Shah Qureshi
Partner
Employment law
Shah is a partner and Head of the Employment department at Bindmans LLP. Shah previously worked at Legal 500 firms Christian Khan and Hodge Jones & Allen, before becoming the head of employment at Webster Dixon LLP in June 2004. He is recommended as a leader in his field in the Legal 500 2009 and Chambers Guide to the Legal Profession 2010.
Shah's practice covers all areas of employment law and discrimination law. He has particular expertise in representing executives and professionals in both contentious and non-contentious work. He has also developed a good reputation in pursuing successful discrimination and whistle-blowing cases against large corporations and public bodies.
Shah has a portfolio of key respondent clients ranging from national charities, local authorities and companies.
Shah has acted in a number of landmark cases and has experience of pursuing appeals at the Employment Appeal Tribunal, Court of Appeal and the House of Lords. He has been involved in a number of high profile and/or reported cases including: McKenzie -v- The Home Office (Employment Tribunal – race and sex discrimination); Murray -v- Newham CAB (EAT - Disability Discrimination); Aziz -v- Embassy of the Republic of Yemen (Court of Appeal - state immunity and employment); Vaseghi & Another -v- Brunel University & Another (Court of Appeal – race discrimination) and R (on the application of X) -v- Y School (High Court – freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs).
He recently acted for Tim Nicholson, Grainger PLC’s former Head of Sustainablity, at the Employment Appeal Tribunal successfully arguing that his climate change and environmental beliefs are protected by UK discrimination laws. This landmark case confirmed the types of non-religious beliefs that are protected by the 2003 Religion or Belief Regulations. He also acted for Professor Heather van der Lely in the successful settlement of her high value claim whistleblowing claim against UCL.
Shah is an active board member of the Discrimination Law Association and has been involved in a number of it’s activities including it’s submissions to the government’s Discrimination Law Review and the proposed reforms to the statutory dispute resolution procedures. He is also a member of the Muslim Council of Britain’s Legal Affairs Committee and the Employment Lawyers’ Association.
Shah is an advisor to the London Voluntary Services Council and a number of Members of Parliament. He has spoken at a number of conferences held by the Law Society, the Employment Lawyers’ Association, the National Council for Voluntary Organisations and the Discrimination Law Association. He was previously a visiting lecturer in employment law at London Metropolitan University.
Shah is author of the equal opportunities chapter of Tolley's Employment and Personnel Procedures. He has also written legal articles for a number of publications including the Employment Law Journal, Employment Lawyers’ Association, DLA Briefing and Sitra Bulletin.
Many of the cases Shah has worked on have received press coverage. He has been interviewed and quoted in such publications as the Guardian, the Times, the Telegraph, the Independent, the Scotsman and the Evening Standard. He has appeared on BBC Newsnight, BBC News, Channel 4 and Radio Five Live to provide legal comment.
Shah was Times Lawyer of the Week in November 2009 for his groundbreaking work on the Nicholson case. He is also featured as a leading lawyer in the publication Black Letter Law 2009 which showcases achievement in law.
Publications and articles
Discrimination by association, Employment Law Journal, October 2008
A path to greater equality? The government's proposals for an Equality Bill, Discrimination Law Association Briefings, March 2009
Protecting philosophical beliefs, ELA Briefing Volume 17 Number, 2 March 2010
What the professional directories say
Employment: Claimant - London & UK-wide (Ranked in Band 1)
"Shah Qureshi is a highly sought-after practitioner."
Shah's full profile and ranking status on Chambers 2010
Employment: Claimant - Best of the UK (Ranked in Band 2)
“Shah Qureshi is lauded as an extremely bright, tenacious and commercial lawyer. Clients appreciate his hands on approach and his engagement in really sensible discussions.” (Chambers 2008)
Legal 500 (2009)
Employment: Employee / union firms - ranked in 3rd tier
Professional Discipline - ranked in 3rd tier
Shah's profile in Legal 500 (2009)
“Shah Qureshi demonstrates killer instinct and a swift legal mind and is praised for his aptitude for finding legal precedents and applying them to the case at hand.”
