LAWYER IN THE NEWSWho? Byron Britton, 32-year-old litigation partner in the London office of 13-partner Norwich firm Steele & Co.Why is he in the news? Acted for London mayor Ken Livingstone in the 'Battle of Trafalgar Square', the application made by pigeon feed seller Bernard Rayner that Mr Livingstone's decision to refuse him a licence to sell feed breached his human rights.

Mr Rayner's family had sold bird seed for the square's pigeon population - described as 'rats with wings' by Mr Livingstone - for 50 years.

He argued, unsuccessfully, that the withdrawal of the licence was unreasonable and in breach of his right to own property, but was given a substantial payoff by the mayor's office.Background: LLB at the University of Wales Aberystwyth 1987-90, followed by Law Society Finals at the Chester College of Law in 1991.

He qualified in 1994 with Hodders in London, becoming a partner in 1998.

He joined Steele & Co in 1999, making partner in May 2000.Route to the case: 'I have a background in working for local authorities, particularly London boroughs, and the mayor's in-house legal team approached me when they realised that they would need some external assistance on the litigation side of matters.'Thoughts on the case: 'The number of submissions made by members of the public to the mayor was quite astounding, and gave me an immediate perception of the high-profile nature of the case.

The case raised interesting legal points under the [Human Rights] Act, specifically whether a licence in these circumstances could actually constitute property in the strictest sense.

Despite this, I was always confident that the case would go in our favour, although I was disappointed that we reached a settlement so late in the day.'Dealing with the media: 'I was lucky in that I had great assistance from the mayor's press office, which prepared the press releases detailing the settlement terms.

Nevertheless, it was still pretty daunting to walk out of the front doors of the High Court and see scores of journalists waiting for you.'Victoria MacCallum