Achieving justice through the innovative application of international law

Global Rights Compliance is an international legal practice with decades of experience in providing leading expertise, advice and legal representation in our specialist areas.

About Us

Founded in 2013 by Wayne Jordash QC and Scott Martin, Global Rights Compliance is an international legal practice with decades of experience in providing world leading expertise, advice and legal representation in our specialist areas. 

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Who We are

A team and network of dedicated legal experts with decades of practical experience in international humanitarian, human rights, criminal and environmental law.

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What we do

We offer a wide range of international legal advisory and litigation services specifically tailored to meet your needs and ensure that legal risk is effectively managed. We design and deliver legal solutions to ensure that our clients meet challenges head on.

 

Why Us

Our record of success is internationally known and respected. When you work with GRC, you can be assured that you will receive confidential, impartial and independent advice from a committed team of legal professionals.

Our Lawyers

Wayne Jordash

Wayne Jordash

Managing Partner

 

Wayne is the Managing Partner of GRC and a world leading lawyer specialising in international human rights (IHRL) and humanitarian law (IHL), particularly in high risk and conflict-affected areas. Ranked in the UK’s leading legal indexes as “one of the world’s leading international criminal lawyers” and as “an exceptional barrister with a wealth of experience in international law”, Wayne specialises in providing advice to governments, international organisations, corporations and communities on how to comply with IHRL and IHL, manage human rights risks and how to seek redress in the international human rights and criminal law system.

His work involves advising on all aspects of accountability and human rights due diligence, human rights investigations and fact-finding missions throughout the globe. Wayne is also an internationally recognised expert in the global network of international tribunals, including at the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in relation to allegations of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.

Link to CV

Joe Holmes

Joe Holmes

Partner

 

Joe Holmes is a barrister, dual-qualified at the Bars of England and Wales and New York. Joe has practised in international criminal law for over 10 years, representing high-profile individuals. He has appeared before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) and the Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (MICT), arguing long and complex cases at trial and appellate levels.

Link to CV

Catriona Murdoch

Catriona Murdoch

Partner

 

Catriona Murdoch joined GRC in 2016 and was made partner in 2020. Experienced in trial and appellate litigation across the international courts and tribunals, she was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 2009 and is ranked as a Leading junior in both the Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners directories. Catriona is one of the few world leading experts on the crime of starvation, and also advises on accountability for atrocity crimes more generally.

As partner, Catriona oversees GRC’s strategic direction and is specifically responsible for managing GRC’s strategy to advance accountability for the crime of starvation. In this role, Catriona manages sizeable and complex grant programmes in support of the agenda, routinely engaging with donors, and providing discreet legal advice to States, UN bodies and CSOs to assess the legality, and accountability prospects of, conflict induced hunger.

Separately, in support of GRC’s broader conflict accountability agenda, Catriona provides advice on accountability strategies and works with CSOs to investigate and prosecute international crimes. She currently oversees and provides legal advice into GRC’s accountability programme focussed on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

Link to CV here

Michele Law

Michele Law

Head of Strategy

 

Michele Law is Head of Strategy at Global Rights Compliance. Michele works with team members to deliver our strategic direction and engages with our donors and clients to ensure we consistently provide an excellent service.  Michele brings into GRC over 25 years of experience as a diplomat, lawyer, and development expert, having advised, worked on, and overseen multi-million-pound conflict transformation and access to justice projects in conflict and stabilisation contexts. She is experienced in designing and undertaking complex stakeholder dialogue processes, conflict mediation, security sector reform and business and human rights interventions.

Prior to joining GRC, Michele was the Director of a consultancy focused on combatting modern slavery, before which her career was mainly within government and as an international civil servant.  In previous roles she was the Security Sector Reform policy lead for the UK government located in the then Department for Development; worked for the United Nations in Iraq advising on constitutional issues and in Afghanistan on the rule of law.  She was Deputy Director and legal adviser to the Commonwealth Secretary General and started her career as a New Zealand foreign diplomat.  She was called to the Bar in 1998 and holds a Masters in Law and a Masters in Business Studies (Mediation, Arbitration, and Negotiation).

