Best brains in ...

Persuading the lawyers on the other side that we are right and then helping them sell the deal to their clients.

Delivering the right result at a price the client considers to be good value for money. This is a real challenge in litigation.

In major disputes there can often be conflicting agendas within the client let alone between the parties. Forging a sense of common purpose and following a clearly defined strategy are things I focus on.

Highlight of your career so far?

Defending a multi-million pound claim against a small software company, which, if successful would have destroyed the business and the reputations of the three directors. This was a technically complex matter, in which the other party alleged that our clients were also guilty of fraud by altering a copy of the database that had been submitted for expert testing. After a six-week trial the claim was struck out, our clients were awarded damages for their unpaid invoices and recovered all of their legal costs. In the months leading up to the trial and for every day of the trial, the clients and our team worked around the clock under immense pressure to make sure we could defeat each and every one of the allegations. Sometimes the good guys win!

Most challenging job you've ever done?

Not sure it was the toughest but it is the most memorable; I was acting for an insurance brokerage in a mediation that became fairly acrimonious between the principals on both sides. During a break in proceedings the lawyer on the other side asked the mediator to ask me if I could speak to her client directly to help persuade him that his case was hopeless and he would indeed lose at trial! I obliged, the claim was withdrawn and I received a very nice thank you letter from my opponent.

What about outside the UK?

Acting for a Cypriot insurance company in a dispute with a UK-based IT supplier. This involved a three-day negotiation in Cyprus. I knew we were making progress when the lawyers on the other side declined my client's invitation to dinner on the second evening but his client accepted. The case settled the next day and a few weeks later the other party contacted me to instruct me to act for it in a dispute it had with an overseas bank.

What's your definition of going the extra mile... And when have you done it?

On the last working day before Christmas we received a detailed letter setting out a host of new allegations and a mass of new documentation ahead of a mediation taking place early in the New Year. It was clear that the timing of the letter was intended to cause maximum inconvenience. I suggested to the client that we cancel Christmas and prepare a response to be delivered on the first working day after the New Year. Doing these sorts of things help forge very strong bonds with the clients because they see that their business and careers are important to you.

Best example of a creative legal solution?

Persuading the clients and then the other party in a dispute under an outsourcing contract that, rather than fight it out through litigation, the better alternative was to re-write the original contract on terms that better represented the risk and reward in the original deal.

When have you ever given a client a real competitive edge?

In my work it is essential at day one to give clients clear advice on the merits and options with the price tag attached and a clear understanding of the time and effort required to pursue or defend the case. This ensures that we are all aligned, which is what gives the client a competitive edge in any dispute.

What's your single greatest contribution to Wragge & Co's corporate responsibility?

Working with one of our major insurer clients and a charity on a project to improve awareness among school children as to the risks of taking drugs. This led to lawyers and support staff from the firm joining a team visiting local schools to lead discussion groups with children.

What's been written or said about you that you're most proud of?

Thank you