Modern Slavery Statement and Policy
This statement outlines the steps which Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan UK LLP (“QEUK” or the “Firm”) has taken to ensure that modern slavery is not taking place in our business and supply chains. It has been prepared in accordance with section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 (the "MSA").
Overview of our business
QEUK is an English law firm, regulated by the SRA which specialises in high-stakes commercial litigation, and is recognised as a leader in complex commercial and financial disputes. Established in 2008 we employ over 120 lawyers and 70 staff members in our London office. We are part of the Quinn Emanuel group, which is an international law firm headquartered in Los Angeles.
As a professional services firm, our supply chain consists primarily of service providers that support our legal services and employee functions, including legal support personnel, information technology, transcription, translation, stationary, printing, bundling, cleaning, couriers and transportation services.
We are committed to operating responsibly, by taking compliance and legislation seriously. We firmly oppose slavery and human trafficking in all their forms and will not engage suppliers who do not share these values.
Steps towards Assessing and Managing Risk
As a highly regulated professional services firm engaging with other professional services, we assess the risk of modern slavery or human trafficking within our operations as low. For our suppliers, we categorise most as low risk, particularly those who are large professional services companies based in the UK but, to verify this, we are undertaking a review of all our suppliers to ascertain their risk profile, and we will designate them as high, medium, or low risk. Where a supplier is designated as high risk, we will engage with them to ensure that they will take the necessary steps to become complaint with the MSA, or else terminate our relationship with them and make such reports as are required about their conduct. We expect to have concluded this review process by the end of February 2025. We are also preparing a Supplier Code of Conduct which we will publish on the Firm’s website by this date.
Responsibility and Commitment
The Compliance Team is responsible for implementing our Modern Slavery Statement and Policy, and the Supplier Code of Conduct which we are preparing. Other relevant policies and procedures, such as our Whistleblowing policy, are available to staff and set out the ethical standards we uphold.
Training
We will educate staff on the risk of modern slavery and human trafficking as part of their induction process, in order to raise awareness and ensure our staff remain vigilant. We will established clear reporting mechanisms for employees and stakeholders to report any suspicions or incidents of modern slavery without fear of retaliation.
Effectiveness
We will monitor the effectiveness of this policy, and review it annually and in response to changes in legislation or business operations. We believe that through collaborative efforts, we can create a safe and ethical environment for all. For the year ending December 2023, no breaches of the legislation by our suppliers have been reported or come to our attention.
This statement has been approved by the Management of the Firm.
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