Helen Scott-Lawler > Burges Salmon LLP > Bristol, England > Lawyer Profile

Burges Salmon LLP‘s team of multidisciplinary experts is highly capable of advising on a wide range of contentious and non-contentious commercial, corporate, and regulatory issues in the sport sector, with a particular focus on handling broadcasting and sponsorship agreements, trade mark and contract disputes, and financing matters. The team, which assists betting agencies, corporate entities, clubs, and associations in sports such as football, golf, and racing, is also well-regarded for its data privacy and governance expertise; horse racing expert Helen Scott-Lawler is a key name in this area. Jeremy Dickerson leads the team and is noted for his experience handling commercial litigation, as well as disputes related to ports integrity issues. Neil Connor-McLaren left the team in April 2024.

Burges Salmon LLP fields a broad practice that covers areas such as TV and film, music, and publishing, handling matters relating to advertising, marketing as well as IP. Jeremy Dickerson heads the Bristol-based team and is particularly experienced in IP and sports-related work, where he counts both national and global companies amongst his portfolio. Helen Scott-Lawler is another key member of the group, focusing on non-contentious matters such as marketing, brand protection, and commercial contracts. Dispute resolution pertaining to IP issues constitutes a central area of activity for Emily Roberts.

At Burges Salmon LLP, clients profit from a broad IP offering that includes the protection and enforcement of IP rights as well as transactional work and licensing arrangements. This makes the practice a popular choice for global businesses looking to build and protect brands on both domestic and international level. Practice lead Jeremy Dickerson also heads up the firm’s sports practice and handles both transactional and litigious IP work. Helen Scott-Lawler excels at non-contentious matters, especially pertaining to the retail, sport, and food and drink sectors, while Emily Roberts focuses on the protection and enforcement of IP rights.

Based in Bristol, Burges Salmon LLP acts for an impressive roster of broadcasters and production companies in an array of IP matters, including contentious issues and IP portfolio management. Typical instructions include advice on broadcasting rights exploitation, clearance and trade mark issues. The team also assists production companies with production agreements and marketing campaigns. Practice head Jeremy Dickerson specialises in IP and advises major film and TV companies on their trade mark portfolios. Helen Scott-Lawler assists with sponsorships, brand protection, and advertising and marketing issues, while Emily Roberts is the go-to name for contentious matters.

A ‘luminous group of charming lawyers’, Burges Salmon LLP is active on the contentious and non-contentious sides, with experience up to the Court of Appeal as well as managing day-to-day IP matters for some notable brands. Jeremy Dickerson leads the team, deploying his trade mark expertise in the courts while managing the portfolios for household names. Helen Scott-Lawler possesses notable strengths in the transactional arena, while Emily Roberts is regarded for her capabilities in the prosecution and enforcement of a litany of IP rights.

Demonstrating specific expertise in horse racing, polo and motorsport, the Burges Salmon LLP practice is highly regarded for advising on media rights and sponsorship arrangements, alongside anti-doping litigation. Based out of Bristol, Jeremy Dickerson leads the outfit, with experience in merchandising and sales promotion matters; Helen Scott-Lawler is a specialist in exploiting IP and data in horse racing; while Andrew Matheson focuses on high-value commercial disputes.

Burges Salmon LLP stands out for its specialist expertise in the food and drink and agribusiness sectors, advising leading names in this space on product liability issues and recalls. The team is also expanding its offering to cover product liability risk management matters in Scotland. Brian Wong, Helen Scott-Lawler and Andrew Burnette are the trio leading the team; Wong advises on product safety and liability in sectors including the automotive industry, while Scott-Lawler and Burnette are particularly active in the food and drink industry.

The national commercial contracts team at Burges Salmon LLP, which operates cross-departmentally in combination with the wider commercial team, is often involved in advising on long-term logistics contracts. The group’s core sector strengths include retail, sport, and food and drink; it also continues to expand further into the media contracts sphere, and is increasingly engaged to handle matters such as licensing agreements. Practice head Helen Scott-Lawler deals with all types of commercial contracts, and counts leading UK retailers as key clients. Richard Hugo is known for assisting clients with manufacturing, distribution, agency, franchising and purchase arrangements.