Janine Wolstenholme

Inquests & Inquiries

Ranked Band 1 for Inquests and Public Inquiries - Chambers and Partners (2025) - 5 years ranked

Ranked in Tier 1 for Inquests and Inquiries in - The Legal 500 (2025)

Janine Wolstenholme is a highly sought after barrister. She is in particular demand for high profile, complex, and sensitive cases. Many have linked matters including civil claims, judicial reviews, and regulatory and disciplinary proceedings, with clients benefitting from the continuity of representation she provides across the various jurisdictions.

She is extremely experienced in the coroners' courts, appearing country-wide, representing the interests of the state, large corporations, small businesses, professionals, individuals, and bereaved families, as well as Counsel to the Inquest.

Janine's experience ranges from short, natural causes deaths to lengthy cases involving several interested parties, with the majority of her instructions invoking Article 2 and requiring a jury. Regulation 28/PFD issues routinely feature.

She has a particular interest in cases involving children and protected parties, including obstetrics and foetal medicine, but has significant experience in the full range of cases, including: care and nursing homes, custody/detention, educational settings/contagion, DOLS, domestic homicide, medical treatment (or lack of), mental health, neglect, road traffic collisions, substance and alcohol misuse and workplace deaths.

Janine also provides training, and has delivered sessions to clinical staff at NHS hospital trusts.

Janine has a nationwide practice and is happy to travel to accommodate her clients' needs, as well as deliver training and seminars to clients at their premises.

Public Access

Janine may accept Public Access work, where she can be instructed directly by a member of the public rather than a solicitor.

Public Law including Judicial Review

Janine has significant experience in this area having acted for a range of central government departments, local authorities, the NHS and its commissioners, and other public bodies, or those carrying out public functions, for many years.

She accepts instructions in relation to a range of Public and Regulatory matters including duties, powers, judicial review, quashing of inquisitions in the coroners' courts, misconduct, and misfeasance in public office, and as well as appearing in the County and High Courts, appears before a number of specialist tribunals, including the Health, Education and Social Care Chamber, SENDIST, and School Admissions Appeals Panels.

Personal injury & clinical negligence

Janine is an experienced advocate. She undertakes advisory, drafting and advocacy work, across all aspects of casualty litigation. Clients enjoy a high level of service and particularly appreciate her forensic, holistic and tactical approach.

Janine has many years' experience in casualty work acting for Claimants and Defendants. Her practice includes injury, both bodily and psychiatric and consequential loss arising out of clinical negligence, personal injury, employers' liability, disease, occupiers' liability, highways, product liability, accidents abroad, and motor claims (including MIB). She has a genuine and long-standing interest in claims involving secondary victims and nervous shock having completed her undergraduate dissertation in this field.

She has experience of low value claims through to large loss actions following surgery (emergency, orthopaedic/routine and cosmetic), inadequate post-surgery care and treatment, delayed and failed diagnosis, neglect, as well as claims involving compulsory detention and mental health. Janine has a particular interest in incidents resulting in loss of life, particularly those concerning children, protected and vulnerable parties.

She undertakes work at all stages from initial advice through to JSMs and trial, including requests (coroner and jury), and fully contested multi-track trials and appeals lasting several days in the High Court.

A significant proportion of Janine's current practice includes acting for NHSLAs, insurers, local government and, since her appointment as Junior Counsel to the Crown, Regional Civil Panel, in 2010, she is regularly instructed by the Crown and various State departments, both ministerial and non-ministerial.

Janine accordingly has an acute understanding of the wider, potentially lasting, implications that may arise in any given case, whether it relates to policy or because of political and media interest and scrutiny and approaches every case with such matters in mind.

Call 2002

Appointments:
2010
Junior Counsel to the Crown (Panel B) (“Treasury Counsel”) regional civil panel

2011
Lay-member of Education Admission Appeals Panel

2012
Chair of Education Admission Appeals Panel

2018
Assistant Coroner for West Yorkshire (Eastern)

2021
Junior Counsel to the Crown (Panel A) (“Treasury Counsel”) regional civil panel

2001
Sheffield Hallam University, LLB (Hons) 2.1

2002
Nottingham Law School, BVC (Very Competent)

2005
BPP London, Qualified Lawyers Transferred Test (A)

2006
University of Manchester, MA (Merit)