Overview
Wendy is Head of the Professional Discipline and Regulatory Team at 5SAH. She is ranked in the Legal 500 as a leading barrister within the field of Professional Discipline and Regulatory law.
‘An outstanding advocate with well-honed interpersonal skills. Tribunals admire her attention to detail and her approach is always borne of complete preparation, focussed and concise: when Wendy speaks, tribunals listen.’
The Legal 500 2021.
She specialises in what may broadly be characterised as cases concerning fitness to practise and unacceptable professional conduct/conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute. Her clients are frequently doctors, pharmacists, nurses, midwives, paramedics, social workers, practitioner psychologists, audiologists, occupational therapists, teachers, and students - although this is by no means an exhaustive list.
She advises and represents individuals in Fitness to Practise proceedings (whether involving misconduct, health, conviction/caution or lack of competence or clinical failings), at all stages from interim orders, to substantive/principal hearings and appeal; and at review hearings following an order of suspension.
She also has expertise in registration appeals, fraudulently or incorrectly procured entry cases and restoration applications.
She has a great deal of experience in cases concerning unacceptable professional conduct or conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute.
Her work also includes advising and representing in workplace and Trust disciplinary hearings and appeals; ARCP Outcomes appeals; and in University Fitness to Practise hearings and appeals.
She is also able to draw upon a wealth of criminal law experience to advise and to represent registrants in regulatory/disciplinary proceedings who face concurrent criminal proceedings.
What others say:
“Wendy Hewitt is a first rate barrister in the field of professional discipline. Her cross examination skills are silk quality, particularly when dealing with a sensitive issue. Clients warm to her instantly and she builds a fantastic rapport with them, which in turns brings out the best in them when they are giving evidence. Panels find her engaging and she gets brilliant results. Her advice is reliable and always on point. I cannot recommend her highly enough.”
- Marie Dancer, Managing Partner, Richard Nelson LLP
“Having worked with Wendy on a wide range of cases I have found her to be extremely client focused and an excellent advocate with exceptionally good judgement, persuasive arguments and excellent cross examination skills. She provides a top level of service to her instructing solicitors and is an absolute delight to instruct and work with.”
- Baljit Bagha, Solicitor, The Pharmacists’ Defence Association
“I have known Wendy Hewitt for some years now and have instructed her in respect of several tricky HCPC professional discipline cases. On each occasion she has done a tremendous job. Wendy’s manner with clients (particularly when discussing difficult matters) is second to none, her case preparation is meticulous and she is someone in whom one can have absolute confidence. I recommend her to other specialist practitioners and look forward to continuing to work together.”
- Andrea James, Partner, Brabners
Professional panel appointments
- General Dental Council (GDC) list of specialist advocates at Band C (10 years and above call).
- Grade 4 Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) prosecutor.
- CPS specialist rape and sexual offences prosecution advocate for London, the South-East and the Western circuits.
Additional information
Before converting to the Bar, Wendy trained and qualified in 1998 as a solicitor in a magic circle City law firm.
Professional Discipline & Regulatory
Wendy is a very experienced regulatory and professional disciplinary barrister.
Wendy mainly represents regulated individuals in the medical and healthcare professions, and in teaching. Much of her work is in the areas of fitness to practise and unacceptable professional conduct/conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute.
Wendy specialises in advising and representing individuals at all stages in Fitness to Practise proceedings (whether involving misconduct, health, conviction/caution or lack of competence or clinical failings). This may be from interim orders, to substantive/principal hearings, to appeal; or at review hearings following an order of suspension.
She also has expertise in registration appeals, fraudulently or incorrectly procured entry cases and restoration applications.
She also has a great deal of experience in cases concerning unacceptable professional conduct or conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute.
Examples of regulators before which Wendy appears are:
- the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS, now the tribunal service of the GMC);
- the Health and Care Professions Tribunal Service (HCPTS, now the tribunal service of the HCPC);
- the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC);
- the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC);
- the General Dental Council (GDC);
- the General Optical Council (GOC);
- the Registration Council for Clinical Physiologists (RCCP);
- the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA; formerly the NCTL).
Her work also includes advising and representing:
- Regulated healthcare professionals in workplace and Trust disciplinary hearings and appeals;
- Doctors in Annual Review of Competence Progress (ARCP) Outcomes appeals;
- University students in Fitness to Practise hearings and appeals.
Criminal Prosecutions - Private & Public
Where registrants are the subject of concurrent criminal proceedings, Wendy is able to draw upon many years of criminal law experience, both defending and prosecuting. As a hallmark of Wendy’s achievement and expertise in these areas, she has, since grading was introduced by the Crown Prosecution Service in 2013, been appointed a Grade 4 prosecutor (the highest grading) and a Rape and Serious Sexual Offences specialist.
She is has both prosecuted and defended the full calendar of criminal offences. This experience enables her to represent, where appropriate, a professional registrant in hearings and trials in the Magistrates’ or Crown Courts. Examples of when this might arise are where a registrant or teacher faces a criminal charge for historic sexual allegations, or for a violent domestic dispute.
Inquests & Inquiries
Wendy accepts instructions in relation to Public Inquiries and Inquests.
