Ghazaleh Rezaie

Prior to coming to the Bar, Ghazaleh enjoyed a successful career as a paralegal in the field of Employment Law and she continues to undertake work in all areas of employment law including unfair and wrongful dismissal, discrimination, whistle-blowing, TUPE, employment status, working time, unlawful deduction of wages, maternity and paternity rights and breach of contract. She has experience at all levels of the Employment Tribunal and has advised and appeared in cases involving employment disputes in the Employment Tribunal, the County Court and the High Court.

She is particularly familiar with race, sex and disability discrimination claims brought by high-ranking police officers against police forces across the country having been involved in high-profile cases in the past (Yip –v- CC of Merseyside Police; Singh –v- CC of Greater Manchester Police; Ul-Haq –v- CC of Greater Manchester Police).

Ghazaleh has been involved in cases where the hearing has lasted for periods of up to 4 weeks demonstrating her ability to retain large amounts of information in order to prepare lengthy written submissions.

Ghazaleh has developed a solid practice in Scottish Employment Tribunal cases and is familiar with and confident in preparing for such cases given the procedural differences between Scottish and English Employment Tribunal hearings.

Ghazaleh also has particular experience of claims against Local Authorities making her sensitive to the wider implications of claims against the Local Authority both in terms of reputation and commercial realities.

Ghazaleh’s recent cases include:

Hemdan –v- Ismail – The case is due to be heard by the President of the EAT in November (Ghazaleh will be appearing for the Respondent) to set guidance for Employment Tribunals in the granting of Deposit Orders.

Thurston –v- Wilkinson Hardware Stores Limited – The claim raised an interesting point of law as to whether or not disability discrimination can ever arise where there is an absence policy with trigger points.

Grant –v- Belgica (1) and Kartono (2) – A Scottish Employment Tribunal case for sex discrimination, sexual harassment, victimisation and constructive dismissal  involving 17 days of evidence with a complicated chronology and factual matrix. All claims against the Respondents for whom Ghazaleh was acting were dismissed in their entirety.

Ghazaleh’s broad personal injury practice encompasses all aspects of personal injury litigation to include road traffic accidents (including credit hire and fraud), employers’ liability, public liability, product liability, industrial disease, highways, stress at work and Animals Act claims.

Ghazaleh acts for both Claimants and Defendants and has particular experience in the following areas:

• Head and brain injury cases. Ghazaleh assisted Andrew Hogarth QC and Brian Gallagher in a claim involving a subtle brain injury where the Claimant ultimately received a substantial settlement.
• Workplace accidents. She is familiar with the Low Value Personal Injury Portal and is able to advise clients as to the costs consequences of such claims.
• MIB and RTA 1988 related matters.
• Highways claims

Ghazaleh has experience of advising clients in cases concerning jurisdictional disputes and has advised both Claimants and Defendants on the applicability of foreign laws. Most recently Ghazaleh has been involved in advising a group of clients as to whether or not they are precluded from bringing a claim in the UK where there had been settlement in the US for injuries on board a flight (ie consideration of the House of Lords decision in Jameson –v- Central Electricity Generating Board).

Ghazaleh’s practice encompasses all areas of International and Travel Law and she is familiar with the Package Travel Regulations, the Montreal Convention, the Brussels Regulations and Rome I and Rome II.

Having been called to the New York State Bar, Ghazaleh is well placed to advise in cases involving any aspect of both Federal and State law.

Ghazaleh has a particular interest in claims involving Employment disputes in the middle east and has extensive knowledge of the UAE labour code. The crossover between UK and UAE employment law in the context of expatriates living in the UAE is an area of law which Ghazaleh is particularly adept at advising on.

Ghazaleh is fast developing her Clinical Negligence practice and has developed strong relationships with solicitors who, despite her status as a junior Barrister, trust her judgment and ability to provide digestible advice.

She is routinely instructed to advise on both liability and quantum for Claimants and Defendants alike.

Recently, Ghazaleh has been involved in advising in the following claims:

• A claim by a married couple who have lost the chance of conceiving naturally due to a misdiagnosis by their GP.
• Settling a complex claim against two NHS Trusts for multiple failures in treating the Claimant where each party relied on evidence from multiple medical experts.

Having been led by Catherine Brown in a case involving the death of a child in care, Ghazaleh has developed a keen interest in Health and Safety Law.

Ghazaleh is able to advise and assist clients from inception of the claim through to the final outcome to include attendance at inquests and HSE Prosecution hearings as required.

Ghazaleh is familiar with all aspects of costs ranging from costs arising within the MOJ Portal, cases which fall out of the MOJ Portal as well as summary and detailed assessments.

Ghazaleh has extensive knowledge of all aspects of credit hire claims and regularly represents Defendants against credit hire claims. She has particular experience of dealing with “fleet cases” involving taxis.

She regularly advises clients as to the likely outcome of cases involving Basic Hire Rates and routinely settles Counter-Schedules of Loss.

Ghazaleh has appeared for clients at all levels, ranging from Fast Track to high value Multi Track cases.

Ghazaleh’s practice encompasses all areas of International and Travel Law and she is familiar with the Package Travel Regulations, the Montreal Convention, the Brussels Regulations and Rome I and Rome II.

Having been called to the New York State Bar, Ghazaleh is well placed to advise in cases involving any aspect of both Federal and State law.

Most recently;

Ghazaleh has been involved in advising a group of clients as to whether or not they are precluded from bringing a claim in the UK where there had been settlement in the US for injuries on board a flight.

Acting on behalf of a major airline in a vicarious liability claim, with possible issues of jurisdiction.

Prior to coming to the Bar, Ghazaleh’s experience as a paralegal at a boutique West End Firm and later at a top-tier international firm saw her exposed to a variety of areas of law including defamation and general commercial litigation.

LLB (hons) Law and French Law – University of Leeds and Université Nancy II

Bar Vocational Course (Very Competent) – BPP Law School London

Exhibitioner – Inner Temple, 2008

Duke of Edinburgh Entrance Award – Inner Temple, 2008

Qualified and Registered to Practice as an Attorney in New York State since 2010.

PIBA

ELBA

Ghazaleh’s advocacy is systematic, persuasive, informed and relentless, and a joy to watch. She is particularly skilled in building her case through cross-examination, with a carefully thought out pace and structure that chips away at her opponent’s arguments. Her ability to absorb the finest details of the case is second-to-none. – Legal 500, 2024

Ghazaleh is great to work with and is very responsive and commercial. – Chambers & Partners, 2024

She is able to command the attention of a court. – Chambers & Partners, 2024

Ghazaleh is extremely approachable, clear and easy to work with. – Chambers & Partners, 2024