Stephen is a specialist labor law and industrial relations partner.
He is regularly instructed by a wide range of well-known, high-profile organisations, both domestically and globally. He has worked on some of the biggest, most high profile and law changing industrial relations matters in the UK.
Stephen has extensive experience in developing industrial relations strategy, managing union recognition applications and relationships, responding to union information requests, negotiating pay deals and advising on other aspects of collective bargaining, handing s188 proceedings, resolving industrial action and picketing disputes, and EWC matters. He also manages contentious proceedings before the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC), the employment tribunal, and the civil and appeal courts (such as TU detriment/discrimination claims, blacklisting claims, and injunctive relief), where he has also appeared as an advocate.
Stephen is also an experienced employment lawyer and litigator (in both individual and class action claims). He regularly advises on TUPE matters, restructures, redundancies, changes to terms and conditions and complex/high profile employee relations issues and terminations.
Before joining Eversheds Sutherland, Stephen worked in the in-house legal team at the General Medical Council and held various senior human resource management roles within unionised and non-unionised environments, both in the private and public sectors.
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- Visiting Lecturer at the University of Law, lecturing on the university’s various post-graduate, under-graduate and professional law programs (such as the LLB, GDL, LPC, SQE and master’s degrees)
- Legal author for Brightmine/XpertHR and the CIPD
- Committee Member on the Employment Lawyers Association’s (ELA) Legislative and Policy Committee, chairing working parties which respond to government consultations on proposed changes to employment and labour laws (for example, recently the trade union aspects of the Employment Rights Bill, European Works Councils and TUPE)
- Committee Member on the CIPD’s Public Policy Committee, helping the CIPD to influence Government policy and legislation in respect of employment and labour matter and legislation
- Member of the CIPD’s ER Advisory Group
- Advisory Board Member for the ESRC Centre for Digital Futures at Work
- Qualified as a Solicitor in 2015
- Post Graduate Certificate in Legal Practice (LPC) – distinction, 2013
- LLB (Hons) in Law – First Class with Honours, 2005
- Post Graduate Diploma in Human Resource Management
- Chartered Member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD)
- Member of the Employment Lawyers Association