Barry O'Leary

Partner

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Barry is a partner at the firm and his practice deals with the full range of immigration and nationality issues. He has particular expertise in applications based on partnership and family; applications following international surrogacy arrangements; and asylum and human rights claims based on sexual identity. In the Chambers Directory, he is acknowledged as Band 1 leader in both personal immigration and human rights, and as a DEI champion for his ‘career-long dedication to supporting LGBTQI+ migrants’. He is also listed as a leading individual by the Legal 500. Recent work and notable cases  Expert reports for the family courts  Obtaining partner visas for clients from around the world, including many partners in same sex relationships.  Obtaining British citizenship for many children born following a surrogacy arrangement, including those born stateless.  Assisting parents to remain on the basis of their relationship with their British citizen children.  Securing leave to remain for a number of long term overstayers on the basis that they and their same sex partners could not live in their homophobic country of origin.  Supervised and represented many LGBT individuals in their asylum claims based on sexual identity.  Obtaining visas for foreign spouses who had been abandoned abroad by their abusive former partners.  Frequently instructed by family law firms when there is an immigration element to a family law matter. Education and experience  Read law at the University of Cambridge.  Law school at the College of Law, London.  Qualified as a solicitor in 1997 and joined Wesley Gryk Solicitors in January 2000. Other positions Director of Micro Rainbow Publications and training  Author of the immigration law chapter in the publication: ‘Surrogacy Law, Practice and Policy in England and Wales’  Author of the immigration chapter of the Law Society Publication “Civil Partnership – the Law in Practice”  Tutor of the Immigration Law Practitioners Association course ‘Significant Others’ which deals with immigration law for partners.  Tutor of the Immigration Law Practitioners Association course on surrogacy and immigration law.  Free Movement webinar: Exceptional Circumstances in family-based applications. Memberships • Law Society • Member of the Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association (ILPA). 'Barry O'Leary's reputation as one of the best in the field is justly deserved.'- Legal 500 "Barry is a stalwart of the immigration world." – Chambers 2024 “Barry is a great mixture of professional excellence with an empathetic and understanding approach to issues." – Chambers 2024 “Barry O’Leary is a pre-eminent immigration partner … highly valued for his successes with family, partnership, international surrogacy and sexual identity cases” – Chambers 2024 “Barry O’Leary “[is] noted as ‘the standout immigration and nationality lawyer when it comes to surrogacy arrangements’, in addition to experience in handling applications on the basis of partnership and families. ‘He gives pragmatic advice and can think creatively in the most difficult of cases to find solutions for his clients.’” – Legal 500 2024 “Barry is one of the most outstanding immigration lawyers of the current generation.” – Chambers 2023

  • Regulated by: The Solicitors Regulation Authority

  • Regulator ID: 32889

  • Based in London
  • Licensed for 28 years

Accepting new clients via ReviewSolicitors

Barry is a partner at the firm and his practice deals with the full range of immigration and nationality issues. He has particular expertise in applications based on partnership and family; applications following international surrogacy arrangements; and asylum and human rights claims based on sexual identity. In the Chambers Directory, he is acknowledged as Band 1 leader in both personal immigration and human rights, and as a DEI champion for his ‘career-long dedication to supporting LGBTQI+ migrants’. He is also listed as a leading individual by the Legal 500. Recent work and notable cases  Expert reports for the family courts  Obtaining partner visas for clients from around the world, including many partners in same sex relationships.  Obtaining British citizenship for many children born following a surrogacy arrangement, including those born stateless.  Assisting parents to remain on the basis of their relationship with their British citizen children.  Securing leave to remain for a number of long term overstayers on the basis that they and their same sex partners could not live in their homophobic country of origin.  Supervised and represented many LGBT individuals in their asylum claims based on sexual identity.  Obtaining visas for foreign spouses who had been abandoned abroad by their abusive former partners.  Frequently instructed by family law firms when there is an immigration element to a family law matter. Education and experience  Read law at the University of Cambridge.  Law school at the College of Law, London.  Qualified as a solicitor in 1997 and joined Wesley Gryk Solicitors in January 2000. Other positions Director of Micro Rainbow Publications and training  Author of the immigration law chapter in the publication: ‘Surrogacy Law, Practice and Policy in England and Wales’  Author of the immigration chapter of the Law Society Publication “Civil Partnership – the Law in Practice”  Tutor of the Immigration Law Practitioners Association course ‘Significant Others’ which deals with immigration law for partners.  Tutor of the Immigration Law Practitioners Association course on surrogacy and immigration law.  Free Movement webinar: Exceptional Circumstances in family-based applications. Memberships • Law Society • Member of the Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association (ILPA). 'Barry O'Leary's reputation as one of the best in the field is justly deserved.'- Legal 500 "Barry is a stalwart of the immigration world." – Chambers 2024 “Barry is a great mixture of professional excellence with an empathetic and understanding approach to issues." – Chambers 2024 “Barry O’Leary is a pre-eminent immigration partner … highly valued for his successes with family, partnership, international surrogacy and sexual identity cases” – Chambers 2024 “Barry O’Leary “[is] noted as ‘the standout immigration and nationality lawyer when it comes to surrogacy arrangements’, in addition to experience in handling applications on the basis of partnership and families. ‘He gives pragmatic advice and can think creatively in the most difficult of cases to find solutions for his clients.’” – Legal 500 2024 “Barry is one of the most outstanding immigration lawyers of the current generation.” – Chambers 2023

