Inquests

Paula accepts instructions in all areas of coronial law. Her experience includes:

  • JL: Representing the family of a woman who twice reported serious domestic abuse (including strangulation) to police in the weeks before her death during the COVID-19 lockdown and whose risk to life was assessed as “high” by police and other agencies in this period. Despite the suspect being arrested, her reports resulted in no further action and there was no multi-agency response before her death. The inquest took place over nine days.
  • Representing the Ministry of Defence in a 6-day jury inquest touching on the death of a Lance Corporal on an air weapons range (led by Leanne Woods).
  • Representing a family in a successful judicial review challenge to a Coroner’s decision not to open an inquest into the death of a young person (led by Richard Booth KC).
  • Representing a family in an inquest touching on a death that occurred in a healthcare setting, due to take place over three days in December 2026. The Coroner determined that he would sit with a jury, following an application made by the family.
  • A week-long Article 2 jury inquest into a death in prison (as a pupil).
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Appointments

  • Attorney General’s ‘Junior Junior’ Panel
  • Board Member, The John and Pat Hume Foundation

Awards

  • Sir John and Lady Sophie Laws Scholarship (Bar European Group)
  • Dean’s Scholar Prize in Public International Law (Harvard Law School)
  • Kennedy Scholar (Kennedy Memorial Trust)
  • Opinion Writing Award for best performance in module (Inns of Court College of Advocacy)
  • Winner of the Michael Corkery QC Criminal Law Moot 2021
  • Lord Justice Holker Scholarship (Gray’s Inn)
  • Residential Scholarship (Gray’s Inn)
  • Henderson Prize (City Law School)
  • William Charnley Scholarship (Gray’s Inn)
  • Academic Excellence Scholarship (City Law School)
  • Richard Titmuss Prize for graduating first in year (London School of Economics)
  • Clare College Prize (Clare College, University of Cambridge)

Education

  • LL.M., Harvard Law School (Kennedy Scholar)
  • PGDip in Bar Practice, Inns of Court College of Advocacy (Third in year)
  • GDL, City Law School
  • MSc Social Policy, London School of Economics (First in year)
  • BA (Hons) English, University of Cambridge

Memberships

  • Administrative Law Bar Association
  • Personal Injury Bar Association
  • Association of Child Abuse Lawyers
  • Next Generation Media Lawyers

Publications

‘Attorney General’s refusal of a fiat to seek a fresh inquest is non-justiciable’ – UK Human Rights Blog

‘Paterson v UK: Parliament and Human Rights in Strasbourg’ – UK Human Rights Blog

‘Either not Neither: further consideration of non-binary identity by the High Court’ – UK Human Rights Blog

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