Stephen McCaffrey
Fitness to Practise Defence Barrister with a remarkable track record of success.
Fitness to Practise Defence
GMC Defence Barrister
I am an experienced medical defence barrister specialising in all matters relating to GMC Fitness to Practise proceedings.
GPhC Defence Barrister
I am a leading GPhC Defence Barrister defending pharmacists facing fitness to practise proceedings.
GDC Defence Barrister
I am a defence barrister acting for a range of dental practitioners relating to their fitness to practise.
NMC Defence Barrister
I am an experienced medical defence barrister specialising in all matters relating to NMC Fitness to Practise proceedings.
HCPC Defence Barrister
I am a defence barrister acting for health care professionals in all matters relating to HCPC fitness to practise.
SWE Defence Barrister
I am a defence barrister acting for Social Work professionals in all matters relating to their fitness to practise.
Stephen McCaffrey
Fitness to Practise Barrister
He specialises in healthcare law and regulation. As a leading regulatory law barrister, he has vast experience in defending all healthcare professionals in all courts and tribunals ranging from doctors, nurses, midwives, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals including paramedics and social workers.
My Approach
I have always made it my priority to be clear, direct and straight forward to deal with.
My work
I have represented hundreds of clients in criminal, regulatory and disciplinary cases.
Direct Access
I am a public access barrister & accept direct instructions from the public.
Testimonials
Fitness to practise inequalities affecting ethnic minority and non‑UK qualified doctor
Ethnic minority and non‑UK qualified doctors remain disproportionately represented in GMC fitness to practise referrals and investigations.
High Court ruling highlights risks of facing fitness to practise hearings alone
High Court ruling warns that attending fitness to practise hearings without specialist legal support can lead to unfair outcomes.
2025 Fitness to Practise in Review: Key trends shaping UK regulation
Our 2025 fitness to practise review highlights key FtP issues, major regulatory trends and the strong outcomes we achieved for clients this year.
Successful Defence: Pharmacist Avoids Erasure
Stephen's client, a pharmacist referred to as IK, has successfully avoided the most severe sanction of removal from the register following a professional conduct case before the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC). The matter concluded with only a short suspension....
Client secures just outcome in complex GPhC fitness to practise case
Stephen, joint Head of Chambers at Kings View Chambers and expert fitness to practise barrister, recently represented a pharmacist, RH, who was facing dozens of allegations before the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC). The case was vast and complex, involving...
Sexual misconduct, remediation and fitness to practise: lessons from Sadiq v GMC
Sexual misconduct is hard to remediate, but insight and structured remediation can still influence sanctions.
The GMC’s new guidance on raising patient safety concerns: implications for doctors’ fitness to practise
The GMC’s new consultation reinforces doctors’ duty to raise patient safety concerns, with fitness to practise risks for failures and a need for early expert legal advice.
Assessing insight when a registrant denies allegations in fitness to practise proceedings
How fitness to practise panels can assess genuine insight when a registrant denies allegations and offers no apology, balancing fairness with public protection.
Changes to MPTS Tribunal Guidance: What doctors need to know
The MPTS has published revised tribunal guidance that will come into effect on 24 November 2025.
High court upholds GMC’s fitness to practise framework for physician and anaesthesia associates
The High Court upheld the GMC’s fitness to practise standards for Physician and Anaesthesia Associates.
The toll of prolonged fitness to practise investigations and the role of expert legal representation
Fitness to practise investigations help uphold UK care standards, but prolonged cases can cause serious personal and professional harm to healthcare professionals.
Understanding Accepted Outcomes in Fitness to Practise
Accepted outcomes create a paper-based route for resolving fitness to practise cases; examiners may impose measures if offers go unanswered.