Eugene Egan

Practice Overview

Eugene specialises in criminal work.  He prosecutes and defends serious criminal cases in the Crown Court.  He moved to Cardiff from chambers in London in 1994 and since then has built up and maintained a busy and thriving practice.  He has a wide range of expertise in all aspects of criminal work and has a particular interest in drugs case and cases involving sexual allegations.

Eugene is often instructed because of an intelligent and analytical approach to his cases and his ability to take sensible tactical decisions which ensure that his client’s case is advanced in the best possible way.  His ability to communicate in a friendly and informative way with his professional and lay clients is a feature which often leads solicitors to instruct him.

Notable and Reported cases

• Homicide
  • Experience over 20 years in murder/manslaughter trials as junior to both prosecution and defence leaders. Appellate experience in this field.
• Sexual Cases
  • Operation Swan  – six week case at  Cardiff Crown Court involving abuse of vulnerable witnesses.  Intermediaries involved. 
  • Operation Velvet – representing a school teacher falsely accused of sexual offences.
  • Newport Crown Court - defending in a husband/wife rape trial where there was significant violence used before and after the sexual offending.
  • Cardiff Crown Court – co-defending in a rape trial where two defendants stood trial in respect of the same complainant on the same night.
  • Newport Crown – prosecuting a defendant to a 16 year sentence for the multiple rapes of his daughter aged under 13. 
  • Cardiff Crown Court – prosecuting a defendant to a 17 year sentence for the multiple rapes of his step-daughter.
  • Cardiff Crown Court – prosecuting the defendant to conviction where he trespassed into her house at night and subsequently raped her.
• Drugs
  • Operation Angler – conspiracy to supply drugs in the Caerphilly area.
  • Operation Reptile – conspiracy to supply drugs case with Essex/West Midlands connections. VHCC.
  • Liverpool Crown Court – represented a Welsh defendant in a major conspiracy case.
  • Cardiff Crown Court – conspiracy to supply drugs in the Cynon Valley
• Fraud/Dishonesty Cases
  • Operation Dino – “crash for cash” South Wales conspiracy involving multiple defendants.
  • Operation Pegasus – fraud on a major UK retailer. VHCC.
  • Operation Vancouver – conspiracy to burgle case involving Police surveillance issues.
  • Newport Crown Court – fraud relating to the £1 million plus sale of a hotel in the Wye Valley.
  • Swansea Crown Court – mortgage fraud case involving multiple defendants.
  • Operation Cleo – prosecution of a sham marriages case for the Complex Crime Unit.
  • Cardiff Crown Court – defence  of a businessman accused of trading while insolvent.    
• Violence
  • Stafford Crown Court – defending in a “supergrass” case involving armed robberies in the Midlands.
  • Cardiff Crown Court – prosecution of nine defendants for a violent disorder in Mill Lane, Cardiff, during a protest march.
  • Cardiff Crown Court – defending in a multiple defendant case where a drug debt was enforced by defendants from the Coventry area.  Issues arose concerning the bugging of cells at HMP Cardiff
• Miscellaneous
  • Defended in several Environment Agency/Natural Resources Wales prosecutions involving cases of alleged illegal tipping.
  • Judicial Review – R v Cardiff Crown Court ex parte M.  Settled all the paperwork and legal arguments.  Led by a QC for the hearing in the Divisional Court.
  • Operation Jasmine – defended in two care home trials following a massive investigation by Gwent Police. 
  • Defence junior in a prosecution arising out of Health and Safety breaches at Milford Haven oil refinery.
  • Defended a care home manager in a manslaughter trial and appeared in the subsequent Coroner’s Court proceedings.
  • Appellate experience in relation to both conviction and sentence cases.
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• Education & Qualification
  • Stonyhurst College, Lancashire (1982 – 1987)
  • Jesus College, Oxford.  M.A. (Oxon.) (1987 – 1991) (Green scholarship)
  • City University, London (CPE) (1991 -1992)
  • Inns of  Court School of Law, London (1992 – 1993)
  • Lincoln's Inn (Hardwicke scholar and CPE/ICSL scholarship)
• Memberships
  • Criminal Bar Association
• Appointments
  • Recorder (2019), Civil and Crime, Midlands Circuit