Emmanuel Coniah

Emmanuel acts for registrants and regulators in proceedings before any professional regulator.

He has a particular interest in regulatory proceedings concerning healthcare professionals. Emmanuel regularly appears in matters brought before the Nursing & Midwifery Council. He has acted for registrants and the NMC in fitness to practise substantive hearings, interim order reviews and substantive order reviews. His experience includes acting in cases where registrants faced charges of concerning sexual allegations, dishonesty, lack of competence and gross misconduct.

In addition to NMC proceedings, Emmanuel welcomes instructions in cases before a wide range of other healthcare regulators (GMC, GDC, HCPC and Social Work England).

His experience in NMC proceedings makes him well placed to act for healthcare professionals where they are facing parallel criminal proceedings or are an interested party in an inquest. In criminal proceedings, he appeared in a case where a carer had been charged by the CPS with ill-treatment/wilful neglect of patient without capacity under section 44 of Mental Capacity Act 2005. The patient had dementia and the carer was alleged to have assaulted the patient whilst under their care in the care home.

Emmanuel is building a practice in Police Misconduct proceedings. He welcomes instructions to represent police officers and police authorities at misconduct hearings. Emmanuel also welcomes instructions to provide legal advice to Chief Constables in accelerated police misconduct hearings. He recently acted as a legal adviser to the Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police in an accelerated police misconduct hearing.

Emmanuel accepts instructs to represent clients in CQC and OFSTED registration appeals. During his pupillage, Emmanuel completed training delivered by experienced practitioners on advising and conducting registration appeals against OFSTED and CQC decisions.

Recent Cases

NMC v AR (ongoing): Fitness to practise substantive hearing concerning a nurse accused of sexually assaulting a patient on multiple occasions.

NMC v KB (2024): 3-week complex fitness to practise substantive hearing of a nurse accused of a lack of competence and rough handling of vulnerable patients.

NMC v DB (2024): Fitness to practise substantive hearing concerning a nurse was accused of fraudulently submitting timesheets.

NMC v AA (2024): Fitness to practise substantive hearing of a nurse accused of sending text and social media messages to colleagues in which offensive and inappropriate comments were made about other colleagues and patients.

SWE v MA (2024): Interim order review concerning a social work accused of a lack of competence and multiple instances of unprofessional behaviour towards patients.

NMC v KT (2023): Represented a nurse at an interim order hearing in a case concerning allegations of sexual misconduct with a patient and inappropriately accessing patient records.

NMC v BF (2023): Complex substantive order review where the conclusion reached by a substantive hearing panel on the registrant’s impairment was the subject of an appeal to the High Court by the PSA.

NMC v MB (2023): Interim order review where the registrant was facing allegations of a lack of competence, dishonesty and poor professional behaviour towards colleagues and patients.

Emmanuel accepts instructions across a broad spectrum of regulatory work, including:

• Health & Safety at Work Act 1974
• Food & Hygiene Safety
• Fire Safety
• Trading standards prosecutions
• Environmental law
• Animal welfare
• Sport
• Civil orders
• Cash forfeiture
• Licensing

Emmanuel provides advice and representation to individuals, companies and regulatory bodies. He has experience representing clients in the County Court, Magistrates’ Court, Crown Court, Coroners’ Court and before tribunals.

Emmanuel routinely represents individuals and companies before the criminal courts in health and safety related prosecutions. He has recently acted in matters concerning food hygiene safety, supplying unsafe products and animal protection. Emmanuel welcomes instructions to act for local authorities and regulatory bodies in such matters.

Recent Cases

LCC v MH (ongoing): Representing a company facing multiple food hygiene safety offences contrary to the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013.

NCA v MA (ongoing): Representing the respondent in a contested Cash Forfeiture Application by the NCA concerning thousands of pounds seized at an airport.

WBC v PNW: Represented a company and company director at PTPH in the Crown Court for offences of supplying an unsafe product and engaging in a misleading and unfair commercial practice.

WBC v SML: Represented a company charged with multiple food hygiene safety offences for rodent infestation.

BBC v IM: Represented a client at trial in the magistrates’ court for offences brought by a local authority concerning selling dogs without a licence.

