DEI Champions | UK

Family and children lawyer Alia Lewis has a lifelong focus on children with special needs, particularly autism. She works to enhance inclusivity and access to justice for neurodiverse children and families within the family justice system. Among her achievements is the creation of Duncan Lewis’ specialist Autism and ADHD Unit. It advocates for the rights of neurodivergent clients and their families within public and private children law proceedings. She is a founder of Family Law Advice for the Neurodivergent Community.

Anne-Marie Irwin is a public law specialist at Rook Irwin Sweeney in London. She is best known for her Court of Protection expertise and the extensive work she has done promoting disability rights. One example of her activity is acting in a judicial review seeking to change the law on assisted dying. She also represented the mother of a young adult with severe learning disabilities in a case regarding their right to be able to speak in their native language.

Barry O'Leary is an immigration lawyer who has a career-long dedication to supporting LGBTQI+ migrants. He was among the first solicitors in the UK to successfully represent gay men and lesbians in obtaining asylum in the UK on the basis of their fear of persecution because of their sexual identity. O'Leary has been a legal volunteer for nearly 25 years for the Stonewall Immigration Group/UKLGIG/Rainbow Migration and for several years for Micro Rainbow.

Caroline Brosnan is a social housing lawyer with considerable experience of providing vulnerable people with housing, including domestic abuse survivors, disabled people and the homeless. She acts for several bereaved, survivor and resident tenants from Grenfell Tower and the Lancaster West Estate on the Grenfell Inquiry and rehousing cases.

Caroline Liggins of Hodge Jones & Allen is a partner in the crime team and leads its youth team. She has substantial experience of working with young people with mental health conditions. She sits on the Youth Justice Specialist Panel and contributed to the formation of the Youth Practitioners Association.

Employment barrister Georgina Calvert-Lee advises on discrimination, harassment and personal injury claims, and is known for her activity regarding sexual harassment. She has spent years advising Can't Buy My Silence, which campaigns to prevent the use of NDAs to gag victims of sexual misconduct and discrimination. Beyond this, Calvert-Lee also provided pro bono support for the #Forthe100 campaign, founded by families of students who took their own lives, to create a statutory legal duty of care for students in higher education.

Kate Dodd is an employment lawyer at Pinsent Masons and head of the firm's Brook Graham DEI consultancy. Beyond this, she is closely involved with the Mindful Business Charter. She is a trustee of Digital Advantage, a charity that delivers work experience to young people. Dodds is also a board adviser to Girls Out Loud, a social enterprise that raises the aspirations of teenage girls.

Lisa Lunt is a product liability lawyer at Pogust Goodhead in Liverpool. Much of her work centres on representing women in claims against medical device manufacturers. She is most well known for her work relating to transvaginal mesh claims and led a team managing a group litigation on behalf of 258 women against six mesh manufacturers. She also represented women who have suffered injury as a result of being surgically implanted with the Essure contraceptive device.

Melissa Ansah is a crime lawyer who has a focus on the treatment of young people in custody. She works closely with the charity Juvenis, which supports young people from vulnerable and disenfranchised communities and those at risk of offending and criminal behaviours.

Merry Varney is a human rights lawyer with a particular focus on inquests. She is dedicated to supporting bereaved families and is known for her work campaigning for a better inquests process. One of her areas interest is the impact of social media on suicide in young people.

Nicola Wainwright is a clinical negligence lawyer with a particular focus on women and families in pregnancy and maternity cases. She has acted for numerous families who are socially and economically disadvantaged and often not well educated so find legal processes particularly difficult. She supports the charity GBS Support, helping them raise awareness of group B Strep. She also works with the charity Meningitis Now and is a trustee for Encephalitis International.

Nina Ali is a clinical negligence expert at Hodge Jones & Allen. Her medical background allows her a particularly deep insight into the NHS and much of her activity centres around advocating for the provision of better mental healthcare. Among her highlights is campaigning to hold an inquiry into mental health provisions in Essex following 80 instances of deaths or alleged mistreatment while undergoing care. She also has experience of inquests. Her career is replete with examples of helping victims of healthcare failings to access justice.

Olivia Piercy is a family lawyer who is known for her advocacy for domestic abuse victims. She has represented the victims of honour-based violence, female genital mutilation and forced marriage. She sat on the Foreign Office’s Forced Marriage Partnership Panel and ran a successful judicial review of the then government’s domestic violence evidence checklist for legal aid. She has also campaigned to change the law in respect of economic abuse.

Ravi Mahey is a children law specialist who is known for her abilities regarding forced marriage, honour-based violence and FGM. She is active on both legal aid and pro bono work and is a promoter of better understanding of the affects of neurodiversity and poverty on children.

Richard Walker sits in the trust, estate and inheritance disputes team at Withers. Working alongside the Windrush Justice Clinic, he led on the creation and operation of the Windrush pro bono initiative at the firm. Richard has raised awareness about the issues faced by the Windrush generation through articles and updates, liaised and forged relationships with members and partners of the Windrush Justice Clinic, in particular establishing a partnership between Withers and Southwark Law Centre.

Sarah Richardson is a family lawyer who specialises in complex cases involving vulnerable adults and children, and is particularly experienced in advising and representing children, parents and family members in difficult and sensitive cases. Sarah is a member of the Law Society’s Children Panel, the Association of Children Lawyers and Resolution. She undertakes committee work, and is a member of the National Public Law Working Groups for Supervision Orders and Adoption. She runs the West London Family Court duty solicitor scheme, a pro bono service where she coordinates 50 participating local solicitors, and is on the working committee for the West London Family Court public information website.

Scott Halliday is a family lawyer at Irwin Mitchell who divides his time between Leeds and London. He has particular expertise in the interplay between LGBTQI+ rights and family law. For example, he advised on how a trans parent should be recorded on their child's birth certificate. He writes and comments extensively on the subject and was the lead lawyer in a project run with the University of Bristol, We Are Family Too! Working with LGBT Clients in the Family Justice System.

Silvia Nicolaou Garcia of Simpson Millar is known especially for her work with victims of trafficking. She also advises on unlawful detention and takes on legal aid cases. She is known for her ability on cases regarding migrant rights and is able to advise on civil claims and judicial reviews. One of her areas of focus is challenging the age assessments of unaccompanied minors, as well as cases involving child sexual abuse. She has acted on behalf of Child Redress International in the Independent Inquiry into Child and Sexual Abuse in the Children Outside the UK Investigation.

Suleikha Ali is a clinical negligence lawyer at JMW Solicitors. She has experience of brain injury and cerebral palsy claims, and has advised on numerous claims on behalf of bereaved families. She is known for campaigning for better awareness of the risks to Black women undergoing medical procedures, particularly in maternity units. She works closely with the charity Five X More and is involved with Black Women in Law and Women Solicitors London. Her experience includes obtaining an apology from Chelsea and Westminster Hospital following a stillbirth.

Suzanne White is a well-known clinical negligence lawyer at Leigh Day. Her medical background enables her to have a particularly deep understanding of the details of her clients' cases. She has dedicated much of her career to raising awareness of deficiencies in the provision of healthcare to women, particularly in maternity services. She lectures on UCL’s MSc on Women’s Health and recently settled a birth injury claim for £32 million.

Tim Barnden is an immigration lawyer at Bates Wells who has a particular dedication to LGBTQI+ issues. He frequently advises on Article 8 claims and appeals, domestic violence applications and advising EEA nationals and their families. He also has a growing practice of child-focused work, particularly the crossover with family law, adoption and surrogacy. He is a former chair of Rainbow Migration and has been providing training for ILPA on partner applications and LGBTQ+ asylum claims.