Link to CV here

Lina Baddour

Lina Baddour

Senior Legal Adviser

Lina Baddour is a licensed US attorney, specialized in international criminal and human rights law and policy. With over 15 years of experience, she joined GRC as a Senior Legal Advisor in 2017 and currently leads the projects, “Advancing International Accountability for ISIS Atrocities through Evidence Analysis in Iraq” and “Mobilising Ratification of the Rome Statute Starvation Amendment”. Previously, she led the project, “International Law and Defining Russia’s Involvement in Crimea and Donbas”.

Prior to affiliating with GRC, Lina served as a Legal Advisor with UNDP, providing technical assistance to State leadership on international accountability, peace negotiations, and human rights monitoring and compliance. She also assisted in the representation of clients before the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, and advised counsel appearing before the War Crimes Chamber of the State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina on matters of international criminal law and procedure. She continues to represent persons and States involved in domestic and international criminal and human rights proceedings at pre-trial, trial and appellate levels, including before the International Criminal Court.

Anna Mykytenko

Anna Mykytenko

Senior Legal Adviser

 

Anna Mykytenko is a Senior Adviser and the Ukraine Country Manager. As a Ukrainian lawyer specialising in international, Anna advises Ukrainian state authorities, specifically, law enforcement organs, and NGOs on compliance with international humanitarian law, and the investigation and prosecution of international crimes. Additionally, she is engaged in conducting legal analysis and advising organs of the legislative and executive powers on various issues stemming from the belligerent occupation in Crimea and certain districts of the Ukrainian East.

Previously, she worked for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, United Nations Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals in the Hague and with the regional officer of the British human rights organisation Reprieve in Jerusalem. Over the course of her career, Anna has assisted in conducting domestic investigations of war crimes and crimes against humanity in accordance with best practices, as well as in the preparation of complex cases in international proceedings at pre-trial, trial and appellate levels. She has also assisted in drafting communications to UN Special Procedures in support of those facing execution, torture and extrajudicial imprisonment.

Anna is fluent in English, Ukrainian, and Russian, has limited working proficiency in French.

Lara Strangways

Lara Strangways

Senior Legal Adviser, Head of Business and Human Rights

Lara Strangways is a Senior Legal Adviser at GRC and Head of Business & Human Rights. In her role at Global Rights Compliance, Lara oversees the timely delivery of all business and human rights projects, liaising with clients to ensure the efficient implementation of deliverables according to agreed timelines and methodologies. The Business and Human Rights team are engaged across a number of multi-jurisdictional projects and have experience working with a variety of clients, ranging from industry bodies and companies through to INGOs, CSOs and governments.

Prior to joining GRC, Lara worked in-house for a diamond mining company, developing her knowledge of the human rights challenges facing the extractive industries. Lara also brings specialist knowledge in non-judicial remedies and the challenges faced by vulnerable groups in accessing grievance mechanisms.

Lara was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 2019. 

Ruby Mae Axelson

Ruby Mae Axelson

Senior Legal Adviser

Ruby Axelson is a Senior Adviser focusing on international litigation and project implementation in the fields of international criminal law, international humanitarian law and gender justice. Ruby currently leads GRC’s MATRA-Ukraine Project “Strengthening Ukraine’s Capacity to Investigate and Prosecute International Crimes”, executed in partnership between GRC and T.M.C Asser Instituut. The project goals are to enhance the capacity of Ukrainian criminal justice stakeholders in the investigation, prosecution, and adjudication of international crimes by integrating international standards into domestic practice.

