Grace Cullen

Employment

Grace has a well-established employment practice, acting for individuals, companies and local authorities in a wide range of cases, including unfair dismissal, discrimination, redundancy, working time, breach of contract, TUPE and equal pay claims.

As well as acting in Employment Tribunals and the EAT, Grace also has a strong advisory practice, advising companies and local authorities on best practice including in areas such as TUPE transfers, amendments to terms and conditions of employment and disciplinary proceedings. Grace has also represented clients in front of internal disciplinary bodies, such as at Oxford University.

Grace regularly lectures for practitioners and law students, including at the University of West England, Bristol.

She regularly undertakes voluntary work as an honorary legal advisory in employment law for Citizen’s Advice in St Albans.

Featured cases include:

• Wainwright v Cennox Ltd – (ET, EAT) represented a senior employee who had cancer in a claim for discrimination and unfair dismissal.
• Represented firefighter with PTSD after London bombings in unfair dismissal and disability discrimination;
• Represented NHS nurse in claim of unfair dismissal and race discrimination, reported widely in national media;
• Represented train driver in claim of disability discrimination, reported widely in national media;
• Represented an employee in claim of unfair dismissal and discrimination arising from sexual orientation in a higher education college, associated with University of Oxford, reported widely in the national media;
• Represented two employees in age discrimination claim in University of Oxford;
• Represented employee in internal grievance proceedings at the University of Oxford;
• Represented a woman tube driver who was dismissed for gross misconduct and found to be unfair dismissal;
• Represented a College in a claim brought by a teacher for discrimination based on a protected characteristic, widely reported in the national media;
• Watkins v Temple Bird [2011] IRLR 382, question of appropriate pool in redundancy exercise; 
• Represented a school in a claim brought by a teacher, including whistleblowing and unfair dismissal;
• Advice a multi-national company based in the USA on TUPE;
• Represented employee in a claim of whistleblowing and equal pay against a leading national charity;
• Represented an employee in a claim of sex and race discrimination against a Diocese.

Public Access Scheme

Grace Cullen is qualified to accept direct instructions from members of the public under the Public Access Scheme.

Information about the Public Access Scheme and how it works can be found on our Public Access page.

Certain specific Public Access services are subject to price and service transparency regulatory requirements. By clicking on the links below you will be directed to the required information for those specific categories of work in respect of which Grace accepts instructions.

Employment Tribunal template

Family

Grace has a busy family law practice in public and private law in the Family Court and High Court. She is regularly instructed in complex care proceedings including allegations of historic harm and cases involving multiple injuries to a child with a wide pool of potential perpetrators.

In private law, Grace has been instructed in difficult cases including parental alienation, implacable hostility, domestic abuse and coercive control and applications for leave to permanently remove from the jurisdiction. Grace has been instructed in a case involving an application to remove parental responsibility. Grace has also represented parents in cases in which NYAS have been instructed.

Private law – Children

• Child Arrangement Orders;
• Prohibited Steps Orders;
• Specific Issue Orders, including surname and location of school;
• Cases involving coercive and controlling behaviour;
• Parental alienation and implacable hostility;
• Complex fact-finding involving domestic abuse;
• Section 91(14) Orders;
• Applications for leave to permanently remove from the jurisdiction;
• Forced Marriage Prevention Orders.

Family Law Act

• Non-Molestation Orders;
• Occupation Orders.

Care

• Cases including allegations of physical and/or sexual harm, including historic allegations of abuse and non-accidental injury;
• Cases involving drug and/or alcohol misuse and neglect;
• Cases involving mental health and/or other vulnerabilities;
• Cases involving domestic abuse.

Commercial

Grace also regularly acts for clients in civil claims, including personal injury. She is regularly instructed by insurance clients as well as individuals in multi-track claims, including life-altering injuries and stress at work claims. She has acted in claims in the County Court, High Court and Court of Appeal.

Grace also acts in breach of contract and landlord and tenant disputes.

Grace has been instructed in cases involving disputes between neighbours, boundary disputes and in civil claims and those seeking injunctive relief. She successfully appeared in the Court of Appeal in a landlord and tenant case, involving interpretation of a lease (Freeholders of 69 Marina v Oram and Ghoorun [2011] EWCA Civ 1258)

She has lectured for University College of London’s Bartlett School of Planning, in land law, including restrictive covenants, trusts and beneficial interests, charges, easements and other non-leasehold interests.

Featured cases include:

• Blair v Wickes Building Supplies [2019] EWCA Civ 1934
• Blair v Wickes Building Supplies (No 2: Costs) [2020] EWCA Civ 17
• Freeholders of 69 Marina v Oram and Ghoorun [2011] EWCA Civ 1258

Inquests & Inquiries

Inquests:

Following on from her personal injury and health and safety practice, Grace has also represented clients in Inquests, including Article 2 inquests, both before juries and a Coroner sitting alone. Grace has represented individual family members, companies, local authorities, police authorities, a football club and a group of lifeguards (who required separate representation from their employer).

Notable Cases:

• Represented lifeguards in a claim where a five-year old girl drowned in a swimming pool. Jury Inquest over two weeks, with multiple parties. The Inquest was widely reported in the national and local media at the time.
• Represented the family in an Article 2 jury inquest arising from the death of a teenager on a motorbike who was pursued by a police vehicle at high speed late at night. The Inquest was reported by local media at the time.
• Represented a lower league football club in an Inquest, where a volunteer undertaking repairs fell through a roof.
• Represented a company where a van driver, acting in the course of his employment, was involved in a serious road accident, which killed three people, including two children.
• Represented Kent Police in several inquests, including a multiple vehicle collision on a motorway and a death on arrest.
• Represented a company Care Home in an inquest involving the issue of appropriate medical care in the death of an elderly resident in a care home.

Education

Grace has a broad practice in Education law, drawing on her experience in employment and family law. Grace has represented students, parents, teachers, academics, schools, governing bodies and Local Authorities across different Tribunals and courts.

• Grace has advised teachers on disciplinary action before the Teaching Regulation Agency;
• Grace successfully represented a student with ADHD in an appeal against a University’s decision to pause her studies and prevent her returning for her final undergraduate year;
• Grace has experience of school complaints policies and procedures, including complaints to Board of Governors, Department for Education and Ofsted.
• Grace successfully represented a senior lecturer in grievance and disciplinary hearings at the University of Oxford appeal court;
• Grace successfully represented a group of leading academics in proceedings against University of Oxford’s enforced retirement age;
• Grace successfully represented an academic in a claim for unfair dismissal arising from a fixed term contract;
• Grace has provided advice to private schools on contractual issues;
• Grace successfully represented schools in claims dealing with redundancy, discrimination and unfair dismissal.

Grace has experience of the First-tier Tribunal for Special Educational Needs and Disability concerning EHCP and education related disability claims.

Recommendations

Awards

Grace attended Trinity College, University of Cambridge and was awarded a Tripos Part 1A prize and Whittaker Scholarship. She is a member of Lincoln’s Inn and was awarded a Hardwicke Scholarship.

Memberships

• ELBA
• ELA
• ILS
• FLBA
• Member of South Eastern Circuit

Education

• MA (Hons) Trinity College, University of Cambridge
• Inns of Court School of Law

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