Board Level Strategic Workforce Support
A business’ people strategy needs to align with overall business goals, both short- and long-term, while also shaping the right behaviors, culture and values across the organization.
Leadership sets the tone and today, that tone is more critical than ever. It’s not just about protecting the business; it’s about inspiring employee engagement, performance and long-term loyalty. Our team works in partnership with clients to shape the right strategic people agenda at board level and supports to ensure that it is implemented effectively and communicated with impact. Legal considerations are key, but so are the process, messaging and overall execution. We take a holistic approach, grounded in deep experience and insight and we draw on proven benchmarks to help you deliver strategy that sticks. From major organizational change and workforce planning to culture reviews, executive onboarding, incentive plans and sensitive departures, including post-employment restrictions, we provide practical, forward-looking guidance across all aspects of your people strategy.
Areas of Expertise
- Designing workforce strategies – Provision of advice and support on strategic business reviews requiring organizational changes. We help to shape workforce strategies that align with a company’s vision, mission and strategy. We provide advice and guidance on how a structural change could potentially impact reporting lines, team structures and roles. We support the board, senior management and legal/HR teams with all communications, providing technical and strategic employment law advice on related issues, such as collective redundancy consultation.
- Board level/senior executive exits – Deliver strategic and legal counsel on board level and senior executive exits, including negotiating and drafting exit packages. We are often involved with dealing with the resolution of claims under shareholder agreements, investor agreements, share purchase agreement and employment contracts, as well as the related tax implications.
- New Market Entry – Supporting clients entering new global markets as they navigate the unique and often surprising maze of employment, immigration, tax, data privacy and other local law legal requirements. Our multidisciplinary team of lawyers not only brings extensive legal experience, but they have the local relationships and cultural understanding that helps position our clients for success in whatever country they move into.
- Corporate/Transactional Work – We provide support to a diverse range of clients, spanning from listed companies to fast growth startups, financial institutions, private equity firms and management teams, to deliver the strategic HR business objectives arising from mergers and acquisitions (M&A),initial public offerings (IPOs) or equity capital raise. Our team advises on the entire range of employment law issues arising out of transactions, including the transfer of employees, restructuring management teams, employment and retention agreements, workforce reductions and works council, as well as individual consultation processes.
Complex Litigation and Contentious Employment Advice
We have extensive experience defending many types of employment litigation claims on behalf of our clients, including claims that have been described as a threat to the economy given the potential multibillion liability at stake. We have represented clients in groundbreaking cases at the cutting edge of employment law, including worker status, wage and hour class actions, workplace injuries, holiday pay and equal pay.
We advise on all types of employment disputes — from unfair dismissal and unlawful deduction of wages to complex and high-risk claims involving discrimination, whistleblowing and breach of contract. We regularly act in urgent injunction proceedings to enforce restrictive covenants, protect confidential information and prevent team moves.
From a strategic employment law perspective, we work closely with clients to assess litigation risk, protect reputational interests and ensure legal strategy aligns with broader business objectives. Our advice often involves sensitive internal investigations, senior-level exits, regulatory engagement and managing cross-border employment risks.
We represent clients before employment tribunals, civil courts and the UK High Court and Court of Appeal. Internationally, we have experience coordinating complex, multijurisdictional litigation and regularly act in the US before federal and state agencies, as well as before both federal and state courts, including in high-stakes employment and class action claims. Our integrated approach ensures consistency, control and commercial focus in even the most sensitive disputes.
Investigations and Whistleblowing
Investigations and whistleblowing continue to be a key topic for major global corporations. We have a dedicated Investigations practice made up of a cross-office team of lawyers having a wealth of experience in handling complex, high profile and sensitive internal investigations for clients across several different sectors and often across multiple jurisdictions.
We have dealt with cases ranging from complex financial matters, the most highly sensitive public interest cases to serious allegations of harassment, bullying and discrimination in the workplace.
Our support provides our clients with credibility and objectivity to make considered decisions and reduce the financial and reputational risk to their organizations.
“S” in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and Sustainability Strategy
Our global team has a proven track record in advising corporations on their global culture strategy, relevant to people and purpose, while ensuring compliance with legal requirements in the jurisdictions in which they operate. We regularly advise clients on strategic trends and challenges, responsibilities as an employer, directors’ duties and the broader ESG and sustainability agenda.
We support our clients with areas such as diversity, pay equity and minimum wage, employee health and wellbeing, whistleblowing, culture reviews and investigations and employee privacy. We are at the forefront of delivering global projects for clients, including pay equity, pay reporting and the collection and monitoring diversity data.
In addition, we provide a significant amount of board-level and tactical training to clients around trends and challenges, key risks and mitigation tips.
Organized Labor and Industrial Relations
Our expertise in industrial relations covers all types of organized labor and unionized employees in the US, across the EU and the UK, Asia-Pacific, Central Asia and the Middle East. We regularly represent employers in areas such as collective bargaining, unfair labor practice and representation proceedings, contract administration and grievance arbitration, strike and contract disputes, preparation and litigation, as well as union avoidance. We also support matters dealing with national, state and federal courts, arbitrators, works councils, labor relations boards and unions.
We have extensive experience advising on the full range of industrial relations issues, including negotiations, relationship management, collective consultations, industrial action, handling applications for injunctive relief (including injunctions on behalf of the employer to restrain industrial action), recognition and derecognition (including applications to the CAC) and handling all contentious issues.
We have extensive experience advising employers on works council engagement at both the national and European levels. We support the setup, structure and operation of works councils, and guide clients through consultation obligations tied to matters such as reorganizations, workforce changes and cross-border deals. We also regularly handle multijurisdictional matters, which can often involve balancing legal compliance with business goals. From complex negotiations to structural change and dispute response, we partner with in-house legal and HR teams to deliver practical, risk-aware solutions that promote strong employee relations and operational agility.
Business Immigration and Global Mobility
We are one of only a small number of full-service global law firms to have an established business immigration team. Our vast experience covers everything from day-to-day visa applications and right to work issues to more complex and strategic matters including time-critical and commercially sensitive C-suite hires and departures, corporate restructures, compliance breaches and cross-border issues with an excellent track record in obtaining outstanding results in challenging circumstances. We have unparalleled expertise in advising on the immigration aspects of corporate transactions and restructures, which if not addressed promptly and correctly can jeopardize a business’s ability to retain its international workforce and sponsor new work visas. We advise on relevant best practices, industry trends and legal developments to help clients avoid technical pitfalls, delays in transferring key staff and the repercussions of non-compliance, which can include tough financial penalties and criminal prosecution.
Other Specialist Areas of Support
AI and the Workplace
The increasing reliance by companies on AI in the workplace presents both great opportunities, but also legal and practical challenges. As the legal and regulatory framework is still evolving with developments, we are increasingly being asked to help clients navigate through to help them better understand the impact this has on their workforce policies and how best to leverage the opportunities that the use of AI systems can create in a thoughtful and responsible way.
Global Employee Data Privacy Issues
We offer a “one-stop shop” for any organization needing to address employee data protection and e-privacy issues in the UK, the EU, the US and other global markets. In the UK, we also have a specialist technology-based service dealing with data subject access requests (DSARs).
Tax, Compensation, Benefits and International Assignments
Our employee benefits and executive compensation team is well-positioned to cover all of the legal aspects of an executive compensation plans and arrangements, as well as the tax issues arising out of employee mobility and international assignments.
