Retirement at the end of a distinguished career

Hardwicke announces the retirement of Walter Aylen QC. Walter came to the Bar in 1962 and was appointed a Queen’s Counsel in 1983. We wish to celebrate his career of 49 years at the Bar by recording his professional highlights and his enormous contribution to chambers.

He was persuaded to join us in 1988 as part of our plan to expand and to move into new accommodation being built for us by Lincoln’s Inn. As soon as we moved to the new building Walter took over as head of chambers. He stayed in that role for a punishing 9 years and presided over the reformation of chambers: under his leadership we were one of the very first chambers to realise the need for professional management and we appointed our first chief executive in 1992; we expanded rapidly and quickly made the move to the present Hardwicke Building in 1996. His leadership laid all the all-important groundwork for Hardwicke journey to become a successful modern professional business.

His professional career was similarly distinguished: he was a deputy high court judge, deputy judge of the Technology & Construction Court and a Recorder. He was a bencher of Middle Temple and a member of the Bar Council. He appeared in a number of leading cases in the House of Lords and the Court of Appeal, and came from a generation of advocates that made him as at home in the high court as he  was in the Old Bailey.

We are fortunate that he chose to spend the second half of his career at Hardwicke, grateful for his enormous contribution and proud of his achievements. We wish him a long and happy retirement. We will be hosting a formal dinner in the Great Hall in Lincoln’s Inn on 27 January 2011 to mark the occasion. 

Nigel Jones QC
Head of Chambers
January 2011