Birds Solicitors is pleased to welcome Allan Briddock as a Consultant to the firm. Allan is a barrister and was called to the Bar in 2000. Allan joins our Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Department and will be advising our clients in relation to challenges to adverse decisions on their trafficked status by the Competent Authority by way of judicial review. His work will compliment that of Philippa Southwell in advising victims of human trafficking on appeals against conviction in circumstances where the individual was prosecuted contrary to the UK’s obligations under the EU Directive on non prosecution of victims of trafficking in certain circumstances.
The firm has overturned numerus convictions in the last few years where the victim of trafficking was let down by the police, UKBA, prosecuting authorities, courts and their own lawyers. We also advised UNICEF in its representations to the Government during the passing into law of the trafficking defence now contained within the Modern Slavery Act 2015.
Allan will allow the firm to provide a fuller service to our clients who are victims of miscarriages of justice by challenging adverse decisions on their trafficked status by judicial review of the Competent Authority where we have previously had to refer clients to other firms or agencies.
In addition, Allan will be working with Philippa Southwell and Steven Bird in advising corporate clients on the requirement to provide a ‘transparency in supply chains’ statement as required by the Modern Slavery Act 2015. This is an area which many commercial organisations are unfamiliar with and Birds Solicitors is uniquely placed to provide expert advice given our extensive knowledge and experience of human trafficking work and the Modern Slavery Act 2015.
With Allan in the team we will be advising on a range of issues concerning these obligations on commercial organisations including their liability to prepare the report, staff training on modern slavery and human trafficking, producing best practice for organisations to eliminate such problems from their supply chains and drafting the statutorily required statement. He has previously advised a variety of clients in this area including a major European airline, a global fashion house and a large housing association.
Allan has a strong interest in LGBT rights and is a trustee of the UK Lesbian and Gay Immigration Group, which campaigns for the better treatment of LGBT asylum seekers as well as offering support services to LGBT refugees. He is a founding member of the Transgender Equality Legal Initiative, which in November 2016 will bring together activists, lawyers, politicians and other interested parties to further equality under the law for transgender persons.
He is a visiting tutor at the University of Law and was a part-time tutor at Kaplan Law School. He is an advocacy trainer for the Inner Temple.
We welcome Allan to the firm and look forward to working with him to expand our work as leaders in the field of modern slavery and human trafficking law.
