Lauren McDonald Solicitor
Employment Law
Lauren McDonald is a Solicitor in the Employment team at Swinburne Maddison, having qualified in September 2026. She graduated from Northumbria University with a First Class LLB Law degree before completing her LLM in Legal Practice, graduating with a Commendation.
Prior to beginning her training contract, Lauren spent 16 months working in-house within the legal team of a large financial services company, where she gained valuable commercial experience across a broad range of legal matters, including contractual issues, debt recovery, intellectual property and HR support. She subsequently completed her training contract at a North East law firm, undertaking seats in Dispute Resolution, Commercial, Commercial Property and Employment.
Lauren is approachable, empathetic and understanding. She is passionate about helping clients navigate legal challenges that can often be stressful and complex.
• Settlement Agreements
• Staff Handbooks and Workplace Policies
• Redundancy and Restructuring
• Employment Support for Corporate Transactions
• Employment Tribunal Claims
Lauren advises employers and employees on a range of employment law matters. Her experience includes preparing settlement agreements, carrying out merits assessments for potential Employment Tribunal claims, reviewing and updating staff handbooks, and supporting businesses with day-to-day employment queries.
She has experience assisting with corporate transactions through employment due diligence and corporate support work, as well as preparing employment documentation as part of redundancy exercises. Lauren has also drafted instructions to counsel and regularly undertakes legal research on complex employment law issues.
Lauren’s previous in-house experience gives her a strong understanding of the commercial realities facing businesses. She combines legal expertise with a practical approach, helping clients find resolutions to support their wider objectives.
News & Insights
Insight
Four Common Divorce Myths and Misconceptions
If you’ve recently started watching The War on Sky, you could be forgiven for thinking that every divorce involves dramatic courtroom confrontations, surprise revelations and tense cross-examinations. In reality, family law proceedings are often far less dramatic than television would have us believe. Most cases are resolved through negotiation, mediation or other forms of non-court […]
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Could your pension increase your Inheritance Tax bill? How the 2027 legislation change affects you
For many years, pensions have played an important role in estate planning. Unlike many other assets, unused pension funds could generally be passed to beneficiaries outside the scope of Inheritance Tax, making pensions an attractive way of preserving wealth for the next generation. From 6th April 2027 this is set to change, most unused pension […]
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Swinburne Maddison Expands Private Client Team Following Major Investment
Swinburne Maddison, one of the North East’s leading full-service law firms, has significantly expanded its Private Client team increasing the firm’s capacity to take on complex private client instructions across the North East and beyond. Following major investment in people, expertise and resources, the firm has brought together its strongest Private Client team to date. […]
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