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Diane Gilhooley

Partner
Global Head of Employment, Labor and Pensions, and Global Co-Head of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)

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Languages: French, German

Diane is Global Head of Eversheds Sutherland’s Employment, Labor and Pensions Practice and Global Co-Head of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG).

As Global Head of Eversheds Sutherland’s Employment, Labor and Pensions Practice, she leads a group of over 400 employment, labor and pensions lawyers.

Diane qualified as a lawyer in September 1994 and joined the firm in 1999. She has over 27 years of experience in handling high-profile cases and providing strategic employment advice on a national and international basis. Diane advises on contentious and non-contentious areas of employment law and also governance. She has conducted complex and high-profile employment tribunal claims and employment litigation, often around issues of equality and diversity and discrimination. Diane also advises on organizational issues (including large-scale redundancy and restructuring programs, industrial relations/trade union issues, mergers and collaborations, equality, and diversity strategies); international collaborations and cross-border issues and has recently supported clients on their strategic responses to COVID. She is also a recognized speaker and trainer on equality issues and has particular experience in human rights and labor standards, health and safety, organization and culture change.

Diane is listed as a key individual in Chambers & Partners where clients comment that “she has exceptional knowledge, is pragmatic in considering how her advice translates into action and has excellent customer care skills.”

From 2018, Diane has been leading the international gender network for our people, and from 2019 to 2021 was appointed Diversity and Inclusion Partner Sponsor, responsible for leading and accelerating the firm’s D&I strategy.

In 2021 Diane was appointed Global Co-Head of ESG and works together with Eversheds Sutherland ESG lawyers globally around climate change and related social issues for businesses, helping to ensure clients are up to date with regulatory requirements and advising on effective governance arrangements.

Diane chairs the firm’s education sector group and has worked in this group since 1999, taking over leadership in 2009, before moving to the role of Chair in 2021. This is a multidisciplinary team providing a full range of legal services to education providers.

Diane’s recent experience includes:

  • advising a number of employers in relation to the management of sensitive and high-profile staffing issues and related reputation and brand issues, including allegations of sexual harassment, pay of senior leaders, diversity and gender pay disparities, staff well-being and mental health issues
  • providing strategic advice in relation to complex industrial relations issues ranging from recognition and collective agreements, through to collective disputes, industrial unrest, and industrial action and alternative consultation forums
  • advising employers on their legal obligations in the context of large-scale merger, restructuring and outsourcing exercises, including advice in relation to collective consultation duties, obligations under the Equality Act 2010, duties in relation to the provision of information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, TUPE rights, and obligations and engagement with trade unions
  • advising multiple organizations across a full range of international and cross-border issues, including staffing issues arising on the establishment and disestablishment of overseas operations, secondment of staff and international contractual issues; also co-authored the staffing sections of the Universities UK Guide on "International Partnerships – A Legal Guide for UK Universities," and frequently delivers advice and training to employers on their overseas activities
  • providing strategic advice related to COVID-19 around staff health, safety and well-being issues; vaccination, testing and the workplace; self-isolation rules and what employers need to know; workplace implications following government lockdown announcements; addressing mental health challenges around remote working; disparate impact by age; and legal issues of returning to work

Diane regularly speaks at local, national and international conferences on a variety of law topics, including employment, education, ESG and D&I.  A few examples of these are:

  • Eversheds Sutherland’s annual International Employment Conference covering current hot topics and trends in employment law matters
  • speaking to Industrial Relations and Human Resources professionals with the International Organisation of Employers covering the global impact of the #MeToo movement
  • speaking to European Health and Wellbeing Networks covering health, wellbeing and diversity and the right to disconnect
  • speaking to education sector bodies including Universities Human Resources, the Association of Heads of University Administration, the University and Colleges Employers Association and the Association of Colleges on annual basis
  • speaking at Diversity and Inclusion conferences and events and presenting at Eversheds Sutherlands’ own DE&I conference
  • speaking on ‘Why organisations fail, the legal pitfalls that can derail us and where things can go wrong’

Diane has also participated in interviews on developing topics, including for ITV News (discussing Vaccine Passports and Employment).

Diane has featured in a number of publications, including:

  • Lead Author, "The People Factor: Climate change report," joint report by Eversheds Sutherland and KPMG
  • Client briefing: "Quarterly Global Employment and Labor Law Update for 2021"
  • Client briefing for Corporate Counsel article on "Global In-House Legal Leaders Share What’s Working in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion"
  • Raconteur (The Times) article on "Considering proximity bias"
  • Editor of a leading publication on governance in Further Education for many years
  • Individual of the Year: London, Public sector
  • Consistently top ranked in Chambers UK for Employment
  • Ranked as Band 1 Partner for the Education sector in Chambers UK 2021
  • The Legal 500 Hall of Fame 2019-2022
  • The Legal 500 UK Leading Individual 2015
  • Top Ranked in Chambers UK 2018, 2019
  • Qualified, September 1994
  • LLB (Hons) Law University of Warwick, 1990
Diane Gilhooley

Partner

Global Head of Employment, Labor and Pensions, and Global Co-Head of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)

Diane Gilhooley

Partner

Global Head of Employment, Labor and Pensions, and Global Co-Head of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)

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