Browne Jacobson’s market-leading education team has continued its growth with the appointment of the new Cardiff and District Law Society President.
Trish D’Souza has joined the UK and Ireland law firm as Legal Director from Blake Morgan.
She has 17 years’ experience and was labelled as a “next generation partner” for public law in Wales in the Legal 500 directory’s 2024 edition.
Based in Browne Jacobson’s Cardiff office, she will work with school and trust clients on education law issues including SEND and Ofsted, as well as higher education clients on student and governance matters, among others.
Trish, who took up her role as President of the Cardiff and District Law Society in November after previously serving as vice-president, said:
“As the education lead for the Cardiff Office, I am keen to be at the forefront of issues relating to the new post-16 regulator, Medr.
“In my public law and education work, I regularly came across Browne Jacobson lawyers in fitness to practise or exclusion matters, and their down-to-earth nature and expertise really enticed me to the firm.
“I am confident that my contentious disputes work and education sector knowledge will help strengthen the firm’s expertise within Wales and beyond, and know the firm will support me in my role as President of the Cardiff and District Law Society, where I aim to highlight the biggest issues of the day affecting our legal sector including DEI and social mobility.”
Since opening in July 2023, Browne Jacobson’s Cardiff office has tripled its headcount and, in January this year, moved to an interim location at St Andrew’s Crescent to accommodate its growth. Other recent senior appointments include corporate partners Phil Pugh, Tom Saunderson and Christian Farrow.
Tim Edds, Partner and Cardiff office head, said:
“It is a major coup for us to attract someone of the calibre of Trish, who is well known in the Cardiff market as both a leading education lawyer, and given her prominence in the Cardiff and District Law Society.
“As our first dedicated education team member based in Cardiff, and coming hot on the heels of welcoming a series of new corporate partners, Trish’s appointment supports our vision to bring Browne Jacobson’s full service offering to the Welsh market.”
Trish is also among five senior hires in the education practice during the 2024/25 financial year as it continues to grow its client base amid a rising tide of complex challenges facing schools and universities. She joined at the same time as Joanna Goddard, who is also Legal Director and based in Birmingham.
Other recent appointments include Claire Archibald and Bethany Paliga, who joined the data protection team as Legal Director and Senior Appointment last autumn, and Polly O’Malley as Head of Education Employment last spring.
Since Polly’s arrival, the education employment team has recruited four new lawyers and grown to 12 fee earners. New additions include Jenny Beaumont, Senior Associate; Charlotte Hart, Senior Associate; Jessy Ran, Associate; and Ben Greene, Associate.
Meanwhile, Karen Rowe has also joined from education services company Pearson UK as Sales Consultant and is based in the Manchester office.
Nick MacKenzie, Head of Education at Browne Jacobson, added:
“Our education practice continues to be recognised as a market leader, having maintained our Band 1 schools and academies rankings in every region for the Legal 500 directory and nationally in Chambers this year, and voted by The Times as one of its top three firms for education.
“At the heart of this success is the quality and breadth of our legal and broader advisory service to clients. First and foremost, we are education specialists who have a deep understanding of the core aspects involved in running any education institution.
“Recognising the wide range of challenges that schools, academy trusts and higher education institutions are facing, we are committed to continuously strengthening our team. This will ensure we are equipped to support our clients on everything from their people issues amid a recruitment and retention crisis through to data protection matters as they seek to embrace digital technology in classrooms and across their sites.”
