Reputation and Media

How we can help

Kingsley Napley has a long history of acting in high profile matters where the media spotlight has been shone on our clients. When a crisis hits, clients and their advisors turn to us because we are uniquely placed to advise, whether that is in the glare of publicity or discreetly behind the scenes. Our vast experience means that we see not only the immediate crisis but also the long term ramifications for our clients.

Our reputation management lawyers work closely alongside Kingsley Napley’s top ranked criminal team, who act in the highest-profile criminal cases. We are therefore the most experienced media law team in the area of arrest, charge and trial reporting.  This experience sets us apart and we have vast knowledge of matters which bridge media, reputation and criminal law, such as blackmail and extortion; harassment; and sexual misconduct. It can be imperative that clients understand these types of cases from both the civil and criminal perspective.

Sometimes our clients also require the help of our family, employment, public law and regulatory teams and we are uniquely placed to provide cross-practice reputation advice in related proceedings, such as public inquiries, employment disputes, regulatory or divorce cases. We work closely with our colleagues across the firm to deliver a seamless service to our clients and at very high speed.

Our clients also increasingly face allegations that cross borders by being published online, on social media and by media organisations in multiple jurisdictions. We work with our global network of media and criminal defence lawyers to find creative solutions to the myriad of reputational issues that our clients face and to protect them from the publication and spread of harmful allegations.

We provide our clients with clear advice about costs and the various ways of funding their legal representation, alongside strategic and commercial advice every step of the way.

Examples of our recent work

• Advising a high profile international sports person on defamation, privacy and data protection issues.
• Advising a global food business in relation to pre- and post-publication media advice.
• Representing one of the UK’s most famous and loved television presenters in relation to intrusion into their private life.
• Advising a high profile individual on privacy issues, including threatened publication by a well-known US publisher in breach of a High Court privacy injunction.
• Advising a top British actor on protecting the privacy of his children, including the unauthorised publication of photographs.
• Advising a high profile individual in relation to an alleged historic sexual assault.
• Advising a prominent member of the House of Lords in relation to an investigation by the House of Lords Commissioner for Standards.
• Acting for a high net worth businessman in making an application in the Court of Protection concerning access to documents on the court file.
• Acting for a financial services company threatened with inclusion in a prime time television broadcast regarding allegations of wrongdoing, which resulted in it being omitted from the broadcast.
• Advising a charity in relation to a privacy, fairness and due impartiality complaint to Ofcom in relation to a high profile TV programme.
• Advising an educational institution on its intellectual property rights in relation to a former employee’s use of social media.
• Advising a high profile billionaire in relation to complex business and family matters
• Acting for an extremely successful businessman in relation to harassment and privacy issues.
• Acting for the head of a Family Office in relation to false allegations of financial misconduct published in the media in multiple jurisdictions.
• Advising the founder and former CEO of a publicly listed company on reputational issues arising from allegations of financial misconduct.
• Acting for a telecommunications company in relation to claims made by a broadcaster that they had engaged in illegal activity, which resulted in it being omitted from the broadcast.
• Acting for a businessman being blackmailed and harassed in relation to an allegation of sexual assault made in multiple jurisdictions.
• Acting for a former Prime Minister in a data protection and libel claim.
• Advising a former international politician in a claim against compliance database provider
• Acting for a businessman being blackmailed and harassed by his former wife.
• Advising a Swiss financier in relation to a harassment and privacy issue.
• Acting for a minor in relation to a serious data breach by an organisation that published material containing their sensitive personal data.
• Advising a client in the successful resolution of an IPSO Arbitration dispute against a national newspaper.
• Advising a doctor subject to regulatory proceedings on inaccurate media reporting.
• Advising a senior figure in the financial sector in relation to threatened newspaper coverage of a regulatory investigation.