Partner & Education Lawyer in Bristol
How Can Kris Help You?
Kris is a specialist education lawyer with more than 15 years' experience of advising universities and independent schools, and leads on the firm's student matters work. His work centres around issues arising from the educational process - admissions, complaints, exclusions, fitness to study, safeguarding, fitness to practice, information sharing, discrimination and the resolution of disputes in contract and negligence. Kris has a particular interest in the transition between secondary and tertiary education.
In the higher education sector, Kris works with university in-house lawyers, senior management teams and directors of services on a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate matters. These include sector specific issues such as freedom of speech and academic freedom, student well-being and suicide, complex disciplinary proceedings involving criminal offences and OfS and CMA compliance.
Kris oversees the firm's relationship with leading educational insurer Gallagher, co-ordinating instructions received via our appointment to the Gallagher Professional Indemnity Panel for higher education providers.
In the independent schools sector, Kris works with Senior Management Teams and Governors on complex cases that often involve critical incidents and safeguarding issues. Kris has developed a specialism on issues arising from boarding, including educational guardianship and has worked with sector organisations such as AEGIS and QEGUK to raise awareness and standards in this area.
Meeting Your Needs
Having worked in and for educational institutions since 1999, Kris has a deep understanding of the particular pressures they are under and the unusual challenges universities and schools can face. The most demanding situations often arise out of hours and access to specialist technical and practical advice at these times can be invaluable. Kris' pragmatic approach is informed by long experience in the secondary and tertiary education sectors.
What You Might Like to Know
Kris has worked exclusively for education institutions since qualification.
Kris has acted as Assistant Clerk to a private inquiry into allegations of historic abuse at a London independent school during the 1970's, as well as advising the Principal and Fellows or St Hilda's College, Oxford.
Kris has been an invited speaker at secondary and tertiary education conferences for organisations including the Westminster Higher Education Forum, London Universities Purchasing Consortium, National Association of Disability Practitioners, BUFDG, Boarding Schools' Association and HMC Professional Development.
He has also written numerous articles for education sector publications such as University Business and is a contributor of briefing notes on higher education to LexisPSL, as well as editing the second edition of Robert Boyd's book Running a School Boarding House, published by the Boarding Schools Association.
Kris is a member of the Education Law Association (ELAS) and was a non-executive director and trustee of a youth charity for 10 years. He has been a governor of Wells Cathedral School since 2019 and sits on the Development Committee.
Prior to embarking on a career in law, Kris studied Geography (MA - First; Keble College, Oxford) and Modern Architectural History and Theory (MSc - with Distinction; The Bartlett, UCL) undertaking his graduate studies in London as a British Academy and Bartlett Graduate School Scholar. He obtained his post-graduate diploma in Law with Distinction from Birmingham University Law School, winning the Branthwaite Prize.
What Others Say...
'…gives the right amount of tailored advice' - Legal 500, 2023
"I have total confidence in your advice and professionalism." - HMC Independent School Principal
"Very calm and reassuring as well as expert in his area." - GSA Independent School Principal
"An intelligent, informed and highly professional speaker." - BSA Seminar delegate