Sarah Burton practices in public and administrative law. She has a particular focus on public inquiries, investigations and inquests and has extensive experience advising public and private sector bodies and individuals in sensitive and high profile proceedings.
Sarah also has experience advising clients on other public and private law matters including data protection, human rights, freedom of information, regulatory proceedings, judicial review and statutory appeals. She has also advised on private law claims, including personal injury and medical negligence, both on behalf of claimants and defendants.
Sarah has significant experience in advising on the law in public inquiries, investigations and inquests. For example, she recently advised a core participant in the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse and has advised a public company on its involvement in a sensitive non-statutory inquiry. In addition, Sarah is currently part of a team of external legal advisors to the Magnox Inquiry into the award of a GBP6.2 billion decommissioning contract in the nuclear power sector.
She is committed to using her legal skills to assist the disadvantaged and those without access to justice. Sarah regularly provides pro bono advise to support causes in this area, for example she has recently provided emergency legal advice to Mencap, the national learning disability charity, in relation to the COVID-19 crisis. Sarah has also recently featured on the Radio 4 programme File on Four talking about the need for reform of the legal aid system to as to ensure that families have legal representation at inquests where the state is legally represented.
