Catherine Bedford > Harbottle & Lewis LLP > London, England > Lawyer Profile

Catherine Bedford

020 7667 5000 catherine.bedford@harbottle.com View profile View profile

Work Department

Family

Position

Catherine is well-known in the field of family law, leading the Family Group at Harbottle & Lewis which has gained significant respect within the industry.

Under Catherine’s leadership, the Family team has gone from strength to strength and she has gained a formidable reputation within the industry where it is said she is now ‘at the top of the table of London divorce solicitors‘.

Since early 2020, Catherine has been running an unprecedented, high-value case over numerous hearings in the High Court and Court of Appeal. The case draws on multiple areas of law extending well beyond family and raising important legal questions.

Catherine’s client base includes individuals from UHNW families, often with a public profile to protect. Her clients range from royalty to entrepreneurs, business and finance leaders and those in the creative industries. Catherine works closely with the firm’s top-tier defamation/reputation group to protect privacy in the event of invasive media attention.

Catherine’s practice encompasses all areas of private family law in the wake of relationship breakdown as well as advising on pre-emptive nuptial agreements.

Catherine has particular expertise in handling complex finances and representing international clients with interests under corporate and trust structures across jurisdictions, often working with family offices and trusted advisors.

Catherine’s approach to each client is tailor-made – whether low-key negotiation outside of the court process or skilled litigation within it, always thinking expansively and finding inventive ways to cut through a dispute.

Career

Catherine joined Lee & Thompson as a partner in 2007 and founded the firm’s Family group. She joined Harbottle & Lewis in April 2017, bringing the Lee & Thompson Family group with her.

Education

Catherine completed a degree in English Literature at McGill University in Montreal, Canada before moving to the UK to read Law at Oxford University.