Vanessa Latham

With more than 20 years’ experience working for insurance companies and corporate clients, Vanessa specialises in employment, discrimination and occupational disease.

She is experienced in contentious employment tribunal litigation for respondent companies on the instruction of insurers under employment practices liability, legal expenses and directors and officers policies. Vanessa also specialises in providing a range of non-contentious employment law advice from recruitment through to managing employee disputes, advising on policies, procedures and termination and settlement agreements. She acts for a wide range of clients from SMEs to global corporations.

In addition to her employment practice, Vanessa is a specialist in ‘short tail’ occupational disease claims with a focus on stress, bullying and harassment. Her cross-jurisdictional specialism means she is often asked to advise on claims which have an overlap between employment tribunals and courts.

Vanessa also has a particular interest in Equality Act 2010 claims for discrimination in the provision of goods and services and for discrimination in education, commonly instructed by insurers and a range of corporate clients. She provides related risk management advisory work for clients on equality policies and procedures.

Her advice is sought on sensitive and high-profile cases, which often involve vulnerable litigants in person or give rise to significant reputational risk. She is known for her common sense advice and robust, but pragmatic approach to achieving the best possible outcome for her clients. Vanessa regularly speaks at seminars and provides bespoke training to clients on stress, discrimination and employment law issues.