Emma Kehoe

Emma Kehoe is senior junior, called to the bar in 1991, who specialises in serious crime.

Emma started her career at the independent bar before joining the CPS advocate team where she spent several years dealing with serious crime as a Cat 4 Prosecutor and a member of the Rape and Serious Sexual Offences Panel.

Emma has a reputation for prosecuting, at a very high standard, the most serious offences including Murder & Manslaughter, Drug Conspiracies, Death By Dangerous Driving and the most serious sexual offending. She is widely considered as being one of the leading regional senior juniors in Homicides and Sexual Offences. She is a highly skilled trial advocate and is extremely personable which has meant that she has always been able to get the best from victims and witnesses. These skills are now also being applied to her work with defendants in her rapidly expanding defence practice.

Emma can communicate well with all, whether that be a High Court Judge, vulnerable defendants, witnesses and victims, clients from all backgrounds and juries. She makes herself heard, understood and respected by all making her a very popular choice in all areas of Criminal Practice.

Emma grasps legal and evidential issues quickly and can respond clearly and effectively. Often called upon to advice in the most serious cases where death has occurred and/or complex expert evidence forms part of the case. She has significant experience in interacting with coroners and frequently represented the CPS in these cases where charges were authorised. Her empathy with deceased families along with her reputation as a tenacious and persuasive advocate make her a popular choice to instruct in the most difficult and high-profile cases.

Since joining chambers in 2023, Emma has been able to transfer all the skills she has acquired over the last 20 years as she returns to her roots of defending. She has already secured the only acquittal in a 20 handed violent disorder and has earned praise from the local judiciary for the quality of her mitigation.

Emma has experience doing HM Customs and Exercise work appearing in the Criminal Courts, Tax Tribunals as well as condemnation proceedings. She has appeared in Family Courts at disclosure hearings often contested and has an ability to easily transfer her skills to the requirements of other areas.

Emma offers a personal touch whilst being professional to the core which together with her wealth of experience makes for an outstanding service level being provided to private clients who she regularly represents, in the Magistrates and Crown Courts, in offences across the criminal spectrum.

Emma is extremely popular member of the Northern Circuit and has had many pupils who have gone on to practice both in chambers and at the CPS. She recently began to train police officers on how to conduct ABE interviews along with the DCCP of the Northwest RASSO unit as she felt this was an area that needed development. She is also part of a pilot scheme which has attracted national interest which involves advocates conducting such interviews.

Murder & Manslaughter

Emma has appeared as junior counsel in many murder cases and leading counsel in attempted Murder cases as well as manslaughter, death by dangerous driving and child cruelty cases.

R v B – High profile Murder defendant killed his partner and buried her body in the forest.

R v K and S – Dr and her daughter were murdered, and their house set on fire. Ks wife provided a false alibi.

R v C and others – 6 handed murder and attempted murder that was retribution for drug taxing planned by the dealer and involved driving a car at the two targets purposefully.

R v T – Son who stabbed his mother and father to death in the family home.

R v K and C – Attempted murder involving the two defendants shooting the complainant with a shot gun and fleeing the scene.

R v S – Attempted murder where S broke into C’s house as stabbed him multiple times as he slept in his bed.

R v L – One punch manslaughter.

R v A and B – Mother and father convicted of neglect after the death of one of their twin daughters.

R v P – Elderly man convicted of causing death by dangerous driving after he hit a pedestrian whilst drive too fast and with poor sight.

R v S – Father, two young children and the family dog ploughed down and killed in Cumbria on Father’s Day.

Drug Conspiracies

R v S and 10 others – Class A drug dealing in Lancashire.

R v L and others – 5 Vietnamese males convicted of growing and dealing cannabis in 5 factories across the Northwest.

Sexual Offences

R V C and C – Human trafficking case that involved extradition of second defendant after she fled the country during the court process.

R v S and 6 others – Human trafficking involving eastern Europeans girls being brought into the England and sold for sexual favours and marriage.

R v O – Head teacher charged with serious sexual offences against former pupils. Involved 3 Indictments being joined as more complainants materialised. After sentence O appealed in person.

R v L – Retired police officer living in Australia was extradited to face historic sexual offences.

R v M – Stranger rape case involving multiple victims in Lancashire.

Other cases of interest

EDL violent disorder secured the only acquittal in multi-handed case over 3 trials.

R v P – Mother and father convicted of neglect of their 3 children.