Who? Guy Hollebon, 28-year-old partner and head of the employment team at Bristol and London firm Bevans.

Why is he in the news? He represented Richard Gizbert, the London-based foreign correspondent for American TV network ABC, who successfully claimed unfair dismissal after being sacked for refusing an assignment to cover the war in Iraq. The married father of two had been in his job 11 years and covered conflicts in Bosnia and Chechnya, but in 1997 told his bosses he would not cover any more because of his family. No objection was taken, until after 11 September 2001. Mr Gizbert refused to cover the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan. In return for staying in London, he varied his contract to be paid on a daily rate. After two years, he was sacked and replaced by someone willing to go to war-zones. In a written judgment, the tribunal ruled that Mr Gizbert had been sacked 'for a reason related to health and safety'. ABC News said its decision to dismiss Mr Gizbert was made for strictly financial reasons. It will appeal the ruling.


Background: Law degree at Cardiff University, followed by the legal practice course at Cardiff and a training contract at Leonard Gray in Chelmsford. He qualified in 2001 and joined Bevans, becoming a partner in 2004.


Route to the case: 'The case came to us from our London office, and the client liked our approach to dealing with his case.'


Thoughts on the case: 'This was an important decision for the client, as it vindicated his view that he was unfairly dismissed because he refused to go to Iraq or work in other war-zones. It is the first time UK employment law has been used in a situation involving a case of this nature. It shows how the tribunal was willing to apply employment law and health and safety law to cover circumstances that were not necessarily anticipated when the legislation was drafted, but which are highly relevant to the world we live in today. On a wider level, it is an important case for all journalists potentially in line to work in war-zones, as it shows there are limits on a news organisation's right to send staff to them. The decision demonstrates that an employee who reasonably refuses a dangerous war-zone assignment will be protected under UK employment law from being unfairly dismissed because of their desire to protect their safety.'


Dealing with the media: 'We are used to dealing with high-profile cases with media interest, but this case has been slightly different in that we have been able to share the work of speaking to the media, as our client was a TV reporter and the BBC's former war correspondent Martin Bell was one of our expert witnesses. The press has been understandably supportive and sympathetic in its reporting.'