Natasha is a senior public law specialist with a focus on regulatory enforcement and compliance. She has considerable expertise in contentious, high value regulatory investigations with particular expertise advising in the energy sector.
She has acted in multiple high value investigations and in numerous judicial reviews and statutory appeals. She has considerable project management experience including managing large document recoveries and disclosure exercises under strict confidentiality protocols.
Natasha has particular expertise in advising on legal privilege, regularly designing bespoke privilege protocols to protect communications on sensitive matters.
Contentious litigation
- Advising during the 2021-22 energy crisis on the scope for challenge to decisions taken by Ofgem, including decisions taken on the energy price cap and the raising of judicial review proceedings.
- Advising on the defence of multiple judicial reviews, including managing document production across parallel proceedings, on an emergency basis in a highly constrained timescale over winter 2024.
- Advising on the defence of a judicial review against a local council in Scotland in connection with internal governance decisions taken by officers.
- Advising the Standards Commission for Scotland since its creation across all of its activities; recently successfully defending several statutory appeals.
- Advising several respondents to the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry, including advising on responses to statutory notices, drafting responses and supporting in evidence sessions.
- Representing two former senior police officers in the Justice 1 Committee inquiry of the Scottish parliament into the Shirley McKie fingerprint case.
Regulatory Advice
- Advising on the implications of the Digital markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 as it relates to consumer law generally, and specifically to advertising and sales strategies.
- Advising on common interest privilege as between a Trust and related parties, and drafting bespoke confidentiality undertaking in respects of information sharing.
- Advising from 2020-22 on the requirements of the evolving Scottish Covid Regulations, on the law and regulations applying to Covid testing in the private sector, on the regulatory requirements applying to setting up a private Covid testing laboratory in Scotland; latterly expanding the analysis to testing for flu.
- Advising on money laundering and proceeds of crime legislation relating to potential historic regulatory offences and the potential of proceeds of crime legislation to apply/taint existing funds.
- Acted for a major UK utility in the largest and most important investigations and enforcement proceedings by the industry regulator over the last 12 years.
- Acted on behalf of two parties in connection with the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry.
- Advised global companies throughout Covid-19 lock down on Scottish Covid regulations, the lawfulness of Covid testing (on a private basis) and associated legal questions as the Scottish Government's pandemic response developed (including advising on the regulatory requirements of setting up a private testing laboratory in Scotland).
- Acted in the Competition and Markets Authority investigations into the energy market in GB and the leasehold market in England.
- Successfully defended the Standards Commission in Scotland against judicial review proceedings, and conducting appeal proceedings (including advocacy) across Scotland on their behalf.
- Successfully judicially reviewed a decision of the Care Inspectorate in Scotland.
- Acted in over 30 appeals on behalf of the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission.
- Represented two former senior police officers in the Justice 1 Committee inquiry of the Scottish parliament into the Shirley McKie fingerprint case.
Expertise:
Litigation and Dispute Resolution
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Administrative and Public Law
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Public Law Changes
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Regulatory Risk and Compliance
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Anti-Bribery and Money Laundering
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Health, Safety and Environmental Regulation
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National Security Investment Screening
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Regulation of Lobbying
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Regulatory Investigations
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Compliance Monitoring
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Workplace Risk and Regulation
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Government and Public Sector
