Matthew Sorel-Cameron

Recommendations

Matthew is excellent on the law, and his written work is immaculate. He has a good tactical awareness in cases and is able to exercise superb judgment. He is hard-working and always has complete commitment to his work.

― Legal 500 (2025)

Matthew is extremely good on the law and is properly up to date on procedure.

― Chambers UK (2025)

He is absolutely outstanding, great with clients and very helpful to those instructing. He has strong advocacy skills which show his thorough preparation.

― Chambers UK (2025)

Matthew is extremely able. He can see the decisive points in any given case, prioritise them, and confront or deal with them. He is always well prepared. He has distinctly professional manner in the court when presenting his case and any submissions made. He is a top-quality junior barrister in crime.

― Legal 500 (2023)

He has superb intellectual ability supported by a real talent for advocacy.

― Legal 500 (2021)

Murder & Manslaughter

Matthew is regularly instructed in cases of murder, attempted murder and manslaughter.

Featured cases:

• R v X (2025, ongoing) – Murder. Prosecution junior (led by Christopher Paxton KC). High-profile allegation of murder of dog-walker in Suffolk village.
• R v X and others (2025, ongoing) – Attempted murder. Defence (junior alone). Defendant accused, with others, of attempting to murder male.
• R v X (2025, ongoing) – Murder. Prosecution junior (led by Christopher Paxton KC). Defendant accused of murdering neighbour.
• R v X and others (2025, ongoing) – Attempted murder. Prosecution junior (led by Cyrus Shroff). Three defendants charged with attempted murder in drug-related shooting.
• R v X and X (2024) – Attempted murder. Junior alone (prosecution). Defendants charged with attempted murder of male stabbed in the street in front of his young children.
• R v S (2024) – Attempted murder. Junior alone (prosecution). Defendant charged with attempted murder after stabbing neighbour whilst high on drugs.
• R v H (2023) – Murder. Prosecution junior (led by Cyrus Shroff). Defendant broke into home of former girlfriend and stabbed and killed a male in his bed.
• R v X (2023) – Attempted murder. Prosecution junior (led by Riel Karmy-Jones QC). 17-year-old defendant ambushed and stabbed 16-year-old girl in a park and left her for dead, leaving her with catastrophic, life-changing injuries.
• R v B (2022) – Manslaughter. Prosecution junior (led by Christopher Paxton QC). Defendant attempted to rob, and in the process, killed an elderly man.
• R v X (2021) – Attempted murder. Prosecution junior (led by Riel Karmy-Jones QC). High-profile case in which a 15-year-old schoolboy shot a schoolmate in the face with a 12-bore shotgun when he was walking to school.
• R v G and C (2021) – Manslaughter. Prosecution junior (led by Cyrus Shroff). One-punch manslaughter outside nightclub. Co-defendant charged with assisting an offender.
• R v A (2019) – Attempted murder. Junior alone (prosecution). Prisoner charged with the attempted murder of two prison guards.
• R v H and R (2017) Attempted murder. Prosecution junior (led by Gerard Pounder, now HHJ Pounder). Defendants charged with attempting to murder three men in a car during high-speed pursuit.

Serious Violence

Matthew is regularly instructed in cases of serious violence.

Featured cases:

• R v X and X (2025, ongoing) – Child cruelty. Prosecution (junior alone).
• R v P-H (2024) – Toddler-shaking s.18 GBH. Prosecution (junior alone). Catastrophic, life-changing injuries caused. Tried by Mr Justice Butcher. Defendant sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.
• R v X (2024) – Defence (junior alone). Defendant accused of threatening 5-year-old with imitation firearm. 5-year-old gave evidence. Acquitted after trial.
• R v X and others (2022) – Kidnapping and robbery. Prosecution (junior alone). Four defendants.
• R v X and X (2022) – Child cruelty. Prosecution (junior alone).
• R v P (2020) – s.18 GBH, aggravated burglary. Defence (junior alone). Mentally-disordered defendant charged with attacking his mother in her own home. Section 41 order made.
• R v A and C (2019-2020) – Aggravated burglary, possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, robbery. Prosecution (junior alone). Defendants chased after a farmer with a shotgun and tried to force their way into a house whilst brandishing the shotgun before firing it into the house. One of the defendants also committed a car-jacking. Defendants received 15- and 12-year extended sentences respectively.
• R v C (2019) – Administering a stupefying drug with intent, false imprisonment, attempted child abduction. Prosecution (junior alone). Defendant entered the home of his estranged wife, taped her to a chair, threatened her with an imitation firearm, poisoned her and then took their five-year old daughter. The daughter gave evidence at trial. Defendant received 18-year extended sentence.

Sexual Offences

Matthew is regularly instructed in cases of rape and serious sexual offending.

