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Nicola Whiteley

Partner

London

Nicola is head of the London Employment Team and has more than 25 years of experience in all aspects of contentious and non-contentious employment law, with a particular focus on complex and/or cross border issues for multinational clients and on the Technology and Finance sectors.

Leading a “straightforward and solutions-focused” team in London who are “exceptionally good and very highly respected globally”, Nicola is listed and noted for her “business-oriented approach” in Lexology Index and recognised by Chambers and Partners as “an excellent lawyer” who is “extremely responsive, commercially astute and pragmatic” and “an absolute pleasure to work with”, with clients praising her “solution orientated” nature, “very good sense of customer service” and her ability to “get to the heart of a legal problem very quickly” and “simplify complex legal matters into understandable chunks”.

Nicola is also recognised as a Leading Partner by Legal 500 UK. Clients describe her as "responsive, quick, pragmatic, and a joy to work with," making in-house counsel's life "a lot easier." Her calm and sensible advice has been invaluable in stressful employment disputes, earning her the reputation of an "outstanding employment law practitioner." Nicola's strong technical expertise, deep understanding of her clients' businesses, and commercial pragmatism make her a "pleasure to work with."

Furthermore, Nicola is lauded as "superb – clever, technical, accessible, commercial, and a thoroughly decent lawyer and human being," with tremendous respect from peers and clients alike. Her broad range of experience and cost-effective solutions are highly valued, as is her ability to provide expert legal advice and counsel tailored to the practical needs of businesses. Nicola is also trusted for independent investigation work and legal ethics-related advice.

She is a member of the International Committee of the Employment Lawyer's Association.

  • Nicola specialises in all aspects of employment law, both contentious and non-contentious, including strategic counselling, internal procedures and investigations, tribunal, employment appeal tribunal and High Court cases, and the employment aspects of corporate and energy transactions, outsourcing arrangements, and restructurings, including:

    • Drafting and advising on employment, secondment, settlement, directorship and consultancy documentation, policies and procedures, training and staff handbooks.
    • Drafting, advising on, and enforcing trade secrets and confidentiality obligations, restrictive covenant protection and team moves, including cross-border jurisdiction issues.
    • Advising on the prevention of and defending wrongful and unfair dismissal, breach of contract claims and bonus disputes.
    • Advising on the application and implications of TUPE (The Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006) in relation to the acquisition or disposal of a business or part of a business, transfer of a lease, contract tenders and outsourcing exercises, and including practical advice on harmonisation of terms and conditions, relocation, redundancies and unfair dismissal claims arising from the TUPE transfer.
    • Advising on and drafting documentation for executive and general recruitment, remuneration and termination.
    • Advising on whistleblowing disclosures, procedures and defence of claims.
    • Advising on the prevention of and defending discrimination, harassment, victimisation and equal pay claims and advising on maternity and other parental and family friendly rights.
    • Advising collective consultation issues.
    • Advising on, coordinating and defending claims arising from local and transnational restructuring exercises and redundancies (collective and individual), plant closures and relocations.
    • Advising on employment-related data protection requirements and issues.
    • Advising on disciplinary and grievance procedures, performance and absence management.

  • Some of Nicola's most notable recent engagements include the following:

    • Advised a European bank in relation to employee aspects of an asset management merger including implementing a complete harmonisation of terms and conditions by way of dismissal and re-engagement.
    • Advised a leading financial institution in relation to employee matters on two parent and local level mergers with other leaders in the field, including implementing a complete harmonisation of terms and conditions by way of dismissal and re-engagement of all the employees and ongoing advice on issues relating to a proposed takeover, a related management buy-out of part of the business and a number of high value bonus and deferred compensation cases.
    • Advised a leading global recycling and manufacturing company on a collective consultation exercise involving a large-scale redundancy, closure and voluntary benefits reduction exercise in two of its UK sites.
    • Advised a leading Scandinavian bank on a merger, relocation, harmonisation of terms and restructuring exercise.
    • Advised a multi-national energy company on a collective redundancy and reduction of benefits exercise for its entire UK workforce.
    • Advised and represented a leading European bank, in relation to the defence and favourable settlement of an unfair dismissal, age and sex discrimination claim.
    • Advised and represented a leading financial institution in relation to grievance and disciplinary proceedings involving whistleblowing, personal injury and discrimination allegations and successfully avoiding any resulting claim.
    • Advised leading American investment bank in relation to a stress claim brought by an employee.
    • Defended an international software company against a multi-strand discrimination, unfair dismissal and whistleblowing claim by a vexatious litigant.
    • Defending a high profile fund management firm against a sex and race discrimination, sexual harassment, victimisation and bonus claim by an existing employee, achieving a swift and very favourable settlement.
    • Advised and represented a leading European bank, in relation to the defence and favourable tribunal outcome of an unfair dismissal and race, age and sex discrimination claim.
    • Represented a leading global financial services institution in a concurrent UK High Court and US District Court action (including anti-suit injunction) arising from breach of restrictive covenants and consequent forfeiture of restricted stock by a senior international executive.
    • Represented a multinational energy company, in relation to a High Court breach of contract action from a former expatriate employee, involving jurisdictional issues.
    • Advised a leading international energy company on the complex TUPE issues arising from an acquisition of multiple projects with employees employed across various unrelated group companies.
    • Advised both Stripe and Goodwater Capital on a $93 million Series D financing round in Monzo.