Louise is a Partner specialising in employment and partnership law. She is a trusted advisor to UK businesses, not-for-profit organisations and senior executives advising on all aspects of employment law. Louise advises across all sectors with particular focus on financial services and professional services, as well as acting for a number of charities. Louise has been recognised as a ‘’Next Generation Partner’ for Senior Executive work in Legal 500 2024-2021.

As well as a strong reputation for technical excellence, Louise provides clear strategic and commercial advice and outstanding client service. She has been praised by her clients for her supportive approach. Louise is adept at handling difficult issues and achieving excellent results for her clients. She has significant experience in handling complex and high value discrimination and whistleblowing claims. Her experience in advising both employers and senior executives gives her a real insight into handling disputes to the advantage of both, enabling her to achieve favourable confidential settlements for her clients.

Louise is passionate about the employment rights of women who are pregnant or on maternity leave and regularly advises employees who are concerned they have been discriminated against as well as speaking at events on these rights.

For her employer clients, Louise often works as part of the HR team providing prompt and practical advice on day-to-day HR queries as well as strategic advice on TUPE, redundancies and restructurings, and disputes.

Louise is a thought leader on wellbeing in the workplace, workplace culture, flexible working and EDI, having spoken at many industry and client events and commented on these issues in the press and HR trade magazines as well as leading major research in these areas: 2024 Wellbeing research, 2023 Leadership development research, 2022 EDI research, 2021 Ethical Leadership research and 2020 Flexible Working research.

Louise is a member of the Business Network theme group for the business improvement district, Better Bankside, which promotes a thriving business ecosystem for the Bankside area.

Recent Experience – Senior Executives

• Regularly advising senior employees on resignations, conduct and performance issues and redundancies, and negotiating settlement packages for them taking into account key considerations such as their future work plans, the impact of post termination restrictive covenants, their bonuses and unvested stock awards, and protection of their reputation
• Acting for three senior employees in the property, financial and legal sectors in relation to their complex whistleblowing claims and successfully negotiating favourable settlements shortly before their Tribunal hearings commenced
• Assisting a senior female employee with her grievance that she had been subjected to discrimination on her return from maternity leave and achieving a resolution where the employee was transferred to a suitable alternative role and received compensation
• Assisting a senior female banker with her grievance against a Bank that she was paid less than her male colleagues and receiving a substantial salary increase
• Advising managers in the financial services sector regarding their service agreements/fund manager agreements including bonus entitlements

Recent Experience – Employers

• Advising start-ups and multi-nationals in relation to the employment aspects of setting up offices in the UK including drafting contracts of employment and Staff Handbooks
• Advising on the handling of investigations; grievance, disciplinary, performance and dismissal procedures; as well as redundancy/restructuring exercises to minimise the risks of claims being brought
• Advising how to conduct pre-termination/without prejudice discussions to reach commercial, swift and amicable departures
• Advising on the applicability and implications of TUPE and drafting warranties and indemnities to protect the transferor or transferee
• Successfully obtaining a “drop hands” settlement for an employer where the individual withdrew their whistleblowing and unfair dismissal claims without any payment from the employer
• Successfully obtaining a strike out of claims brought by an employee against an employer on the basis they were without merit

Partnership Law

Louise advises both partnerships and individual partners in the legal, financial and property sectors. Louise has been referred to in Legal 500 2024 as a key practitioner and is described by sources as “on the ball” in the 2019 edition. Her advice spans investigations, partner exits, restrictive covenants, forced retirements/expulsions, discrimination and whistleblowing claims as well as advising on individual hires.