Our People

Charlotte Precious

Barrister and VHCC Team

Charlotte is an in-house barrister whose practice encompasses all areas of criminal law. Charlotte joined Lansbury Worthington in 2008 and has developed a strong reputation on the Very High Cost Case (VHCC) and Private Client team frequently dealing with high value, complex and sophisticated fraud offences from money laundering to accounting fraud.

Charlotte has experience working with professionals and those whose reputations can be seriously damaged by even the most minor of convictions. She has developed a strong practice protecting those with the most to lose from a criminal conviction.

Charlotte’s rigorous attention to detail and her sharp eye for weakness in the prosecution case has recently seen her succeed in a string of cases where she made effective representations to the prosecutor at court resulting in the prosecution ‘throwing in the towel’ and offering no evidence before the trial had even started!

Notable Cases

  • R v M - an offence of Handling Stolen Goods case where Charlotte noticed that the police officer investigating the allegation had attempted to manipulate his evidence to make it sound more credible. In fact his behaviour made his evidence inadmissible and after representations from Charlotte the prosecution swiftly offered no evidence.
  • R v B – Charlotte appeared before the Old Bailey in Central London to represent a client on an appeal against a conviction of theft. The client suffered from Type 1 diabetes and was suffering a hyperglycaemic attack at the time the offence is alleged to have been committed. With the assistance of expert evidence, Charlotte was able to successfully argue that the conviction should be overturned as there was serious doubt as to whether the client had the necessary intention to commit the offence.
  • R v S - Representing a Client of previous good character before Blackfriars Crown Court who was accused of sexually assaulting a female passenger on a busy tube. The case involved evidence from an undercover police officer who had allegedly seen the offence being committed. However, under skilful cross-examination Charlotte successfully exposed serious doubt over the officer’s account and secured a unanimous acquittal from the jury.
  • R v D – an offence of burglary where if the client had been convicted he would have been looking at a starting point of 3 years in prison. In a trial before Isleworth Crown Court, Charlotte secured a Not Guilty verdict from the jury in the face of a strong prosecution case that included fingerprint evidence and evidence of bad character.
  • R v T – an allegation of sexual assault made against a vulnerable 13 year old child. This case involved a complex and sensitive legal argument over the issue of ‘maturity’ and whether it was in the public interest to prosecute. In this case, Charlotte’s representations persuaded the prosecution that the proceedings should be withdrawn.
  • Charlotte represented a senior university lecturer who had not asked for legal advice in the police station following arrest, and who was subsequently charged with an offence of theft. A conviction for a dishonesty offence for someone in this client’s position would have been fatal to their employment and their professional career. However, once Charlotte became instructed she managed to successfully argue that the charges should be withdrawn, and that the offence should be marked with a less damaging police caution allowing the client to return to work.

Other Information

Charlotte has lectured in Environmental Law at the Ministry of Defence.

She is an enthusiastic pro-bono lawyer and has worked at the Kent Law Clinic as well as both the Prisoners Families & Friends Service and APEX Employment Trust.

Education and Professional Qualifications

Charlotte studied for her LLB Law Degree at the University of Kent.

Charlotte was called to the Bar in 2008