Heidi Watson

Full Profile

Heidi joined Clyde & Co in 2001 and has been a partner since 2013. She advises on employee relations issues, contractual and policy matters, as well as project support including restructuring advice, outsourcing and offshoring, and employee aspects of M&A transactions – often in respect of cross-jurisdictional projects for which she manages advice across several jurisdictions.

She handles employee disputes including Tribunal and High Court proceedings, particularly specialising in team moves and business protection disputes. She also advises on regulatory disciplinary issues, with a focus on insurance regulation.

Heidi is part of the firm's Global Data Protection and Privacy Group advising on breaches of employee personal data and breaches of confidential data caused by employees taking data to competitors, as well as non-contentious advice on protecting against employee-related breaches.

Heidi speaks regularly on employment law issues and carries out training for HR and legal teams as well as managers. She is recommended as a "Rising Star" in the 2013 London Superlawyers list for employment practice. Her practice encompasses a range of sectors including insurance, energy, aviation, financial services and TMT with a recent focus on maritime labour issues arising out of the implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC).

Experience

• Advising a leading insurance company in defending a complex employment status claim involving 40 claimants and 8 tribunal centres
• Advising a major oil & gas services company on termination of employment contracts involving a multi-jurisdictional settlement covering the UK, the US and the UAE
• Acting on a large scale employee fraud investigation, disciplinary process and several Employment Tribunal claims
• Acting on a complex cross-border IT outsourcing and offshoring project across the UK, the US, France, Belgium, Poland and India
• Acting in High Court proceedings defending a team move and related Lloyds disciplinary proceedings
• Acting on a disability discrimination claim brought by an unsuccessful applicant for a major insurer including dealing with his data subject access request
• Acting for a leading insurance company defending injunctive proceedings in the High Court following a team move
• Advising a marine employer on contractual issues arising from the implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention
• Acting for an international airline in Tribunal proceedings involving unfair dismissal, bullying, long term sickness absence and discrimination
• Defending a sexual orientation and disability discrimination claim in the Employment Tribunal which was settled by mediation
• Advising on employee aspects on the sale of a business, including on the sale and purchase agreement and on the process of consultation with employees and redundancies
• Advising a telecommunications company on a serious breach of confidentiality by an ex-employee which included proceedings in the UK and Europe