R v MM: Represented a client at a sentence hearing for an offence of being an owner in charge of dog dangerously out of control causing injury. Successfully persuaded the court not to impose a Dog Destruction Order.

Civil Orders

Emmanuel is regularly instructed in his criminal practice to apply for and resist civil protective orders. He has experience in dealing with Criminal Behaviour Orders, Football Banning Orders, Domestic Violence Protection Orders and Cash Forfeiture Orders.

In his professional discipline practice, Emmanuel routinely successfully applies on behalf of the NMC for interim orders to suspend or restrict a registrant’s practise. The grounds advanced often relate to public protection and the public interest.

Emmanuel has a particular interest in representing the police and local authorities in applying for protective orders before the criminal, civil and family courts. He is able to assist the police and disciplinary regulators in obtaining Third Party Disclosure Orders in the Family Court. He is also able to apply for public interest immunity on behalf of the police following a court order for disclosure of documents.

Public/Administrative 

Emmanuel accepts instructions to act for the Government Legal Department through the Attorney General’s ‘Junior Junior’ scheme.

Emmanuel acts for families and interested persons at pre inquest reviews and inquest hearings. He has acted in a pre-inquest review where Article 2 was engaged and the inquest was to include a jury.

Emmanuel accepts instructions to act pro bono for families.

Recent Cases

• Inquest touching upon the death of DM: Represented North Wales Police in a two-week inquest following a cold case murder where the killer was acquitted in 1994.
• Acted for the family at two pre-inquest reviews in a death arising out of a health and safety-related issue.

Emmanuel prosecutes and defends across the full spectrum of criminal offences in the Crown Court, Magistrates’ Court and Youth Court.

Road Traffic

R v SH: Successfully appealed a conviction for failing to provide driver details.

R v L: Successfully argued exceptional hardship for a Defendant who required his vehicle to travel across England and Wales for work.

R v B: Successfully argued exceptional hardship for a veterinary surgeon.

R v RA: Successfully argued exceptional hardship for a student nurse who needed his licence to get to work and university placements across the country.

R v PA: Successfully persuaded the court to impose a fine rather than a custodial sentence for a charge of failing to provide a specimen where the offence fell into the highest category in the sentencing guidelines.

Sport

Emmanuel accepts instructions to provide advice and representation in sports disciplinary and regulatory cases. His experience in criminal law and professional discipline enables him to act in the full spectrum of disciplinary and regulatory cases arising in a sporting context.

In his professional discipline practice, Emmanuel regularly acts for individuals and regulators in disciplinary proceedings which give rise to issues concerning misconduct, safeguarding and a breach of professional standards. This experience makes Emmanuel well placed to act for athletes, sports teams and professional governing bodies in cases involving safeguarding, anti-doping, on and off-field misconduct and general breaches of sports regulation.

In criminal proceedings, Emmanuel has acted in cases arising in a football context.

Recent Cases 

• R v C: Represented a client at a sentence hearing for offences of assault and being drunk and disorderly at a Premier League football match. Emmanuel successfully resisted the imposition of a Football Banning Order.
• R v AB: Acted in a case where the defendant was alleged to have racially abused a steward at a Premier League football match. The prosecution was seeking a Football Banning Order.

Emmanuel has experience representing individuals and companies facing prosecution for environmental offences.

Recent Cases

Environmental Agency v CF (2024): Represented a company in the magistrates’ court facing prosecution for netting fish without consent from the EA contrary to section 27B (1) Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act 1975.

SMBC v FG (2024): Represented a company in the magistrates’ court prosecuted by a local authority for facilitating the cutting of some trees within a conservation area prohibited by section 211(1) Town and Country Planning Act 1990.

• LLM, BPP University (Distinction)
• BPTC, BPP University (Very Competent)
• LLB, Coventry University (2:1)

• Exhibition Award, Inner Temple (2018)
• Duke of Edinburgh Entrance Award, Inner Temple (2018)
• Clothier Scholarship, Inner Temple (2018)
• Advocacy Award, BPP University (2018)
• Winner of the Inner Temple Pepperdine Moot (2019)

• The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple
• Northern Circuit
• Association of Regulatory and Disciplinary Lawyers

• Attorney General Junior Junior Scheme
• ADR-ODR Civil and Commercial Mediator