Jane Mulcahy KC

As a former journalist and editorial director, Jane brings a range of skills as well as a breadth of experience that is rare in a mediator and barrister. She specialises in sport, media and entertainment, employment, partnership disputes and human rights, using her natural intelligence and understanding to defuse frequently highly emotional cases. Given her areas of expertise as a barrister, mediator and arbitrator, it will not come as a surprise to find that she is familiar with the High Court and Court of Appeal as well as the employment tribunals and specialist tribunals and arbitrations in the sports arena, including the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Jane sits on the English Cricket Board’s Appeals Panel in child protection cases, as well as Sport Resolutions’ Child Safeguarding Panel.

She also sits as a Hearing Officer for cases of corruption in tennis. In addition she has experience of arbitrating disputes between players and agents through her appointment on Sport Resolutions’, and the FA Premier League’s, list of arbitrators.

Jane has acted as mediator in a range of employment, sport, shareholder and partnership disputes. In facilitating settlement, she draws on her long experience of acting for both employers and employees and understands the particularly stressful and delicate nature of mediations in this field. Further, her experience in sports law matters comes from acting both for sports bodies, and individuals: she therefore understands the perspectives of both sides to a sports dispute.

Jane says: “In many cases the emotions of the parties are running high. There is no doubt that mediation is a wonderful forum for both expressing and defusing those emotions in a safe and confidential environment. I’m a great believer in the utility of the process. I try to add energy, understanding and intelligent communication in order to help the parties find their way through to a sustainable solution.”

Breach of contract

Bullying & harassment

Disability discrimination

Discrimination

Employment

Human rights

Media, entertainment & the arts

Partnership disputes

Publishing

Religious disputes

Sport

Undue influence

Whistleblowing

The most recent editions of the legal directories say the following about Jane:

Chambers and Partners, 2017, UK - Sport - London (Bar):

A personable but authoritative advocate who handles disputes and disciplinary hearings concerning doping, discrimination and unfair dismissal.

Strengths: "Jane gives clear and frank advice. She is someone you actively want to work with on a matter, and is absolutely excellent with clients." "Her reputation affords her a deserved seat at the top table of advisers in the industry."

Chambers and Partners, 2017, UK - Employment - London (Bar):

Highly experienced barrister praised by sources for her exceptional client skills and her impressive cross-examination in tribunal and Court of Appeal cases. She works across the whole breadth of employment law, with demonstrable expertise in discrimination and wrongful dismissal cases.

Strengths: "She is extremely client-friendly and is good at putting the client at ease because she is unflappable." "She develops an excellent rapport with clients, is extremely responsive and her reputation as an immaculately prepared and excellent advocate is thoroughly deserved."

Legal 500, 2016:

Within: Employment – Leading silks 

‘Her preparation and cross-examination are first class, and she is one of the most client-friendly barristers.’

Within: Sport – Leading silks 

‘One of the absolute stars of the sports law Bar.’

Journalist before being called to the Bar in 1995. Took silk in 2014.

Appointments

Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer for world tennis.

Member of the Tribunal of the Federation Equestre Internationale (“FEI”), the governing body for the Olympic equestrian disciplines.

Appeal steward for the British Boxing Board of Control (“BBFC”).

Panel member for Sport Resolutions (Legal Arbitrator and Mediator).

Memberships

Director of the British Association of Sport and Law (“BASL”).

Member of the Employment Lawyers Association (“ELA”) and the Employment Law Bar Association (“ELBA”).

Joint author of “Garden Leave” and “Practice and Procedure” in Employee Competition: Covenants, Confidentiality and Garden Leave, OUP, 3rd ed., 2015.  Also the author of a section on fixed term contracts for Tolley’s Discrimination Law Handbook, 2nd ed., 2011.

Jane is the joint author of three chapters, on human rights, employment and child protection, in Sport: Law and Practice, Lewis and Taylor, Butterworths, 3rd ed., 2014. She is Case Editor for the International Sports Law Review (“ISLR”).

Spending precious time with family and friends. Arsenal Football Club. Cookery programmes for viewing, restaurants for eating. Films, theatre, great TV series. Wine.

Legal Directories

Chambers and Partners, 2017, UK - Sport - London (Bar):

A personable but authoritative advocate who handles disputes and disciplinary hearings concerning doping, discrimination and unfair dismissal.

Strengths: "Jane gives clear and frank advice. She is someone you actively want to work with on a matter, and is absolutely excellent with clients." "Her reputation affords her a deserved seat at the top table of advisers in the industry."

Chambers and Partners, 2017, UK - Employment - London (Bar):

Highly experienced barrister praised by sources for her exceptional client skills and her impressive cross-examination in tribunal and Court of Appeal cases. She works across the whole breadth of employment law, with demonstrable expertise in discrimination and wrongful dismissal cases.

Strengths: "She is extremely client-friendly and is good at putting the client at ease because she is unflappable." "She develops an excellent rapport with clients, is extremely responsive and her reputation as an immaculately prepared and excellent advocate is thoroughly deserved."

Legal 500, 2016:

Within: Employment – Leading silks 

‘Her preparation and cross-examination are first class, and she is one of the most client-friendly barristers.’

Within: Sport – Leading silks 

‘One of the absolute stars of the sports law Bar.’

Chambers UK 2011 notes:  “Jane Mulcahy is a delight to deal with.  She understands clients’ needs, has great judgment.”

Legal 500 2010 reports her as being “fantastic with clients and always gets to the crux of a case quickly”.