Ruby also lead GRC’s project, in partnership with Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice, on ‘Defining Sexual Violence’ produced an in-depth comparative analysis of definitions of sexual violence in international and domestic jurisprudence and produced a draft amendment to the ICC Elements of Crimes definition of sexual violence

Ruby is appointed to the defence team of Jovica Stanišić before the UN International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT), prior to this she was on the defence team of Ratko Mladić at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

Advait Malviya

Advait Malviya

Administrator & Project Manager

 

Advait Malviya is a qualified lawyer currently working as an Administrator and Project Manager with Global Rights Compliance. He completed his Bachelor’s Degree in Law from NUJS and a Master’s degree in Human rights, Conflict and Justice from SOAS University, London. He holds a diploma in Entrepreneurship Administration & Business Laws.

Advait is based in The Hague and works along the Counsel at the United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT). Advait is actively involved in various on-going projects of GRC. 

Prior to joining GRC in 2017, Advait worked in a number of international organisations including the International Development Law Organization (IDLO), SAARCLAW, Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization (AALCO).

Prachiti Venkatraman

Prachiti Venkatraman

Legal Adviser

 

Prachiti Venkatraman joined Global Rights Compliance in 2019 and is currently attached to the Accountability for Mass Starvation Project. In this role Prachiti conducts analytical research and drafts policy and advisory papers on the use of starvation as a weapon of war, the applicable international criminal and humanitarian laws, relevant regional and international human rights framework, and the implementation and utility of UNSC Resolution 2417. She also works on GRC’s Starvation Manual (a unique toolkit designed to assist practitioners working on conflict and hunger issues) and on pursuing avenues for strategic litigation and accountability for starvation crimes.

Prachiti was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 2017 and is assigned as a Legal Assistant at the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT). Prachiti holds a Master of Laws in International and European Law, with a specialisation in Public International Law, from the University of Amsterdam and a Master of Laws in Professional Legal Practice from BPP University, London. She completed her Bachelor of Laws at the University of Warwick.

Link to CV here

Matthew Herbert

Matthew Herbert

Legal Adviser

 

Matthew joined Global Rights Compliance in 2021 as a Legal Adviser. In this role, Matthew has assisted with GRC’s MATRA Project: Providing Support to Ukraine to Combat International Crimes. As part of this project, Matthew conducted legal research and drafting in relation to the War Crimes Strategy and the Prosecutorial Strategy. In addition, Matthew has contributed to GRC’s project Defining Russia's Role in Crimea and Eastern Ukraine. Prior to this, Matthew worked as a legal assistant assigned to the defence of Jovica Stanišić in The Prosecutor v Stanišić and Simatović (MICT-15-96). Matthew worked as a legal intern with GRC in 2020, during which he assisted the Stanišić defence team, and contributed to GRC's other projects including Accountability for Mass Starvation.

Link to CV here

Rebecca Bakos Blumenthal

Rebecca Bakos Blumenthal

Legal Adviser

 

Rebecca Bakos Blumenthal joined Global Rights Compliance in March 2020. Rebecca is an international jurist, specialising in IHRL, IHL and ICL. Rebecca completed her Integrated Master of Arts in Law at Bocconi University in Milan and an LLM in Public International Law at the University of Amsterdam. As Legal Adviser, Rebecca is engaged in the development of GRC’s project entitled ‘Accountability for Mass Starvation – Testing the Limits of Law’,  where she conducts in-depth legal analysis on various facets of the crime of starvation and violations of the right to food. Rebecca is further involved in conducting open-source research on conflict-induced hunger in a range of country-specific contexts, including in Yemen, South Sudan, Syria and Ethiopia, with a view to advance accountability efforts.

Morgan Grant

Morgan Grant

Legal Adviser

 

Morgan Grant joined Global Rights Compliance in 2020 as a Junior Legal Adviser. In this role, Morgan has assisted with GRC’s project defining Russia’s role in Crimea and Eastern Ukraine. In the first phase of this project, Morgan conducted evidence gathering to establish a factual basis for an authoritative legal opinion on the international humanitarian and human rights law framework applicable to Ukraine since 2014. In the second phase of the project, Morgan contributed to legal research, analysis and drafting of the project’s legal opinion. Previously, Morgan worked with GRC as a legal intern in 2018 where she assisted GRC with its War Crimes Investigation Manual and Victims’ Submission to the International Criminal Court on behalf of a number of Rohingya women and children. A Canadian qualified lawyer, Morgan was called to the Alberta bar in 2017 and has previously interned with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). In 2019, Morgan obtained a Master of Laws from the London School of Economics, specialising in public international law. Morgan also holds a Bachelor of Arts from McGill University and a Juris Doctor (JD) from the University of Saskatchewan, College of Law.

