Lucinda Acland
Lucinda Acland is a non-practising solicitor and First 100 Years volunteer member since 2015. She has over 25 years’ experience in the legal sector and originally worked as a solicitor and litigation support/ IT Professional Support Lawyer at Lovell White Durrant (now Hogan Lovells). Lucinda created online CPD courses at the College of Law and was the social media manager at Riverview Law. More recently, she was the Community Manager for Obelisk Support, training and supporting returners back to flexible legal work. Lucinda created the First 100 Years podcast series and co-authored the book ‘First:100 years of Women in Law’ the story of women in law, to inspire future generations and add to the debate about improving the working life and equality of access in the legal sector.
Helen Brown and Julia Hemmings
Helen Brown and Julia Hemmings are partners at Baker McKenzie LLP. They work together on a job-share basis heading up the London Digital Commerce, Advertising and Marketing practice. They support some of the world's leading retail, social media and consumer goods companies on a wide range of commercial issues in the context of online and offline businesses activities. They have received external recognition for their work, being noted as recommended experienced counsel by Legal 500 UK 2019. Together they have pioneered a market-first not just for Baker McKenzie but for the legal profession. They have shown that agile working in the right environment is not a hindrance - and in fact can be an enabler - to progression in private practice. They recently featured in a Financial Times Women in Business Special Edition discussing how they have made their job-share work for themselves and the firm.
Dame Janet Gaymer DBE QC (HON.)
Dame Janet Gaymer is the Life Vice President of the Employment Lawyers Association and the Honorary Chairman of the European Employment Lawyers Association. She led the employment department of Simmons & Simmons, before becoming the firm’s Senior Partner – the first female Senior Partner of a top 20 international law firm. She then became the Commissioner for Public Appointments and a Civil Service Commissioner. She has occupied various roles in the private and public sector, including most recently as a non-executive member of the House of Commons Commission.
Harini Iyengar
Harini Iyengar was called to the Bar in 1999, as a seven months’ pregnant pupil at 11KBW chambers, where she still practises Employment, Commercial and Public law, with particular expertise in Equality and Education Law. The legal directories have described her as “sharp-witted, perceptive and an experienced cross examiner” who is both “extremely cool under pressure and not fazed by anything” and “very passionate about what she does.”
She is the author of “A Practical Guide to the Law of Gender Pay Gap Reporting” (Law Brief Publishing, 2019) and also wrote a chapter on equal pay in “Women’s Legal Landmarks” (Hart, 2019). Harini is a Governing Bencher at Inner Temple and sits on the Steering Group of the Temple Women’s Forum and the Bar Council Retention Panel.
Outside work, Harini is a University Governor, a prominent activist for the Women’s Equality Party, and the lone parent of three children.
Chris Parke
Chris has a Diploma in Clinical Organisational Psychology from INSEAD and was awarded a scholarship MBA from Imperial College London. He has been an executive coach for over 15 years and specialises in coaching senior talent, Partners in professional services firms and HIPO or rising stars.
Chris wrote his INSEAD Thesis on understanding the complex transition professional women make when they return to work after having children and how organisations could better retain talented women through maternity. This work underpins some of Talking Talent’s unique coaching models and tools for the maternity transition, a core area of expertise.
Chris started his career in investment banking with BZW, where he worked across Europe and Asia. Following his MBA he moved into consulting with PwC and managed cross border organisational and cultural change projects. It was here that Chris' interest in leadership psychology, and helping teams or individuals realise their full potential built. Chris joined Cedar International a coaching company in London to pursue this.
From there his passion for the commercial benefits of gender diversity, and balanced leadership teams led Chris to found Talking Talent. Talking Talent supports some of the world’s leading organisations to retain and develop talent. Chris has helped grow the business into a global coaching practice which continues to expand its international network.
Linden Thomas became President of Birmingham Law Society in April 2019, a membership organisation representing over 5000 lawyers. Linden is a Senior Lecturer and in-house Solicitor at the University of Birmingham Law School, where she runs the School’s pro bono programmes. She also teaches employment law and manages the School’s Centre for Professional Legal Education and Research.
Linden has a particular interest in pro bono, clinical legal education and public legal education. She carries out research on those topics and regularly publishes books and articles on the subject. Linden is a trustee and Co-Chair of the charity, the Clinical Legal Education Organisation.
During her year as President, Linden’s chosen theme has been on the benefits of legal community, with a particular emphasis on how working together as a legal community can help to address the gender inequalities that continue to persist within the profession.