Bates Wells

Charity and social enterprise.

Partner. Advises on establishing new charities and social enterprises, and assists charities with mergers, reorganisations and constitutional reviews. Regularly advises on governance, grant-making, fundraising, equality and discrimination issues, corporate philanthropy and regulatory action by the Charity Commission, with a particular interest in advising faith-based charities and international non-profit organisations. Recent work includes advising on two mergers each involving two charities in the health and medical research sector; advising CAFOD the official international development agency of the Catholic Church in England and Wales on its incorporation; advising the McCall MacBain Foundation, a grant-making organisation, on a £75m donation to the Rhodes Trust; advising on the registration of the Marriage Foundation as a charity and the conversion of StreetBank CIC to a charity (both of which had previously were initially refused charitable status); and acting as specialist advisor to the pre-legislative scrutiny committee (a joint committee of both Houses of Parliament) on what became the Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Act 2016.

Legal Fellow, International Justice Mission, 2003 Trainee Bates Wells, qualified 2005 Partner, 2013 Contributor to Jordan's 'Charities - The New Law 2006 - A Practical Guide to the Charities Acts' Acted as a specialist advisor to the pre-legislative scrutiny committee (a joint committee of both Houses of Parliament) on what became the Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Act 2016

Charity Law Association (including its working group on the Equality Act) Chair of Bates Wells Foundation Trustee of Tearfund Former trustee of several other charities including Breaking Barriers and Stewardship Former secretary and founding committee member of the Solicitors' International Human Rights Group (2005-2007), co-ordinating its work on human trafficking, including evidence to Joint Committee on Human Rights inquiry

Pembroke College, Oxford University, BA (Hons) English Language and Literature, 2000 Oxford Brookes University, Post-graduate Diploma in Law, 2001 Oxford Institute of Legal Practice, Legal Practice Course, 2002

Travel, theatre, film, hosting an occasional supperclub raising funds for small charities, skiing.