Rebecca Clark

Practice Areas

Rebecca is a talented, well-respected mediator and was also (until June 2024) Chair of the Civil Mediation Council. Listed in both Chambers & Partners and The Legal 500 as a Leading Mediator, Rebecca is particularly commended for her calm and empathetic style, combined with robust legal or commercial challenge where needed. Described as “superb”, “outstanding”, Rebecca is “a credit to her profession.” She encourages parties to take a risk-based approach to actively manage conflict and disputes, whilst managing difficult conversations with sensitivity and insight.

Prior to becoming a mediator, Rebecca was Head of Litigation at a so-called “bad bank” where she was awarded Legal Counsel of the Year 2013, partly as a result of her novel approach to resolving classes of disputes by mediation. As a result, Rebecca’s insight into mediation as a mediating party is unparalleled. Before working in-house, Rebecca set up and managed her own retail business from set up to sale, giving her a genuine understanding of the pressures of owning and managing your own business and the impact disputes can have on the financial management of a company. She has also worked as a solicitor in private practice.

Rebecca mediates a wide range of commercial disputes including shareholder, insolvency, warranty claims, breach of contract and breach of duty. Because of her previous employment, Rebecca is particularly experienced in financial services, professional negligence and regulatory litigation. She is also sought after for her SME and family business mediation experience, where her ability to connect inter-generationally with parties to a dispute, combined with her own business experience, helps move parties towards resolution. Most recently, Rebecca has worked with parties to develop dispute avoidance strategies, facilitating discussions and devising processes for projects in the investment fund management, manufacturing and recruitment industries. She is also on the Court of Appeal mediation scheme panel.

Rebecca is very interested in the psychology of mediation and negotiation generally and regularly speaks at seminars and conferences on the subject.

Career

Chair, Civil Mediation Council June 2022 to June 2024 (voluntary post)

Deputy Chair, Civil Mediation Council May 2021 to June 2022 (voluntary post)

Commercial Mediator on the CEDR panel 2022-2023

Appointed to the Court of Appeal mediation scheme panel since 2021

Commercial Mediator on the IPOS Mediation Panel 2016 – 2023

Head of Litigation at UKAR, 2012 – 2015 (managing the taxpayers’ interests in Bradford & Bingley, old-Northern Rock (now NRAM) and Mortgage Express on behalf of the Government)

Senior Associate and Solicitor Advocate at Squire Patton Boggs (formerly Hammonds), Leeds 2010 to 2012.

Owner of Humbug 2005 to 2010 (childrenswear retail business): researching, setting up and managing own retail business.

Solicitor and Solicitor Advocate Hammonds, Leeds, 1998 to

Solicitor at Nicholson Graham & Jones, London, 1997 to 1998.

Trainee and then qualified solicitor at Richards Butler (now Reed Smith) 1995 to 1997

Professional Memberships

Distinguished Fellow of International Academy of Mediators

Qualified restorative justice facilitator 2016

Dispute Resolution Partnership Advanced Course in Mediation 2016

CMC Fellow

Member (MCIArb) Chartered Institute of Arbitrators

ADR Group accredited mediator 2015

CEDR accredited mediator 2014

Publications

Rebecca has trained lawyers, business people and other professionals in mediation skills and in the skills of using mediation effectively for their own disputes. She also conducts training in-house for law firms, insurance companies and others.

Rebecca is very interested in the psychology of mediation and negotiation generally and regularly speaks at seminars and conferences on the subject.

Industry Sector Expertise

A brief overview of areas of practice:

Banking / Finance

Commercial Contracts

Commercial Fraud / Fraud

Company Shareholders

Insolvency

Insurance

Intellectual Property

Inter-family

International

Investment

Partnership

Pensions

Probate / Trusts / Estates

Professional Negligence

Property

Transactions / breach of warranty