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Helen Gill

Senior Associate

Nottingham

helen.gill@brownejacobson.com

+44 (0)330 045 2435

Nottingham

Helen is a Senior Associate in the Public Law team, specialising in biodiversity net gain (BNG), environment and nature conservation law, large scale planning projects, public law and advice relating to the discharge of statutory powers, functions and duties. Helen also has experience of leading investigations within the public sector.

Helen has extensive experience in transactional, litigious and advisory matters, acting for both public and private sector clients, including regulators.

Helen was previously the lead lawyer on BNG and Conservation Covenants at Natural England, and is now advising both public and private sector clients on all matters relating to BNG - including landowners, local planning authorities and developers.

Helen acts on a wide range of environmental and wider public law matters, including those relating to vires and governance queries, the development of policy and legislative reforms, appeals and enforcement matters, regulatory pathways and advising public bodies on lawful decision making.

Helen leads investigations for public sector clients, most recently investigating complex whistleblowing allegations, assisting with workplace investigations within the public sector and leading various Code of Conduct investigations.

Having qualified, and practiced, as a projects lawyer, Helen specialises in large projects and brings a significant amount of project management knowledge and organisational skills to her matters.

Featured experience

NSIPs and Development Consent Orders

Advising clients on Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects – including in relation to the pre-application stage and through to the examination stage and development consent order drafting and consideration of matters raised by Interested Parties.

Decision making audit trail

Supporting many public sector organisations – including central government departments, NDPBs and local authorities – on robust and lawful decision making, the weighing up of relevant factors and recording/presenting decision making to minimise the risk of challenge.

Environment and nature conservation advice

Supporting regulators, landowners and developers in applying and complying with environmental legislation, providing advice on high profile public inquiries, complex strategic matters and on the implementation of new environmental protections.

Public sector investigations

Leading on complex and sensitive investigations within the public sector – considering reported behaviours, cultures and governance matters, as well as decisions and decision making processes.