Steve Atkinson
Senior Associate
London
steve.atkinson@brownejacobson.com
+44 (0)20 7871 8515
Steve advises on decision-making and vires issues, and supports healthcare clients with judicial review, investigations, information law matters and public inquiries. He regularly advises on complex governance and public law issues.
Steve has been supporting health and care systems to establish Integrated Care Boards, Integrated Care Partnerships, provider collaboratives and place-based governance. This has included drafting and advising, and working with stakeholders, on constitutional documents, terms of reference, and other arrangements for the lawful and efficient delegation of functions. He has undertaken wholesale policy reviews and rewrites for a number of ICBs and has done a considerable amount of work to assist NHS organisations to understand and map their statutory and policy functions.
Steve has developed broad public law experience having been with the firm since 2016. He has carried out a number of secondments on-site at public sector clients’ offices to assist with audits, investigations, litigation, casework and contract reviews. He was also involved in a number of high-profile independent investigations involving local authorities and some of the leading cases in the professional regulatory sphere.
Featured experience
Complex public law advice
Advising a number of CCGs on the scope of patient choice regime, including dealing with challenges by private providers.
Data protection
Assisting a medico-legal insurer to defend claims brought by a clinic and a patient against one of its insured members (a consultant psychiatrist) relating to alleged breaches of data protection legislation, confidentiality, breach of Article 8 ECHR and the tort of misuse of private information
Independent investigations
Conducted an independent investigation concerned with alleged unlawful payments made to a Chief Executive of a statutory body. Conducted a comprehensive review of the decision-making process, including conducting a series of interviews with employees and members over a number of weeks.
Judicial review
Supported a care provider to successfully challenge statutory guidance published by a national regulator, by way of judicial review.
Testimonials
"Steve Atkinson – responsive, intelligent, always delivers and helps to solve complex challenges."