Maria Strauss > Farrer & Co > London, England > Lawyer Profile
Farrer & Co Offices
66 LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS
LONDON
WC2A 3LH
England
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Maria Strauss
Work Department
Employment
Position
Maria advises clients including not-for-profit organisations, independent schools, sports clubs and faith-based organisations on employment and safeguarding matters. She also acts for senior executive clients, particularly in the context of investigations or inquiries that they may be involved in.
On the employment side, Maria’s typical caseload involves advising employers on the handling of sensitive cases and investigations often into alleged misconduct, harassment, bullying or discrimination. Maria has guided employer clients through many complex matters ranging from one off cases to issues that may involve or impact many staff members. She also advises HR teams (from all sectors) on more routine areas of employment law, such as performance management and staff exits.
Maria was one of the founding members of Farrer & Co’s Safeguarding Unit. She advises all types of organisations who work with children on their legal obligations and has helped clients embed safer cultures through audits and support with policies and procedures. As well as advisory work, Maria has advised on a significant number of safeguarding cases. This involves working with clients and statutory authorities, advising on (or carrying out) investigations into allegations and guiding clients through external processes such as independent reviews or regulatory proceedings (particularly the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA)).
The nature of Maria’s cases means that she often works closely with the firm’s media and reputation management lawyers and data protection lawyers. Maria is a versatile lawyer with excellent knowledge of related legal areas such as GDPR, charity law, disputes and insurance law. Maria co-leads the firm’s investigations practice, she is an ‘Achieving Best Evidence’ trained investigator and is closely involved with the firm’s Tomorrow Together sustainability campaign.
Career
Pothecary Witham Weld (2006 – 2014); Joined Farrer & Co August 2014
Memberships
Conference of Solicitors for Catholic Charities; Employment Lawyers Association
Education
Queen’s University Belfast
Lawyer Rankings
London > Public sector > Education: schools
As a ‘leading light in the field of education and schools‘, Farrer & Co works with a diverse client base that encompasses independent schools and associations and offers ‘pioneering guidance in areas such as safeguarding and EDI‘. In addition to its widely recognised safeguarding expertise, the team is also well-equipped to handle cross-border commercial matters, with lawyers regularly advising on partnerships and school openings, mergers, and trade marks. Increasingly, the firm also assists clients with their attempts to challenge the results of ISI and Ofsted inspections. Practice head Jonathan Eley often advises on high-profile employment matters, including strike action and crisis management, and frequently works with vastly experienced safeguarding specialist David Smellie, employment lawyer Alice Yandle, and former barrister Katie Fudakowski to handle complex safeguarding, SEN, and equality issues. Sam Macdonald continues to be a highly recommended specialist for restructuring and governance matters, and Paul Jones is a key contact for commerical contracts and partnerships. Maria Strauss is particularly noted for her expertise in safeguarding investigations.
Lawyer Rankings
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Private client > Agriculture and estates
- Private client > Art and cultural property
- Private client > Charities and not-for-profit
- Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation: mid-market
- Private client > Contentious trusts and probate
- Public sector > Education: schools
- Private client > Family
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Media: Theatre, publishing and other media
- Corporate and commercial > Partnership
- Private client > Personal tax, trusts and probate
- Real estate > Residential property
- Employment > Senior executives
Firm Rankings
- Public sector > Education: institutions
- Corporate and commercial > M&A: Smaller Deals, £10m-£100m
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Reputation management
- Investment fund formation and management > Retail funds
- Real estate > Commercial property: development
- Employment > Employers
- Crime, fraud and licensing > Fraud: civil
- Employment > Immigration
- Real estate > Property litigation
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Sport
- Corporate and commercial > Commercial contracts
- Real estate > Commercial property: investment
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Intellectual property: trade marks, copyright and design
- Real estate > Planning
- Real estate > Construction: non-contentious
- Risk advisory > Data protection, privacy and cybersecurity
- Real estate > Property finance
- Corporate and commercial > Financial services: non-contentious/regulatory
- Dispute resolution > International arbitration