Bettina Rigg > Browne Jacobson LLP > Exeter, England > Lawyer Profile
Browne Jacobson LLP Offices
Ground Floor
Keble House, Southernhay Gardens
EXETER EX1 1NT
EX1 1NT
England
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Bettina Rigg
Work Department
Education
Position
Bettina is the head of our higher education sector. Recognised as a leading expert on advising higher education institutions by Chambers and Partners for several consecutive years, Bettina advises on a variety of higher education matters, including employment, regulatory and student matters.
Having been a member of the Council of the University of Exeter for nine years (where she was the dual assurance lay lead for HR and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and worked closely with the teams involved in obtaining accreditation with Athena Swan and the HE equality charters), she has a deep understanding of the issues facing the higher education sector and the role of governance. She also works closely with sector associations to help their members to engage with topical legal issues.
Bettina advises clients on operational and strategic issues relating to staff and students and regulatory matters concerning the Office for Students. She has developed a specialism in Equality Act issues. She has spent time on secondment to university in-house legal teams. Bettina is an ADR Group accredited mediator and has mediated a wide range of employment and education matters.
Career
Bettina was a Member of the Council of the University of Exeter for 9 years where she was the dual assurance lay lead for HR and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and worked closely with the teams involved in obtaining accreditation with Athena Swan and the HE equality charters.
Memberships
Bettina is a member of the Governing Body of Writtle University College.
Lawyer Rankings
South West > Employment > Employment: Dorset, Devon and Cornwall
Browne Jacobson LLP, renowned for its strengths acting for public sector clients, particularly in health and education, fields a large employment practice that leverages the firm’s multi-disciplinary capabilities to advise clients in both dispute and non-contentious capacities. Tribunal claims, industrial action, and day-to-day HR support form a significant part of the group’s portfolio under the leadership of national head of employment James Tait, South West-based employment lead partner Bridget Prosser, as well as Bettina Rigg, who oversees the firm’s higher education offering.
South West > Public sector > Education
Browne Jacobson LLP is particularly active in advising higher education providers alongside academic trusts, schools and academies, and universities on matters spanning trust mergers, safeguarding issues, and employment mandates, through to complaints and broader diversity and inclusion matters. Based in Exeter, team leader Julia Green is highly experienced in pastoral work and assisting education providers with transferring to academy and trust status. Higher education and employment expert Bettina Rigg counts equality, diversity and inclusion matters among her areas of expertise and often represents clients in discrimination claims. Daniella Davies consults on a wide scope of recruitment, discipline, management, union and HR matters, with Victoria Hatton assisting on academy, governance, and student-related mandates. Rachel Billen regularly assists with employment matters including employment tribunal claims; Marie Ashton is also highly active in employment work.
London > Public sector > Education: institutions
(Leading partners)Advising further education and higher education institutions in a range of matters, Browne Jacobson LLP‘s higher and further education team is co-led by Bettina Rigg in Exeter and Dominic Swift in Birmingham. While Rigg emphasises employment law, student matters, equality, diversity and inclusion and discrimination claims, Swift is an expert in property development and regeneration. Nick Smee is the key contact for intellectual property and Scott Mounfield is the department’s construction specialist, in contentious and non-contentious matters. Nathalie Jacoby-Danesh joined the department from Mills & Reeve in April 2023, bolstering the firm’s regulatory and charities offerings. Selina Hinchliffe departed to Shakespeare Martineau LLP in June 2023.