Featured cases:

• R v R (2025) – Stranger rape. Prosecution (junior alone). Defendant accused of raping woman in town centre.
• R v T (2025) – Stranger rape. Defence (junior alone). Defendant accused of raping woman in public in city centre.
• R v X and others (2024) – Stranger assault by penetration. Leading prosecution counsel (leading Lori Tucker). Three defendants accused of sexually assaulting (by penetration) a woman in a park.
• R v W (2024) – Rape. Prosecution (junior alone). Defendant accused of repeatedly raping female child. Sentenced to 22-year extended sentence.
• R v T (2024) – Rape. Prosecution (junior alone). Pub landlord accused of raping female.
• R v X (2024) – Group false imprisonment and violent assault by penetration. Defended (junior alone) male who had been 16-year-old at the time.
• R v T (2024) – Police officer sexually assaulting sleeping woman. Prosecution (junior alone).
• R v P (2023) – Sexual assaults on multiple employees. Prosecution (junior alone). Defendant was a manager at a high street store and had repeatedly sexually assaulted employees.
• R v B (2023) – Multiple rapes and indecent assaults. Junior prosecution counsel (led by Christopher Paxton KC). Defendant was former police officer and criminal barrister accused of repeatedly raping and indecently assaulting child. Sentenced to 16 years’ imprisonment.
• R v X (2022) – Multiple familial indecent assaults. Defence (junior alone). Defendant accused of repeated indecent assaults on young girls.
• R v N (2022) – Multiple child sex offences. Defence (junior alone). Female defendant accused of engaging in penetrative sexual offences with 12-year-old.
• R v X (2022) – Rape and indecent assault. Prosecution (junior alone). Defendant accused of historic rapes and indecent assaults of female child.
• R v X (2022) – Rape. Prosecution (junior alone). Defendant accused of raping 15-year-old.
• R v K (2018) – Multiple rapes and sexual attacks on strangers. Junior prosecution counsel (led by Christopher Paxton). Defendant accused of a series of rapes, sexual assaults and robberies against strangers, on a single morning in Norwich City Centre. The defendant received a life sentence after he was convicted at trial.
• Operation Dryad (2016) – Child sexual exploitation. Junior prosecution counsel (led by Christopher Paxton). Nine-week trial of five defendants charged with rape, sexual activity with children and prostitution.

Serious & Organised Crime

Matthew is regularly instructed in cases of serious and organised crime.

Featured cases:

• R v X and others (2025, ongoing) – Prosecution counsel. Four-handed cross border money laundering.
• R v X and another (2024) – Defence (junior alone). Defendant charged with human trafficking and drug supply.
• R v X and others (2024) – Defence (junior alone). Large drugs conspiracy spanning both East Anglia and Northwest England.
• Operation Micco (2022) – Leading prosecution counsel (leading Sophie Quinton-Carter). Modern slavery, child abduction and conspiracy to commit fraud. Four members of the same family prosecuted for modern slavery and linked offences (including forced adoption of a newborn baby) committed over a number of years. Main defendant sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.
• R v X and others (2020–2022) –Junior prosecution counsel (led by Ken Millett). Seven-handed prosecution of a North London gang in relation to conspiracy to possess a firearm with intent to endanger life.
• R v A and others (2021) – Organised robbery gang. Prosecution counsel (junior alone). Three-handed case in which individuals were targeted, tracked long distances and attacked by an organised group of robbers who took expensive watches worth tens of thousands of pounds each. Main two defendants sentenced to 16-year extended sentences.
• Operation Cedar (2020) – Leading prosecution counsel (leading Joseph Bird). Ten-handed, million-pound conspiracy to steal and burgle, concerning a highly organised and professional crime group responsible for numerous ATM thefts and millennium burglaries. Complex cell-site, vehicle identification and ANPR evidence presented at trial.
• R v X and others (2020 – 2022) – Junior prosecution counsel (led by Edward Renvoize). Ten-handed drugs conspiracy operating in Ipswich and North Essex.
• Operation Pibera (2019) – Junior prosecution counsel (led by Kate Bex QC). Human trafficking. The case represented the first time that county lines drug dealers were convicted at trial for trafficking young and vulnerable runners to deal drugs. Complex issues of law and cell-site evidence arose at trial.
• R v P (2018) – Prosecution (junior alone). Defendant accused of smuggling £1.5 million of crystal meth into the UK.
• R v S (2018) – Prosecution (junior alone). Conspiracy to breach immigration law and perverting the course of justice.
• Operation Dryad (2016) – Child sexual exploitation. Junior prosecution counsel (led by Christopher Paxton). Nine-week trial of five defendants charged with rape, sexual activity with children and prostitution.

Business Crime & Fraud

Matthew is regularly instructed in cases of business crime and fraud.

Featured cases:

• R v U (2025) – Prosecution (junior alone). Fraud of Covid Bounceback loan scheme (£250k fraud).
• R v L and others (2025) – Prosecution (junior alone). Three-handed mandate fraud where charities, schools and other business were the victims. Hundreds of thousands of pounds stolen.
• R v B and others (2022) – Leading prosecution counsel (leading Dan Taylor). Four-handed conspiracy to facilitate unlawful immigration.
• R v K, A and B (2018) – International money laundering, perverting the course of justice. Prosecution (junior alone).
• R v G & C (2017) – Defence (junior alone). Defended a man charged with fraudulently evading of over £400k of duty on imported tobacco, and laundering £200k in cash.
• R v J (2017) – Sophisticated £130k breach of trust fraud committed by a bank employee on the bank’s customers. Prosecution (junior alone).
• R v D and others (2016) – Defence (junior alone). Defendant charged in a national conspiracy to commit fraud by using cloned fuel cards.

Education

• Bar Vocational Course, City Law School: Outstanding
• Graduate Diploma in Legal Studies, University of East Anglia: Commendation
• BA (Hons) Philosophy, University College London: 2.1

Professional appointments

• CPS Panel Advocate (General Crime) (Grade 4)
• CPS Panel Advocate (RASSO)
• CPS Specialist Panel Advocate (Fraud and Serious Crime) (Grade 3)

Memberships

• East Anglian Bar Mess junior
• CBA
• South Eastern Circuit
• Middle Temple

Publications

Corporate Crime, Lexis PSL, contributing author

Other expertise

• Crime

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