Neil Hudgell

Practice Areas

Public Inquiries, Inquests, Civil Liberties

Career

Neil established Hudgell Solicitors in 1997 and has led its growth and expansion, establishing it as a renowned national brand that is one of the 200 Best Law Firms recognised by The Times.

Described as an ‘outstanding lawyer’ who is ‘in every respect, a staunch defender of human rights’, Neil leads by example by overseeing the work of the firm’s Civil Liberties and Human Rights team, representing in cases of major national significance.

He was named Legal Personality of the Year by the Law Society Gazette in 2021 and also Yorkshire Lawyer of the Year at the 2021 Yorkshire Legal Awards.

Professional Memberships

* Solicitor LLB.

* MA Criminology

* LLM Law

Work Highlights

Neil's legal work includes representing victims of the Post Office Horizon scandal, and he has been at the forefront of the fight to secure justice for former sub-postmasters who suffered from what is now recognised as the biggest miscarriage of justice in UK legal history. Neil and his team have helped more than 70 people to clear their names, with more following in the same path to the Court of Appeal.

Campaigning for change is a driving force for Neil and he has supported and represented the widow of Jason Mercer who was killed on one of the UK’s controversial ‘smart motorways’. At his inquest a coroner ruled Mr Mercer was unlawfully killed in an accident and that the operation of the smart motorway system had been a contributing factor.

His widow Claire amplified calls to the government to scrap plans to expand the network and in April 2023 it was announced that smart motorways were to be to be removed from government road-building plans citing a lack of confidence felt by drivers.

Neil also oversees the work of Hudgells’ legal team in representing the families of people killed in the Manchester Arena bombing at the long-running Public Inquiry, with the firm also representing more than 150 injured survivors.

In another high-profile case, which has led to calls for institutional change, Neil represented the families of four young men who were murdered by serial killer Stephen Port, including representing them at an inquest. This identified a string of failings by the Metropolitan Police which a jury found had ‘probably contributed’ to at least three of the deaths.

Neil has also been heavily involved in representation for the family of Lewis Skelton, who was shot dead by a police officer in Hull. That this year involved representing the family at a Judicial Review, which upheld an inquest jury’s decision of unlawful killing..