Link to CV here

Sudipta Purkayastha

Sudipta Purkayastha

Legal Adviser

 

Sudipta Purkayastha joined Global Rights Compliance in 2020 as a Legal Adviser and a member of the defence team of Jovica Stanišić before the UN Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals. In this role, Sudipta conducts evidential analysis, legal research on issues of international criminal law, and supports the drafting of written submissions.

Sudipta also assists Wayne Jordash QC in providing international legal representation to Mr. Yorgen Fenech for the protection of his human rights, before the European Court of Human Rights as well as the United Nations Special Procedures.

Previously, Sudipta has also contributed to the MATRA Project “Strengthening Ukraine’s Capacity to Investigate and Prosecute International Crimes.”

Sudipta gained admission to the Bar Council of India in 2019. Sudipta holds a Master of Laws (International Law) from the University of Cambridge (Queens’ College). She completed her Bachelor of Laws at Gujarat National Law University, India.

Link to CV here

Clara Prantl

Clara Prantl

Legal Adviser

 

Clara joined Global Rights Compliance in 2021 as a Legal Adviser. As part of the Business and Human Rights team, Clara has assisted in the design of human rights due diligence frameworks uniquely tailored to the needs of business clients and their global operations, and has conducted legal research, analysis and drafting of legal advice for civil society stakeholders in matters of business and human rights, and public international law. Previously, Clara worked with GRC as a legal intern in 2021 where she conducted research into modern slavery in global supply chains and remediation mechanisms for corporate accountability.

Prior to her role at GRC, Clara undertook a graduate research fellowship at the Amsterdam Law Clinics in international criminal justice and undertook a work experience at Peters & Peters LLP. Clara obtained a Master of Laws in Public International Law from the University of Amsterdam in 2020, holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sinology from the University of Vienna and a Bachelor of Laws from SOAS, University of London.

Sofia Evangelou

Sofia Evangelou

Legal Adviser

 

Sofia joined Global Rights Compliance in 2020 as a Legal Adviser specialising in international criminal and human rights law. She completed her Bachelor in Law in the United Kingdom, and her LLM in Public International Law with a specialisation in international criminal law in Leiden University, Netherlands. She holds the professional qualification of Bar Professional Training Course (BTPC) obtained in the United Kingdom and is a member of the Honourable Society of Gray’s Inn. Upon her arrival, Sofia is actively involved in various projects of GRC, including the DPRK Project.

Prior to joining GRC, Sofia worked as a trainee at the European Commission at the Directorate-General of European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations. Admitted to the Cyprus Bar in 2018, she also provided legal counselling and litigation advice in a number of cases. Sofia is also member of the Legal Committee of the NGO ‘ACCEPT LGBTQI+ Cyprus’ where she provides pro bono legal advice as to the compatibility of domestic legislation with internationally recognised human rights standards enshrined in the constitution (through the prism of LBTQI+ rights). Sofia speaks Greek, English and is conversational in French.

Link to CV here

Yuqing Liu

Yuqing Liu

Senior Legal Adviser

 

Yuqing Liu is a Chinese lawyer specialised in international criminal law and international humanitarian law.

Since 2014, Yuqing has served as a legal officer as well as in various other capacities including Case Manager, Evidence Reviewer, and Technical Administrative Specialist in different Defence teams at the STL, the ICC, and the IRMCT. She is on the Justice Rapid Response Expert Roster as of July 2019 for her investigative expertise especially in the area of telecommunications.

Yuqing joined GRC in September 2021 and currently works on the “Accountability for Mass Starvation” project.

Need advice?

To speak to one of the GRC team, contact us at:

info@globalrightscompliance.co.uk