Who? John Ireland, 46-year-old sole practitioner at John Ireland & Co in London.

Why is he in the news? Represents Miriam, the transsexual star of the Sky Television show 'There's something about Miriam'.

Six men competed for the attention of a beautiful model - the twist being that none of them knew she was a pre-operation transsexual until the end of the show.

The six contestants all sued the production company and Sky Television for conspiracy to commit a sexual offence, breach of contract and personal injury, and threatened action to stop the broadcast.

Their claims were settled out of court in January for sums that the media reported at 125,000 each, but Mr Ireland says were much lower.

Background: LLB at Leeds University 1976-79, then College of Law at Chancery Lane in London.

Articled at Masons in the City, and then became a partner at entertainment firm Lee & Thompson in London in 1986.

Moved to Tottenham Hotspur FC in 1993 as company secretary and in-house lawyer, then set up John Ireland & Co in 2002, acting for talent in the sports and entertainment sectors.

Route to the case: A recommendation from producers of a Channel Four hip-hop music documentary with whom he had worked.

They had also been working with an advertising agency launching a transsexual pop group, of which Miriam was one of the intended members.

Thoughts on the case: 'Several interesting questions were raised by the lawsuit, such as when does a person have to openly declare a private issue such as their sexuality or genetic origins.'

Dealing with the media: 'Once the contestants made their claims, every newspaper was trying to get hold of Miriam.

She had to flee to New York and stay upstate.

What has been pleasing, though, is that Miriam's own personality seems to be able to overcome any initial negative reaction.

So far everyone, from the tabloids to the broadsheets, has been most supportive of her situation.

I had to prepare her for difficult questions and plan a publicity campaign for her.

We are now negotiating a deal for an hour-long documentary about her life story.'

Rachel Rothwell