Bratby Law

Telecoms | Data | Payments

Managing Partner of Bratby Law, a specialist English law firm advising on UK telecoms regulation, data protection, payments regulation and transactions.

Over 30 years' experience spanning the UK telecoms regulator (Oftel/Ofcom), senior in-house operator roles and partnership at international law firms. Rob advises regulated businesses, investors and technology companies on UK regulatory and commercial matters across four practice areas:

Telecoms Regulation: Ofcom engagement, enforcement defence, General Conditions, numbering, switching, spectrum, access, interconnection, Telecommunications Security Act compliance. The practice is grounded in direct experience at Oftel.

Data Protection: UK GDPR, DPIAs, controller/processor analysis, international transfers, privacy frameworks, data protection for AI-enabled products, ICO engagement and enforcement.

Payments Regulation: PSRs 2017, FCA/PSR, open banking, commercial variable recurring payments, scheme governance, DORA. Rob serves as General Counsel to UK Payments Initiative Limited, the industry body developing the UK's commercial account-to-account payments scheme.

Transactions: Commercial contracts, JV structuring, shareholder agreements, network-sharing, MVNO, infrastructure, subsea cable, platform, cloud, SaaS and complex corporate transactions.

Clients work with Rob through direct legal advice, specialist co-counsel or fractional general counsel engagements.

Rob's career spans regulatory, in-house and private practice:

• 2020 onwards: Managing Partner, Bratby Law
• 2026 onwards: General Counsel, UK Payments Initiative Limited
• 2017-2020: Partner, Head of International Telecommunications, Internet and Media, Arnold & Porter (London)
• 2011-2016: Managing Partner, Asia, Olswang (Singapore)
• 2008-2011: Partner, Head of Commercial, Olswang (London)
• 2005-2008: Partner, Head of Telecoms, Mayer Brown (London)
• 2003-2005: Counsel, WilmerHale (London)
• 1998-2003: Senior Legal Counsel, COLT Telecom (in-house)
• 1995-1996: Oftel, the predecessor to Ofcom (regulatory authority)
• 1994-1998: Trainee and Associate, Baker & McKenzie (London)

Rob provides fractional general counsel services to:

• UK Payments Initiative Limited (payments scheme governance)
• TelXL Limited (CCaaS platform)
• The One Touch Switching Company (telecoms switching)
• Core (telecoms)

Rob worked in-house at COLT Telecom from 1998 to 2003, including serving as General Counsel to COLT's German subsidiary and regulatory counsel for international expansion across 13 European countries.

Education: University of Cambridge, BA(Hons) MA(Cantab) Natural Sciences and Law. Henley Business School MBA. INSEAD International Directors Programme. QMW London, Postgraduate Diploma in Intellectual Property Law.

Contact: [email protected] | +44 77 3831 2629 | bratby.law

English

• Internation Bar Association: Communications Committee, Technology Committee
• LegalMondo

Rob’s education includes:

• 2015-16: INSEAD, International Directors’ Programme in Corporate Governance
• 1998-2003: Henley Management College, MBA
• 1997- 98: University of Bristol, Diploma in Intellectual Property Law and Practice
• 1993-94: Nottingham Law School, LPC
• 1990- 93: University of Cambridge, St. John’s College, BA(Hons), MA (Cantab), Natural Sciences and Law