Helena is a strong trial advocate who has also appeared in the Employment Appeal Tribunal (as sole counsel) and in the Central Arbitration Committee. Due to her previous career in industry and consultancy, she is pragmatic, commercially minded, and has excellent interpersonal skills.

Employment & Discrimination

Helena’s recent trials have concerned race and sex discrimination, TUPE, whistleblowing, constructive dismissal, and redundancy. She has defeated a worker status claim (Anderson v Airedale Symphony Orchestra), multiple disability discrimination and victimisation claims (Wilson-Shaw v NHS North of England Commissioning Support Unit), and sex discrimination and victimisation claims (Ivey v Norwich County Council).

Examples of recent successful interlocutory hearings include applications for anonymity and restricted reported orders; applications for costs; applications to strike out claims; applications to extend time to serve a response to claim; and an application to set aside a default judgment against an employer. She has also acted successfully for claimants to resist strike out and deposit order applications.

Helena advises and acts in cases involving trade union recognition under TULR(C)A and in cases involving Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery.

Helena represents clients in Judicial Mediations and works hard to achieve a realistic settlement. She also provides training in employment law.

Independent Investigations

Helena has run several highly sensitive investigations into allegations of discrimination, bullying, victimisation, and regulatory breaches. She brings a wealth of relevant professional experience to this area of her practice, having frequently conducted internal audits in her previous career.

Inquests

Helena is developing her practice in inquest and inquiry work and will consider acting on a pro bono or discounted-fee basis for bereaved families. She advises on merits, drafts pleadings, and appears in the county court in personal injury claims arising from accidents and assaults in the workplace, health and safety issues and road traffic accidents. She has a particular interest in health and safety at work and in workplace psychiatric injury claims.

Prior to the Bar

Helena worked as a Legal Officer for the Baptist Union for one year while completing her BPTC. She advised on property and trust law, GDPR, and assisted in preparation for the IICSA enquiry into child protection in religious organisations.

Before retraining in law, for twelve years, Helena ran business transformation programmes and worked as an IT and management consultant at C-level for clients in the private and public sectors. She has highly developed commercial skills combined with extensive experience in systems and business implementations and outsourcing, which complement her abilities as a barrister. Helena’s roles included commercial director on a multi-million account, delivery lead for an offshore IT services company, and business integration architect on a national transformation programme. She also defined and ran an organisation restructuring exercise in a unionised company.

• Middle Temple Queen Mother Scholarship

• Oxford University Press Prize (Top-Ranked Student in Year) (Oxford Brookes)

• Fulbright Scholarship (Australia)

• Arthur Macquarie Scholarship (University of Sydney)

• University Medal (University of Sydney)

• English Society Award (University of Sydney)

• Winner, National Client Interviewing Competition 2018

• Finalist, BPP Mooting Competition 2019

• Semi-Finalist, Rosamund Smith Mooting Competition 2019

• INQUEST

• ELA

• PIBA

• ILS

• BPTC (Very Competent) – BPP

• GDL (Distinction) – Oxford Brookes

• MPhil – Columbia University, USA

• MA – Columbia University, USA

• BA Honours (1st Class, Medal) – University of Sydney, Australia

• Anderson v Airedale Symphony Orchestra [2025]: worker status

• Unite the Union v Mitchells & Butlers Retail Limited (CAC) [2025]  TUR1/1454(2025): bargaining unit decision

• Gill v BDW [2025]: (unintentional) indirect discrimination

• Mitchell v North of England Commissioning Unit [2025]: race discrimination; constructive unfair dismissal

• Dale v Tavistock [2025]: sex and disability discrimination; unfair dismissal

• Muswere v University College Union [2025]: race discrimination; victimisation; harassment

• Chen v Coach Stores Ltd [2025] EAT 108: rule 12(2A)

• Edgeler v City of Plymouth College [2024]: constructive unfair dismissal; victimisation

• Ivey v Norwich County Council [2024]: breach of ss.20-21 EqA 2010; direct sex and disability discrimination; indirect sex discrimination; disability discrimination arising; unfair dismissal

• Thompson and others v (1) Moran (2) Romac [2024]: TUPE; service provision change

• Farkas v HDL Limited [2024]: unlawful deduction from wages

• Yazdani-Fardi v (1) Village Dental Studios (2) Dr Andi [2024]: breach of contract

• L v D [2023]: application for restricted reporting orders and anonymity orders

• Williams v Norwich City Council [2023]: application to set aside default judgment

• Dike v National Autistic Society [2023]: application to extend time to serve response

• E v A University [2023] (ET) (current) : application for a declaration for permanency by a fixed-term worker

• Wilson v Oxford [2023] (ET) (current) : part-time worker claim; victimisation; race and sex discrimination

• C v D [2023] (ET) (current) : equal pay; pregnancy, maternity and sex discrimination; constructive unfair dismissal; whistleblowing

• Devassy v Qualitas Care Limited [2023] (unreported) : unlawful deduction from wages; penalty clauses and restraint of trade

• Unite the Union v Inflite Engineering Services Limited [2023] TUR1/1292(2022): application for recognition of a bargaining unit

• Cheesman v Connells [2023]: vexatious litigants; res judicata; disability discrimination

• Parshall v LRE System [2023]: redundancy; unfair dismissal

• Kootbaully v Whitepost Healthcare Group [2023]: health and safety; constructive unfair dismissal

• Tadej v Polypipe [2023]: probationers; disability discrimination

• Sprague v Norfolk County Council [2022]: probationers; race discrimination; harassment

• X v Y [2022]: pregnancy discrimination; redundancy; applicability of Acas uplift

• A v B [2022]: unfair dismissal; race discrimination; social media

• Musa v Samworth Bros [2021]: unfair dismissal; reinstatement, reengagement

• Caparo v MarketAxess Europe Ltd [2021]: worker status; reasonable adjustments

• Renewi UK Services Ltd v Pamment [2021] 10 WLUK 364: appeal against a finding of unfair dismissal; health and safety; drugs at work

• Pamment v Renewi [2021] UKET 3201672/2020: reinstatement

“Helena, a very BIG THANK YOU for all your thoughtful support, measured advice, uplifting encouragement and perfectly timed humour over the course of the tribunal.” - Commercial Director, National Consultancy

“I worked with Helena when disputing with a previous employer.  Helena was fantastic! Helena picked up the background of my case very quickly, proficiently identified the particulars and worked seamlessly and efficiently with my solicitor. ” -  Employee Client, Global Human Resources Director, 2023