Rehana Azib

Call: 2003

Expertise

Personal Injury
Employment

Practice Profile

Rehana has extensive practises in the areas of employers' liability (including health and safety regulation), employment and personal injury.  She joined chambers in 2004 with a jurisprudence degree from Keble College, Oxford, and both a Duke of Edinburgh Entrance Scholarship and Major Exhibition from the Inner Temple. Rehana was recently awarded the Young Achiever of the Year Award at the National Asian Women of Achievement Awards. She is the Patron of the International Law Firm Bird and Bird’s Bursary Foundation.

Prior to pupillage, Rehana trained and worked as an Advocate and Co-ordinator for black and minority ethnic groups on behalf of an Oxfordshire mental health charity, providing advocacy services to mental health patients from ethnic minorities, and devising and delivering training sessions in advocacy and cultural issues to mental health professionals from the public and private sectors throughout Oxfordshire.

 

Personal Injury

Rehana is an experienced advocate who regularly appears in hearings on the fast and multi tracks and in the High Court. Rehana has also dealt with several “cross over” cases involving both personal injury and employment law, particularly in the context of stress at work cases, and is able to use to her advantage, her significant experience of both areas of law.  She has particular experience in the following areas:

Stress at work, bullying and harassment claims

Rehana has a particular interest in stress at work claims and claims under the Protection from Harassment Act, dealing with claim both for and against the police, local authorities and the Royal Mail Group in the county court and the High Court.

Cases of interest include a high value stress at work claim by a high ranking police officer against the West Midlands Police (documented in the press), a claim for stress at work racial harassment and bullying against the Metropolitan Police, numerous stress, bullying and harassment claims against the Royal Mail and representing a local authority in a claim of racist bullying and harassment at work by social workers.

Employers Liability and Health and Safety Regulation

Rehana has dealt with numerous health and safety prosecution hearings in cases ranging from fatalities, mass food poisoning and failed beauty treatments. She also has considerable experience of dealing with high-profile, multi-fatality inquests and has represented several national and international companies at such hearings. Rehana deals with a variety of EL claims from fatalities at work, to claims relating to defective work equipment, training and work practices. She also deals with industrial disease work including RSI and deafness claims, and an emphasis on asbestos-exposure and mesothelioma claims, having delivered several seminars nationally on this topic and appearing at County Court level and in the High Court.

 

Cases of interest include representing an international designer brand in respect of a health and safety prosecution, representing a local authority in respect of child fatalities occurring at the local swimming baths, regularly representing a national highway maintenance company in relation to various fatalities occurring at work, and representing an international airline in respect of a fatality occurring at an airport.

 

Employment

Rehana has an extensive and thriving employment practice with a particular emphasis on trial advocacy. Rehana deals with cases in the ET, the EAT and the High Court and is regularly instructed by local authorities and the NHS in respect of all employment matters and has an impressive record of victories at trial and has on several occasions successfully struck out claims at preliminary stages. She has also obtained costs orders against unsuccessful parties on several occasions. She is able to draw on her experience of her pre-pupillage public sector work, including her familiarity of internal structures, procedures, financing and funding to assist in dealing with numerous public sector cases from dismissals to whistle-blowing. She has extensive experience of claims for unfair dismissal, discrimination (sex, disability, age and race), whistle-blowing claims, restrictive covenants, TUPE, pensions claims and young workers, some of which have been documented in the press. Rehana has a particular specialism in dealing with claims involving race discrimination.

 

Rehana has also dealt with several “cross over” cases involving both personal injury and employment law, particularly in the context of stress at work cases, and is able to use to her advantage, her significant experience of both areas of law.

 

Particular cases of interest include:

 

Discrimination

Successfully representing an NHS Trust in a 5 day claim in respect of serious allegations of racism both against the Trust and individual employees specifically. The claim was dismissed and Rehana successfully secured a costs order of £7,500 against the Claimant. Also successfully representing and NHS Trust in a 7 day race, age and disability discrimination claim brought by a former nurse, representing a local authority in a race and sex discrimination and unfair dismissal claim by a former employee. Representing John Lewis Plc in respect of a sex discrimination claim that was successfully struck out and costs ordered against the Claimant.

Dismissal

Representing a local authority in a 7-day claim by a former headteacher claiming unfair dismissal against a background of allegations of bullying of staff and abuse of pupils. Successfully representing the former CEO of an international company following claims of unfair dismissal and disability discrimination.

Whistle-blowing

Dealing with a whistle-blowing claim against a local authority in respect of allegedly fraudulent funding claims totaling £300,000 (documented in the press), and a whistle-blowing claim involving disclosure of alleged abuse of elderly patients by staff at care homes.

Restrictive Covenants

Dealing with covenants in respect of soliciting clients and business from a successful publishing company by a former employee.

Additional Information

Awards:

• Young Achiever of the Year (Asian Women of Achievement Awards)
• Duke of Edinburgh Entrance Scholarship 2001 (Inner Temple)
• Major Exhibition 2001 (Inner Temple)

 

Associations

• Personal Injury Bar Association (PIBA)

• Common Law and Commercial Bar Association (CL&CBA)

 

Languages:

• Fluent Urdu, Kashmiri and Hindi.

• Basic French and German.