Law firm hires ex-Government Legal Department lawyer to set up public inquiries team
TLT Solicitors has recruited the former head of the public inquiries, reviews and litigation team at the Government Legal Department to set up and lead a new public inquiries team.
Zaqia Rashid, who worked for the GLD for more than 25 years, was responsible for managing workflows on some of the highest profile inquiries to date, including the Post Office Inquiry, Magnox Inquiry, Brook House Inquiry and British Virgin Islands Commission of Inquiry into allegations of corruption.
She also acted for the Secretary of State for BEIS in relation to the Grenfell Inquiry, and has advised on numerous reviews including the Windrush Lessons Learned exercise.
TLT added that Rashid has extensive civil litigation experience, including handling contempt of court work for the Attorney General.
The public inquiries team will offer an end-to-end service to the firm’s clients, it said.
Bill Hull, head of commercial services at TLT, said: “We know there is growing demand from the government for a specialist team that can lead and manage public inquiries and from participants to inquiries to provide knowledgeable and effective representation.
“As a firm, we are deeply rooted in support for government and across the public sector. We have acted on a number of high profile inquiries in recent years and saw a clear opportunity to establish and grow a full-service team. Zaqia is one of the most experienced lawyers in her field and we are delighted that she is joining us.”
Zaqia Rashid, partner at TLT, said: “TLT presented me with the perfect opportunity to set up and lead a public inquiries team at an important time for this kind of work; the COVID-19 Inquiry for example is expected to be one of the largest and most complex projects in our working lifetime.
“I know TLT to be an exceptionally client-driven and forward-thinking firm, and I was particularly impressed by the scale of their ambition. I would like TLT to be the first name people think of when considering legal representation at an inquiry.”