In-person event
🏢 Leeds University Business School – Maurice Keyworth Building G.31
📅 Thursday 26 June 2025
🕒 4 to 6pm
This panel event and community discussion will focus on what actually works to improve inclusion and wellbeing in the legal sector, based on evidence and examples. While setting goals and making public commitments is valuable, it’s critical to assess the effectiveness of initiatives to ensure lasting impact.
The partnership between the University of Leeds and LawCare has shown a lack of evaluation in equity, inclusion, and wellness efforts – especially in involving aspiring and junior lawyers. This insight led to the creation of a reverse mentoring toolkit and the organisation of this event.
The main goal of this event and panel discussion is to bring people together who care about the same issues, to promote solidarity across the sector.
The event is open to anyone in the legal sector interested in inclusion and/or wellbeing.
The panel includes:
- Richard Cressall – Partner in the Real Estate Disputes team at Shoosmiths
- Verity Bedford-Read – Pathways to Law Coordinator and Social Science Outreach Officer at the University of Leeds
- Connie Dalziel – Associate in the Intellectual Property team at Pinsent Masons, based in Leeds. She is also Co-chair of both the internal Pinsent Masons Neurodiversity Network and the national Legal Neurodiversity Network
- Luke Corcoran – Senior lawyer within the Government Legal Department (GLD) and the President of Leeds Law Society
- Rachel O’Connor – Associate Professor at the University of Leeds. Rachael and her team lead the Reverse Mentoring research project and created the new Reverse mentoring toolkit.
There will be time and opportunity for further conversations over refreshments after the main panel discussion.
We look forward to welcoming you to the University of Leeds.
Richard Cressall
Partner in the Real Estate Disputes team at Shoosmiths
Richard will be sharing his experiences of reverse mentoring. He is a senior lawyer and was a mentee in LawCare and the University of Leeds’ reverse mentoring project which created the new Reverse mentoring toolkit.
Verity Bedford-Read
Pathways to Law Coordinator and Social Science Outreach Officer at the University of Leeds
Verity will be sharing about Pathways to Law. This is an extended outreach programme run in conjunction with the Sutton Trust and a number of other universities across England and Wales. The aim of the programme is to boost social mobility in the legal profession, as well as equipping students with the knowledge and skills they need to be able to make informed decisions about their futures – whether that’s a journey into law, or something completely different.
Connie Dalziel
Associate in the Intellectual Property team at Pinsent Masons, based in Leeds. She is also Co-chair of both the internal Pinsent Masons Neurodiversity Network and the national Legal Neurodiversity Network
Verity will be sharing about Pathways to Law. This is an extended outreach programme run in conjunction with the Sutton Trust and a number of other universities across England and Wales. The aim of the programme is to boost social mobility in the legal profession, as well as equipping students with the knowledge and skills they need to be able to make informed decisions about their futures – whether that’s a journey into law, or something completely different.
Luke Corcoran
Senior lawyer within the Government Legal Department (GLD) and the President of Leeds Law Society
Luke is a passionate advocate for bringing a diverse range of students into the profession and co-chairs GLD’s social mobility network.
Rachael O'Connor
Associate Professor at the University of Leeds
Rachael and her team lead the Reverse Mentoring research project and created the new Reverse mentoring toolkit.
The panel welcomes questions in advance of the session. You can send them directly to Rachael O’Connor at the University of Leeds; [email protected]