A lawyer by training, Kate is a partner at strategic communications consultancy DRD Partnership, where she advises corporates, institutions and individuals on critical communications issues.  Having started her career as a litigator at Allen & Overy,  and worked for more than 20 years in communications consultancies, Kate brings unique insight and expertise to clients facing complex or contested situations, often working closely alongside a client’s legal advisors. Her areas of focus include litigation communications, reputation and crisis management, media and stakeholder relations, safeguarding and cyber.

Kate trained at Allen & Overy in London, qualifying into the litigation department in 1997. In 2000 she moved into communications, spending the first 12 years at global financial and corporate communications firm Brunswick.  Since 2012 she has focused on reputation management, with many of her clients having an international footprint across diverse geographies.

Kate is ranked Band 1 by Chambers and Partners for both Litigation Support and Crisis & Risk Management and is recommended as a reputation management expert by Spear’s 500 and Tatler Advisory.

A co-founder of DRD Partnership, Claire has worked across a wide spectrum of sectors, delivering strategic communications programmes in over 100 countries, across Europe, North America, Caribbean, Africa and the Middle East. At board and trustee level, she advises clients on value protection, risk mitigation, issues management, crisis management and litigation communications. Cases supported include applications to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, The Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal in the Hague. She also provides guidance on historic and current safeguarding issues as well as DE&I. A trained mediator, Claire works with advocacy groups in the EU, the US and in other international markets.