  • Regulated by: The Solicitors Regulation Authority

  • Regulator ID: 32889

  • Based in London
  • Licensed for 28 years

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Approachability 5.0/5
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  • Wesley Gryk Solicitors LLP

    SRA-approved manager - Member

    Until Present

Languages spoken

  • English

Opening hours

Monday 09:30–17:30
Tuesday 09:30–17:30
Wednesday 09:30–17:30
Thursday 09:30–17:30 (Open)
Friday 09:30–17:30
Saturday (Closed)
Sunday (Closed)

140 Lower Marsh, London, SE1 7AE

Reviews

5.0 /5 27 Reviews
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Francis Family

Immigration

Exceptional, clinical & meticulous!

Barry O’Leary at Wesley Gryk is exceptional. We came to Barry after a deeply stressful and traumatic experience with another provider, where the complexities of our family’s immigration position had been mishandled and misunderstood, ultimately resulting in refusals. By the time we approached Barry, we needed someone who could not only understand the law, but also properly grasp the human reality and technical nuance of our circumstances. Barry was outstanding from the outset. He was clinical in his analysis, meticulous in his preparation, and a perfectionist in how he approached the evidence, legal submissions and overall strategy. Nothing felt generic or rushed. Every detail was considered, every risk anticipated, and eachvpart of the applications was handled with care, precision and confidence. What stood out most was Barry’s ability to take a complicated and emotionally significant matter and bring clarity, structure and calm to it. He understood the complexities, guided us with care and professionalism, and prepared the case to an exceptionally high standard. We are enormously grateful for his work and would recommend Barry and Wesley Gryk without hesitation to anyone dealing with a UK immigration matter. The difference between our prior experience and Barry’s handling of the case was night and day.

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anonymous

Immigration

Professional, efficient, knowledgable.

We’ve worked with Barry O’Leary and his team on several family‑immigration engagements, and we can’t recommend them highly enough. They are consummate professionals—efficient, knowledgeable, and highly experienced. Throughout the entire process we felt completely in safe hands, and we would gladly engage them again for any future needs.

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Barry O'Leary

Thank you very much for this review - appreciated!

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Donald

Professional, efficient, generous, and a successful outcome

I was referred to Barry O'Leary by outside counsel on a fairly urgent basis. Barry responded quickly and facilitated an initial consultation via video call. The fees were reasonable and the matter was seemingly-straightforward at the outset. After some surprising outcomes with my case, Barry and Sofia reasponded to countless additional emails and held two subsequent consultations to clarify my situation and offer clear advice. They were direct and confident, and helped me to navigate a number of complexities that were not expected in such a straightforward case. What's more, they were highly compassionate, patient, flexible, and generous of their time. I would highly recommend them and the firm, without any hesitation, not just because of the aforementioned qualities and approach, but also due to the successful outcome of my case. I am incredibly grateful for their efforts, which have made a significant difference in my life.

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Selinah

Immigration

Peaceful Transit

We are so glad to have chosen Barry when our surrogacy lawyer recommended him and another for our baby's immigration following a surrogacy in Nigeria. We had set out on this journey without a clue on how to navigate the deep waters of UK immigration to bring our baby back home. Our first meeting was very reassuring, Barry outlined every process step by step and made documentation very smooth and effortlessly easy. His team were amazing and very supportive. The whole process from all the enormous paper works to the final approval of the Certificate of Entitlement was according to the timeline he advised. He carried us along comfortingly and we finally had our baby back in the UK in the 4th month post birth. Thank you Barry👍

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Alexa

Barry O'Leary is the best of the best

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ We are so incredibly grateful for Barry’s help and can’t recommend him highly enough. The spousal visa process was one of the most emotional and daunting experiences we’ve ever gone through, but Barry made it feel calm, clear, and completely manageable from start to finish. He was endlessly patient, kind, and reassuring — always quick to respond, happy to explain every detail, and somehow managed to keep a sense of humour through it all. His guidance turned what could have been a hugely stressful process into something we could actually navigate with confidence. Barry went above and beyond to make sure we felt supported every step of the way. His professionalism, empathy, and genuine care made such a difference — we truly don’t know what we would have done without him! We are happily settled in London now and have been since February and it's all down to Barry’s incredible work and kindness. We’ll be forever grateful!

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