Recommendations
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Recognised as a Key Lawyer and a Rising Star
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"A rising star who is extremely bright, hardworking, thorough and a brilliant drafter"
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Claire is highly regarded for her ‘knowledge and pragmatism’
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Next generation lawyer
Experience
I’m an experienced public and regulatory lawyer. I work with a diverse range of clients including public and private sector bodies, charities, social enterprises and individuals and in a variety of sectors including education and health and social care. I regularly advise on complex regulatory matters which involve more than one regulatory regime.
I provide advice to clients on their legal and regulatory obligations, the development of policies and procedures, the lawfulness of decision making, appeals and legal challenges, including judicial review.
I’m an expert in relation to safeguarding and have advised numerous organisations on their policies and procedures, as well as providing training and advice on particular incidents and reporting to the local authority, the Charity Commission and other regulators.
I have acted for clients in a number of inquests and high profile public inquiries, including the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, the Infected Blood Inquiry and statutory inquiries under the Charities Act 2011.
I regularly advise publicly-funded bodies on the application of the public procurement rules. This includes advice on running compliant public procurement procedures; advice to tenderers participating in public procurement procedures and challenging the outcome.
I work with a variety of membership organisations and provide advice on their disciplinary procedures and membership disputes.
I’m a qualified solicitor advocate and have appeared in pre-inquest review hearings and in the First Tier Tribunal in a number of pro bono cases.
Recent projects
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Acted for a charity which was called to give evidence to a public inquiry.
I helped to navigate the charity through the inquiry process and to manage the risks to their organisation.
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Advised an organisation on the outcome of a public procurement, in which they had been unsuccessful.
After writing to the public body to highlight potential legal issues with the conduct of the procurement, the public body acknowledged the issues and agreed to re-run the process.
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Acted for a professional regulator in a professional discipline case against one of its members.
The case raised a number of complex legal and factual issues. Secured a successful outcome on all of the grounds, and a significant award of our client's costs.
- I advise a number of regulators on their statutory obligations and the development of policies
- I advise on CQC registration and regulation
- I advised a social care provider in relation to bringing a challenge to a CQC inspection report and in relation to the exercise of the CQC’s powers to request documents
- I acted for a social care provider in relation to an inquest
- I advise clients on the commissioning and funding of services by local authorities and CCGs
- I provide advice on the provision of care under the Care Act 2014 and on safeguarding
- I advised a client in relation to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse
- I advised a client in relation to the Infected Blood Inquiry
- I review policies and procedures for charities and colleges
- I advise schools and colleges in relation to potential discrimination claims
- I advised a charitable trust on potential public law challenges to OFSTED
- I advised a client in relation to regulation by OFQUAL
- I advised a publicly funded charity on the procurement of a multi-million pound contract
- I successfully challenged the outcome of a public procurement procedure which the public body agreed would be re-run
- I advised a Royal College in relation to the investigation and hearing of a complaint regarding a senior executive
- I advised a membership organisation on its internal disciplinary processes and the requirements of fairness in respect of a complaint which raises serious safeguarding issues
- I advise membership organisations on specific disciplinary cases and on their disciplinary processes generally (drafting codes and rules)
- I successfully prosecuted a high profile disciplinary case for a professional regulator
- I successfully defended a professional regulator in relation to a judicial review brought by a member in relation to an internal election
- I successfully defended a statutory appeal brought against our client’s decision in the Divisional Court
Areas of expertise:
Services
Procurement & State Aid
Qualifications and career
- University of Oxford, BA (Hons) Jurisprudence (Law), 2007
- BPP Law School, Legal Practice Course, 2008
- Trained at Herbert Smith LLP with a six month secondment to the human rights group Liberty
- Admitted as a solicitor in 2011
- Associate solicitor in the administrative and public law team at Herbert Smith Freehills LLP, March 2011 – November 2014
- Granted higher rights of audience (civil proceedings) in 2013
- Joined Bates Wells in January 2015
Pro bono, memberships, and appointments
- Acts and appears in the First-Tier Tribunal (Asylum Support) on behalf of appellants as a member of the Asylum Support Appeals Project Duty Scheme
- Member of the Administrative Law Bar Association, the Association of Regulatory and Disciplinary Lawyers and the Young Public Lawyers Group.
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