Photo of Mandy Laurie

Mandy Laurie

Holyrood High School, Edinburgh PartnerBurness Paull LLP

Biography

Mandy is a Partner at the leading Scottish law firm Burness Paull LLP where she is a key member of the Employment team.

She is widely respected for her expertise in employment law and has gained an excellent reputation with her clients who include individuals, corporate bodies and charities.

Terms such as ‘pragmatic’, ‘straight talking’ and ‘charismatic’ have been used to describe her approach.

Mandy’s work involves appearances at Employment Tribunals where her knowledge of the law and an ability to think quickly on her feet, help protect the interests of those she represents.

At times she works closely with clients and other parties to resolve a dispute before it goes to tribunal or court.  This process of mediation can be very beneficial to all concerned.

Mandy understands that her advice on issues such as unfair dismissal, redundancy and discrimination can have a major impact on the life of individuals.  At times this responsibility can be stressful but she enjoys her work and greatly values the satisfaction it provides.

Mandy attended Holyrood High School in Edinburgh before spending five years studying Law at the University of Glasgow, an experience she greatly enjoyed.

In Mandy’s own words:

“Much to the hilarity of my form teacher, when I advised him that I wanted to “solicit”, I knew I wanted to do law from age 13. Whether I was capable of it was another matter. Neither of my parents went to University and the only lawyer I knew was Petrocelli – A 1970’s TV character who fought for justice while making slow progress building his own home. (If this was my life inspiration then it probably explains why I also married an architect!)

On completing my traineeship in 1993, I became a litigator and I really enjoyed the range of issues this involved from contractual disputes to personal injury claims. I even had a case about rotten eggs! As I became increasingly involved with employment law queries – I liked the faster pace of the decision making process and the fact that it presented a more human and personal side to law – I joined a specialist team of employment lawyers in 2000.

When I’m not working, I embarrass my two older children by playing vintage vinyl on an old refurbished Wurlitzer jukebox. I also do some pro bono work for Inspiring Scotland and am an Office Bearer to the Writers to the Signet – one of the oldest legal societies in the world”

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