appeal against a decision to lift a reporting restriction in the Court of Protection, in proceedings concerning one of the UK’s wealthiest families (for A (as media law counsel), with Sam Chandler and led by David Rees KC of 5 Stone Buildings).

Libel

• Mueen-Uddin v SSHD: (Judgment outstanding) Instructed to appear in the Supreme Court on an appeal against the striking out of C’s libel and data protection claim in respect of an allegation, published in a Government report, that C was a war criminal. The appeal examined the doctrines of Hunter and Jameel abuse of process and the correct application of the ‘rule in Dingle’ (for C/A, led by Jacob Dean).
• Wright v McCormack: Twitter libel case concerning an allegation that C had fraudulently claimed to be Satoshi Nakamoto, the inventor of bitcoin (for C, with Greg Callus. Led by Adam Wolanski KC to trial and Lord (David) Wolfson KC in the Court of Appeal):
  • The PTR decision considered a number of complex substantive and procedural issues, including the applicability of the ‘rule in Dingle‘ to serious harm under s.1 of the Defamation Act 2013 ([2021] EWHC 2671 (QB); [2022] E.M.L.R. 10).
  • C succeeded on liability following a 3-day trial in May 2022 ([2022] EWHC 2068 (QB); [2023] E.M.L.R. 2).
  • C’s appeal against the nominal damages award was refused, but the CA examined the circumstances in which a libel claimant’s general damages could be reduced due to litigation conduct ([2023] EWCA Civ 892; [2023] E.M.L.R. 20).
• Obtained permission to serve a libel claim outside the jurisdiction, in Ghana, under CPR rr.6.36 and 6.38, and s.9 of the Defamation Act 2013 (for C).
• Security for costs ordered against a claimant holding company based in the Marshall Islands, with an unless Order that the claim be struck out in default of payment. Claim subsequently struck out with costs (for D).
• Sykes v Shaw: Statement in Open Court read following settlement of a libel claim involving serious allegations made in a Facebook post (for C).
• Wright v Granath [2021] EWCA Civ 28; [2021] 4 W.L.R. 24: An appeal regarding the application of the lis pendens provisions of the Lugano Convention in personality rights claims, where the defendant applies for Negative Declaratory Relief in another signatory state (for C/A, with Greg Callus and led by Adam Wolanski KC).
• Wright v Ver [2019] EWHC 2094 (QB): A Twitter libel claim which considered the jurisdiction provisions in s.9 of the Defamation Act 2013 (for C, led by Adam Wolanski KC).

Data protection

• Cleary v Marston (Holdings) Ltd [2021] EWHC 3809 (QB); [2022] Costs L.R. 1451 – Appeared at the case management hearing in a claim for data protection, misuse of private information and breach of confidence. Nicklin J set down guidance for allocation and pleading low value data breach claims with overlapping causes of action (for C).

Legal commentary and seminars

Lily regularly hosts training seminars for media lawyers and journalists and writes on issues concerning media law. Recent publications include:

• “From privacy to publicity: controlling the disclosure of allegations of abuse in litigation” [2023] International Family Law, 77-81 – An article discussing transparency in the civil, family and criminal courts (co-authored with Adam Wolanski KC).
• Quarterly and weekly editions of the industry publication, ‘Zoom In’ magazine (as a Contributing Editor).
• Bullen, Jacob & Leakes’ Precedents of Pleadings (19th ed, 1st Supp) (Sections on Defamation and Malicious Falsehood) (co-authored with Jane Phillips, Kate Wilson and Ben Gallop).
• The JUSTICE Advisory Group’s response to the Government’s Consultation to reform the Human Rights Act 1998 – specifically on the issues concerning freedom of expression (co-authored with Sir Michael Tugendhat).
• “The transparency debate” [2022] International Family Law 148 – A letter to the Editors of the IFLJ, exploring the impact of transparency on the contrasting outcomes of the Depp v NGN (UK) and Depp v Heard (US) libel claims.
• Lexis®PSL case notes (covering the Bekoe v Mayor and Burgesses of the London Borough of Islington MPI and GDPR claim (2023), Bindel v PinkNews trial of preliminary issues (2021), Al Maktoum v Al Hussein RRO decision (2020), and Depp v NGN trial (2020)) and Information Law Practice Notes on injunctions and privacy law (as a member of the Lexis PSL Case Analysis Expert Panel).

Awards and scholarships

• Pegasus Trust Scholarship (USA 2022), Inns of Court, 2020
• Exhibition Award, Inner Temple, 2017
• Duke of Edinburgh Entrance Award, Inner Temple, 2017
• Advocacy Scholarship, University of Law, 2017
• Winner, Herbert Smith Freehills’ Moot, University of Bristol, 2017
• PASS Scholarship, Inner Temple, 2016
• Jeremy McMullen Award, Middle Temple, 2016

Additional experience

During pupillage, Lily’s supervisors were Jacob Dean, Christina Michalos KC and Adam Speker KC. She assisted members of chambers with a variety of court and advisory work, including a libel trial, a meaning hearing, a discontinuance hearing and an appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.

Lily has spent time at the BBC, Channel 5, The Sun and The Times and, prior to joining 5RB, interned with an international media defence charity and a production company.

Lily also mentors aspiring barristers from underrepresented backgrounds and regularly speaks at events concerning social mobility at the Bar. She is also a member of 5RB’s Equality and Diversity Committee and the Inner Temple’s Bar Liaison and Junior Bar Association Committees.