Robin Somerville - Resolving Legal Problems

Resolving Legal Problems for Businesses, Business Owners and Professionals

Having previously been a successful business owner, and for the last 17 years involved with law, my unique commercial and legal experience enables me to provide holistic and pragmatic advice. I strive for consensus, and consensual dispute resolution but make robust and grounded decisions when consensus is beyond reach.

Business, Commercial and Technology

Prior to qualifying in law, I was a money market trader in the City of London before setting up, growing and successfully selling three technology start-up businesses. I was involved in my family's third generation business which fell into administration in the financial crisis in 2009. For over 13 years I was an equity holding director of one of the UK’s leading online price comparison websites.

Examples of how I have helped my clients include advising and representing four of six brothers involved in a partnership dispute in respect of their £120m property development partnership, advising and representing one of three brothers and their next generations in respect of a 40+ year old car dealership, helping a business and its supplier resolve a long-standing dispute so successfully that they entered into a new two year supplier contract, a technology business resolve its professional negligence claim with its accountants, a senior account director at a recruitment firm settle their unfair dismissal claim, two business partners settle a four year shareholder dispute, a solicitor settle a claim by a medico legal report writing supplier.

My clients appreciate my focus on problem solving and finding solutions to legal issues and disputes. I am at my best at times when clients are facing crisis or radical change where they benefit from my strategic and analytical focus and calm approach.

My services include all of the following:

General business and commercial law
Shareholder, director and board disputes
IT, Technology, online and disruption

Professional Regulation, Conduct and Discipline

I have represented professionals and regulators from a wide span of specialisms including senior executives and directors, accountants, solicitors, doctors, surveyors, education and health care. I offer legal services in London , including mediation services in London - my services also extend to the rest of the country.

My experience has included acting or investigating for organisations and clients facing a wide span of conduct allegations including sexual misconduct, dishonesty, clinical and language competency before tribunals of first instance, appeals and at the High Court.

With over 13 years’ experience, I have chaired, sat on or case presented fitness to practice hearings for regulators including the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, Construction Industry Council, Nursing and Midwifery Council, Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (General Medical Council) and others. I am a member of the Association for Regulatory and Disciplinary Lawyers. I have been chair of the board of an educational establishment and a non-exec and audit chair of a large NHS organisation that commissions over £500 million of healthcare services for over 369,000 patients.

I have delivered board and panel training to a number of leading regulators and regulated commercial organisations in the UK and abroad and has re-written of a number of codes of conduct including for statutory regimes requiring approval by the relevant Secretary of State.

I am available to investigate, advise on, or represent organisations or registrants, act as case presenter or legal assessor in respect of any of the following:

Conduct or represent those involved with disciplinary, misconduct and grievance investigations
Interim orders hearings
Substantive misconduct, conviction and health cases
Substantive order reviews
Registration appeals
Appeals against panel findings

Transparency

Professional, licensed access and direct/public access (lay) clients may contact me to obtain a quotation for legal services;
My contact details can be found on my contact page;
The majority of the time I quote fixed fees agreed in advance for work. Alternatively, I am able to agree hourly rates agreed at the outset;
This website identifies the areas of practice in which I most commonly provide legal services;
My availability and delivery timescales depend largely on my availability at any particular time due to existing professional and other commitments. I am usually able to identify and agree delivery timescales as part of agreeing a fixed fee.
When delivering regulated legal work, unless otherwise agreed, I practise from my own set of chambers as a sole practitioner. My practising address is The Chambers of Robin Somerville, 5 Chancery Lane, London, WC2A 1LG. If you have cause to complain, here is a link to how to complain.
I am regulated by the Bar Standards Board;
When providing regulated legal work, you may also complain to the Legal Ombudsman (LeO), who allow you to make a complaint online through their website. You first need to complain to myself or my chambers. If you are dissatisfied with my final response, you need to submit your complaint to LeO within six months of my final response;
Here is a link to my entry on the Barristers’ Register page on the BSB’s website or you can search their database using my name.

Professional and Academic Qualifications

Education

Accredited Mediator - Civil and Commercial - CEDR Mediation.
Accredited Investigator – Employment and workplace investigations
Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC – Post Graduate Barrister Training)
Bachelor of Laws (LLB/GDL)
Accredited Mediator – Civil and Commercial, Family – ADR Group.
BA (Hons) / Diplome de Commerce

Professional

Professional Regulatory Fitness to Practise Tribunal Chair/Member
Accredited Civil and Commercial and Workplace Mediator and Mediation Advocate
Mediator and Arbitrator – World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
Fellow Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb)
Adjudicator – Society of Computers and Law
Associate – Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR).
Member – Civil Mediation Council
Member – Honourable Society of Lincolns Inn
Association of Regulatory Lawyers
Ombudsman – Financial Ombudsman Service (previously)
Chartered IT Professional of British Computer Society (previously)
Chair of the Board – FE College (previously)
Non-exec Board Member for Governance and Conflicts of Interest and Chair of Audit Committee – Barnet Clinical Commissioning Group (previously)
Independent Member – Chartered Banker Professional Standards Board (previously)