Alastair Gillespie

Alastair joined Forbes in April 2024. He qualified in 1994 and has been a partner in several firms since 2000. He was head of the Eclipse/Proclaim Defendant team of the Year in 2015 and Insurance Times Legal Partner of the Year 2016.

He is one of the country’s most experienced solicitors in the handling of claims in the highly specialised and complex area of abuse and neglect. Since 1994 Alastair has advised on the conduct of defences and related issues in a vast range of matters, from standalone claims by litigants in person to many of the largest group actions to have been pursued in England & Wales. From the late 1990s until the 2010s he was heavily involved in both the North Wales and North West group actions, the outcomes of which were integral to the subsequent development of law and process in abuse claims. More recently, in 2020 Alastair guided Barclays Bank and its insurers to success in the Supreme Court on the fundamental question of vicarious liability for independent contractors. He also worked closely with the Independent Football Review in connection with the preparation of its report into abuse in professional football.

His clients include insurers, schools, charities, local authorities sporting clubs and other public and private organisations, both insured and uninsured. His current cases include allegations of human rights breaches by a local authority in a case involving gender dysphoria, modern slavery claims against a charity and cases non-recent abuse pursued in vicarious liability against professional football clubs.

As well as acting for a major insurer and a prominent industry organisation at the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), Alastair also appeared at IICSA as an expert witness in the defence of abuse claims on three separate occasions, giving evidence on key issues including the development of the current civil claims process, limitation and the likely impact of changes to the current regime.

Alastair is also an active member of the FOIL Abuse sector focus team. He recently contributed extensively to submissions made by FOIL in response to consultations on proposed developments in law and practice that are relevant to this complex area. Alastair was recognised as a Leading Individual in the 2022 and 2023 editions of Legal 500.

Relevant experience includes:

Barclays Bank plc v Various Claimants [2020] UKSC 13 – the leading case on stage 1 of the two-stage test for vicarious liability. Acted for the bank and its insurers in the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court. The decision resulted in the dismissal of the entire 168-claimant action. Many more claims that were awaiting the outcome did not proceed.

Independent Football Review 2017-21 (‘the Sheldon Review’) – worked extensively with numerous clubs and the review team to ensure compliance with the review’s requirements. Also supported the clubs in their investigations and management of associated media and communications issues.

IICSA – 2017-2022 - acted for Royal & Sun Alliance plc and the Insurance and Reinsurance Legacy Association as interested parties in this vast public inquiry. Gave evidence on the chronology of two major group actions that the inquiry used as case studies. Also gave evidence as an expert in the defence of civil claims and litigation on three further occasions during the inquiry.

Extensive work in reputation management and brand protection for a wide range of organisations, including professional football clubs, independent schools, charities and religious orders, especially in dealings with national and local media.