Ben Amunwa

Ben is an experienced employment lawyer who advises and assists employers and employees on grievances, disciplinary matters, dismissals, discrimination, sexual harassment, whistleblowing, business transfers, wages and holiday disputes, union matters and modern slavery.

He has conducted complex trials in person and remotely via video-link, including several 10-day discrimination cases in 2021 alone, involving thousands of pages of evidence and multiple witnesses.

Ben’s experience includes settlement negotiations, drafting (employment contracts, internal policies and pleadings) and representation in Tribunals, civil courts and before regulatory panels. He primarily focuses on the corporate, legal and public sectors but also accepts instructions from other fields or industries.

He provides practical and strategic advice, negotiation skills and effective representation at preliminary hearings, multi-day trials and appeals.

Owing to the breadth of Ben’s practice, clients often request him when atypical points arise, such as wasted costs, breaches of disclosure duties, data protection or immigration issues.

Unusually, he has cross-examined numerous solicitors (including Partners at magic circle law firms) in his employment trials, as well as questioning executive witnesses over sexual harassment allegations.

Ben has given training to employment practitioners and has written an acclaimed guidebook for the Law Centres Network on employment rights (described by a Head of Employment as “incredibly useful and thorough”), plus many articles and blogs.

Businesses, solicitors and in-house counsel frequently instruct Ben in complex multi-party commercial disputes, benefitting from his well-rounded expertise.

Ben is currently representing clients in the London Circuit Commercial Court in a dispute over the export of luxury goods. His cases frequently have a global dimension, raising matters of jurisdiction and international law.

Ben assists with the protection intellectual property and digital assets, matters at the core of the modern economy. He is familiar with obtaining orders for delivery up and digital data imaging. He is able to advise and protect his client’s interests on issues of privacy rights. He closely monitors legal developments on database rights, online contracts / licence agreements, website indexing and the legal risks for search engines and meta-search engines.

He has advised an international software company on the enforcement of non-solicitation / non- competition clauses and non-disclosure agreements. He has supported clients through lengthy commercial proceedings, including the aftermath of a High Court Search and Seizure Order (or ‘dawn raid’) in a breach of confidence claim involving the ex-employee of a multinational company.

Ben provides valuable assistance to start-ups, investors and established businesses in the technology sector. He is frequently brought in at an early stage in business planning to help embed solid contractual foundations and to achieve effective ownership structures.

Ben has experience in resolving disputes relating to contractors, partnerships, debt recovery, insolvency, winding-up petitions, minority shareholders, letters of credit and the duties of company directors. Commercial clients also value Ben’s experience in attracting global talent to the UK and dealing with employment and regulatory issues.

Ben has extensive experience in resolving education law disputes that span early years to higher education settings. He provides advice and representation on admissions, exclusions, SEN, discrimination, judicial reviews, transport, school complaints and OIA matters, as well as teachers’ regulation and civil claims. Ben’s clients include local authorities, families, university students, and national teachers’ unions.

Since 2014, Ben has appeared regularly in SENDIST appeals (including multi-day extended appeals and onward appeals to the Upper Tribunal). He has acted in complex appeals with Exceptional Case Funding. Ben is adept at expert witness handling and is able to support teams of professional witnesses with ease. Ben is a well-established SEN practitioner who focuses on finding the right solutions for the children and young people. His accessible and collegiate approach to SEN hearings has been praised by principal educational psychologists and instructing solicitors alike. He provides seamless additional support where matters escalate into judicial reviews, complaints or human rights damages claims.

Ben is also a prolific trainer who enjoys engaging individuals, educators and local authority professionals in understanding and applying the framework of law, policy and judicial learning in the education sector. He recently published a 45-page manual providing an introduction to SEN and education law.

After campaigning on social justice issues for over a decade, Ben came to bar in order to continue holding the executive to account through judicial scrutiny of public authorities.

He is frequently instructed in urgent, high-profile and complex public law matters for individuals, non-governmental organisations (such as The Unity Project and LIBERTY) and local authorities. He has acted in crowd-funded, public interest litigation, group actions for damages and matters with a high-level of media interest, with recent cases reported in the national press.

Recently Ben was led by Alex Goodman of Landmark Chambers in ST & Anor v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] EWHC 1085 (Admin), a successful challenge to the UK government’s ‘no recourse to public funds’ policy which affects many thousands of individuals, including British children of migrant parents. The case received significant media coverage in The Guardian.

Ben has a track-record of successfully applying equality law in judicial review proceedings concerning discrimination related to sex, disability and race. Working closely with committed teams of solicitors, he is fortunate to have achieved life-altering outcomes for some of his clients, obtaining many urgent court orders for interim relief and substantial settlements or awards of compensation.

Ben enjoys a good reputation before the Administrative Court of the High Court and is undaunted by opponents such as leading public law QCs and Attorney General A Panel counsel. He has appeared in cases that concern the application of international law and rights derived from Treaties.

Ben regularly assists with cases that concern international law, fundamental human rights, detention, economic and social rights, discrimination, statutory duties to accommodate and support the vulnerable, migrants’ access to public funds, contempt of court and costs. He maintains an interest in child rights and education law challenges (including special educational needs cases). His many articles and blog posts on these topics are widely read by practitioners of all levels.

Ben has acted in numerous damages claims for and against public authorities involving unauthorised disclosure of personal data, rectification of inaccurate data and breaches of human rights, (including vicarious liability claims in respect of rogue employees). Throughout 2021 and 2022, Ben has advised and represented clients in information rights appeals in the First-tier Tribunal (General Regulatory Chamber), including a case on legal advice privilege regarding a CPS charging decision relating to a uniformed protest; historic protection arrangements for the Royal Family and Cabinet Ministers dating back to 1938; and the disclosure of disciplinary proceedings relating to a former police officer. Ben is delighted to offer a full suite of assistance to individuals and public sector clients on information law, privacy and data protection.