“… wins strong market approval … a ‘real hard worker who is responsive’, has ‘bags of enthusiasm’ and is liked by clients due to her ‘very personable attitude’.”

Police Law, Chambers & Partners 2013

Background:

Junior Counsel to the Crown: Attorney General's "B" Panel (appointed 2013)

Deputy District Judge (Civil) on the South Eastern Circuit (appointed 2010)

Junior Counsel to the Crown: Attorney General's "C" Panel (2007-2013)

Tenancy at 5 Essex Court from 2003.

Police Law:

Lucinda has extensive experience of police civil actions (assault, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, misfeasance and discrimination), police misconduct proceedings, inquests and claims for judicial review. Lucinda has been instructed in a number of civil jury actions. Lucinda also has particular interest and expertise in advising the police on operational and policy matters.

Lucinda has advised, and appeared on behalf of, the Serious Organised Crime Agency in various matters relating to its covert operational functions, its Article 2 ECHR obligations and sensitive matters arising from its duty as a protection provider, including as to the procedure for intervening in civil proceedings which risk compromising a protected person’s assumed identity.

Bailey v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis
13 day civil jury trial of a claim for damages for false imprisonment, trespass to property (unlawful seizure of his vehicle) and malicious prosecution. C claimed that he was unlawfully arrested for making a threat to kill, failing to stop, and driving without insurance; that he was unlawfully sprayed with CS gas and that the arresting officer fabricated the alleged threat to kill to justify retrospectively the use of the CS gas.

Wright v Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall Constabulary & Mitchell & Friggens
Instructed for the three defendants in this claim for damages for false imprisonment, battery, malicious prosecution and breach of Articles 3 and 14 ECHR.

R (D) v Independent Police Complaints Commission & DC Fraser LTL 24/5/2011 EXTEMPORE
Instructed for the IPCC in this challenge to the decision of the IPCC not to recommend the institution of misconduct proceedings against a police officer. Despite holding that the IPCC had been wrong not to find a realistic prospect that a police misconduct panel would find that the officer failed to perform her duties conscientiously and diligently the Court declined to quash the Commission’s decision because the substantial lapse of time (over 5 years) meant that it would not be appropriate for the officer to be faced with the possibility of misconduct proceedings.

R (Coker) v Independent Police Complaints Commission [2010] EWHC 3625 (Admin)
Instructed for the IPCC. The Court found that the IPCC was not functus officio after it had recommended that a police officer should receive a written warning, and was therefore entitled to revise its recommendations upon receipt of further representations, and the fact that it made a recommendation that was contrary to a view that it initially formed was neither ultra vires nor irrational.

Public/Administrative Law

Lucinda is regularly instructed in claims for judicial review in immigration and asylum law, prison law, human rights and claims involving the police (in particular challenges to the outcome of complaints against police). Lucinda’s experience of public law challenges to immigration and asylum decisions is extensive and includes:

• Breach of policy/unequal treatment/breach of legitimate expectation/wrongful exercise of discretion;
• Fresh claims (asylum and Articles 2, 3 and 8 ECHR);
• Certification decisions;
• Deportation decisions;
• Cancellation and curtailment of leave to remain;
• Refusal of applications on grounds of dishonesty and use of false representations/documents;
• Refusal of applications for non-compliance with procedural requirements;
• Challenges to age assessments;
• Detention decisions.

Lucinda has experience of acting for the Home Office in civil claims alleging unlawful detention and breach of Articles 5 and 8 ECHR in immigration detention centres. Lucinda has also acted for the CPS in claims for malicious prosecution.

Claims arising from the loss of an unencrypted data stick by a contractor of the Home Office
Instructed in the numerous claims arising from the loss of an unencrypted data stick which held the details of some 85000 prisoners in England and Wales. The claims raised issues relating to data protection, breach of contract, breach of confidentiality, misuse of private information and the scope of Article 8 in the context of the use, and loss, of private information.

Seal v United Kingdom - European Court of Human Rights 2010
Instructed as junior counsel for the UK. The issue was whether the requirement to obtain the leave of the High Court under section 139(2) of the Mental Health Act 1983 before commencing civil proceedings was compatible with Articles 6 and 14 of the ECHR.

Gichura v Home Office & anor [2008] 1 ICR 1287, [2008] EWCA Civ 697 - Court of Appeal
Junior counsel for the Home Office. The Court of Appeal held that there was no reason to exclude services provided to a person held in an immigration removal centre from the ambit of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

Public Inquiries

The Leveson Inquiry into the Culture, Practices and Ethics of the Press

Lucinda was instructed as part of the Counsel to the Inquiry team to assist with module 2 – the relationship between the press and the police and the extent to which that has operated in the public interest. Her involvement included questioning witnesses (including the Deputy Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service; the Chief Constables of South Wales Police, the Police Service of Northern Ireland and Durham Constabulary; the crime reporters for the Daily Star, the Guardian and the Independent; and crime reporters working for local newspapers); drafting requests for evidence and assisting in drafting sections of the Leveson Report.

Inquests:

Lucinda has extensive inquest experience, including defending serious allegations of lack of care and system failure.

• Inquest into the death of Vijay Sharma

  Instructed for the Ministry of Justice (National Offender Management Service). Mr Sharma died from complications arising from a perforated ulcer whilst a serving prisoner.

• Inquest into the death of Hui Ki-Yang

  Instructed for the Ministry of Justice (NOMS). Mr Ki-Yang hanged himself in his cell at HMP Bullingdon.

• Inquest into the death of Paul Honey

  Instructed for the Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall Constabulary. Mr Honey died when he fell from a railway bridge following contact with police.

• Inquest into the death of Paul Honey

  Instructed for the Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall Constabulary. Mr Honey died when he fell from a railway bridge following contact with police.

• Inquest into the death of Jianping Liu;

  Instructed for the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis. Miss Liu died when she fell from a bridge at Heathrow airport after she had been released from police detention;

• Inquest into the death of Oliver Brown

  Instructed for the Ministry of Justice (NOMS). Mr Brown hanged himself in his cell at HM Prison Wandsworth

• Inquest into the death of Charlotte Shaw

  Instructed for the Ministry of Defence. Miss Shaw died when she fell into a river whilst training for the Ten Tors challenge on Dartmoor.

• Inquest into the death of PC Toms

  Instructed for the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis. PC Toms was the backseat passenger in an armed response vehicle, which was in pursuit of another vehicle. The two vehicles collided and PC Toms died when he was expelled from the rear door of the police vehicle.

• Inquest into the death of Brian Elton

  Counsel for the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis. Mr Elton died when he was struck down by a police car responding to an emergency call.

• Inquest into the death of Faisal Al-Ani

  Instructed for the IPCC. Mr Al-Ani died in police detention following an extensive period of restraint by police officers.

• Inquest into the death of Ian Snelling

  Instructed for the Chief Constable of Suffolk Police. Mr Snelling died in a police cell following a massive overdose of prescription drugs.

Personal Injury and medical negligence:

Lucinda is instructed in all aspects of personal injury work, including employer’s liability, occupier’s liability, fatal accident claims, road traffic accidents, and quantum assessment.

X v Marie Stopes International

Claim for damages for medical negligence and battery against a private provider of sexual and reproductive healthcare services.

Wood v Ministry of Defence [2011] EWCA Civ 792 (Court of Appeal)

Led by Jeremy Johnson in the Defendant’s appeal against the decision of the High Court that W’s prolonged exposure to organic solvents during his service in the RAF caused him to sustain permanent organic damage to his nervous system. The key issue was whether legal causation could be established despite the absence of scientific proof of a causal connection.

White v Ministry of Defence and Department for Communities and Local Government

Instructed for both Defendants in this High Court action for damages. C claimed damages in respect of pleural effusion that he claimed had resulted from exposure to asbestos.

Spain v Ministry of Justice

Claim for damages for negligence and breach of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. C slipped over at her workplace, HM Youth Offender’s Institution, Glen Parva, injured her lower back and neck which she claims led to persistent pain and numbness in her left hand.

Lectures:

Lucinda will provide CPD accredited lectures on all aspects of her practice, including malicious prosecution and the Article 2 ECHR positive duty to protect life.

Education:

Nottingham Law School, BVC, 2001-2002
University of Leicester, Law with French Law and French Language (First class) 1997-2001
University of Strasbourg, Diploma in French Legal Studies, 1999-2000