Bilquees Shillingford
Summary
A first-class law graduate and paralegal with a working and educational background in commercial law, intellectual property law and litigation. Significant experience from past and present legal roles conducting tasks such as drafting contracts and other legal documents, contract review, document review, legal advisory work, legal research and case management. Strong commercial awareness with the ability to take on heavy workloads and meet tight deadlines, with a good understanding of internal corporate processes.
Overview
5
5
years of professional experience
5
5
years of post-secondary education
Work history
Regulatory Paralegal
The Football Association
London
11.2024 - Current
- Supporting The FA’s Regulatory legal team with a range of matters such as issuing misconduct charges, facilitating misconduct hearings and liaising with witnesses.
- Dealing with the case management of over 200 cases at a time and record keeping.
- Ensuring data protection compliance across published Written Reasons.
- Dealing with Data Subject Access Requests and ensuring data protection compliance.
- Supporting Regulatory Advocates with document review, litigation matters and legal research.
Commercial Paralegal (Media, Entertainment and Sports)
Bird & Bird LLP (Secondee to Arsenal Football Club)
London
09.2023 - 09.2024
- Providing support to the legal department in relation to Arsenal’s retail operations including drafting, reviewing and amending licence agreements (and variation agreements in respect of the same).
- Providing support to the legal department in relation to commercial operations including drafting non-disclosure agreements and agency introduction agreements.
- Drafting, reviewing and negotiating commercial, legal operations and football operations contracts.
- Assisting with Arsenal’s intellectual property protection programme including but not limited to the preparation of witness statements for use in criminal counterfeit product proceedings.
- Supporting Arsenal’s brand protection programme through identification of unauthorised use of the Club's IP and cease and desist correspondence and takedown instructions as well as trade mark litigation.
- Assisting with the renewal of the Club’s trade mark portfolio in multiple jurisdictions.
- Ensuring the Club’s compliance with the Data Protection Act 2018, the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 (SI 2426/2003) (as amended by The Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) (Amendment) Regulations 2011), Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (the General Data Protection Regulation) and the UK GDPR.
- Ensuring the Club’s compliance with Premier League, FA, UEFA and FIFA regulations (including football disciplinary issues).
- Reviewing, drafting and amending the Club's various terms and conditions and policies.
Litigation Paralegal
Leigh Day Solicitors
Manchester
08.2022 - 09.2023
- Assisting in all aspects of litigation including preparation of correspondence and documents, court hearings, trial and settlement, instruction of experts, disclosure review, quantification of claims, costs assessment and negotiations.
- Ensuring that accurate information and instructions are obtained from clients and that accurate records are maintained.
- Conducting legal and factual research and preparing research notes.
- Assisting with drafting documents, client liaison including interviewing clients and taking instructions, preparation of witness statements, research work, assisting with negotiations and providing general administrative support.
- Supporting the research and development of new areas of practice for the firm.
- Ensuring that all work is conducted in compliance with SRA rules and the Civil Procedure Rules.
Mini-pupillage
4 New Square Chambers
London
07.2023 - 07.2023
- Shadowed sports law barrister Kendrah Potts who worked on several high-profile cases including representing Kieran Trippier and Daniel Sturridge against allegations of violating FA betting regulations.
- Tasked with a research project into the breach of contractual obligations and its implications for football teams under FA and EFL regulations.
- Attended and tasked with taking notes on a lawsuit hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice.
Legal Advisor
University of Manchester Legal Advice Centre
Manchester
07.2020 - 06.2022
- Carried out Pro Bono work in property and employment law.
- Met with clients and wrote witness statements detailing their grievances.
- Carried out legal research into the laws surrounding Japanese knotweed within property law.
- Wrote advice letters to guide clients with their next steps in the legal process.
Legal Intern
Slaughter and May
London
09.2020 - 09.2020
- Attended sessions on commercial law and awareness which provided an insight into the inner workings of the firm.
- Extensively researched, produced and presented a commercial law case on the merger of Marston's PLC and Carlsberg to associates and partners.
- Completed several administrative tasks which I presented to an associate mentor and received constructive feedback on.
Education
LLM Legal Practice - SQE1&2
The University of Law
01.2025 - 10.2026
Sports Law Postgraduate Certificate -
De Montfort University
09.2023 - 06.2024
Law LLB (degree classification: First Class) -
University of Manchester
09.2019 - 06.2022
Skills
- Arabic (Saudi Najdi dialect) at business level
- Blogging (currently volunteering as a content writer at the Muslim Employment Charter, which focuses on promoting religious inclusivity within the workplace)
Other Work Experience
- Student Ambassador, The University of Manchester (12/01/19–06/01/22)
- Tutor, Explore Learning (02/01/19–01/01/20)
- Service Colleague, Asda (09/01/18–12/01/18)
Timeline
LLM Legal Practice - SQE1&2
The University of Law
01.2025 - 10.2026
Regulatory Paralegal
The Football Association
11.2024 - Current
Sports Law Postgraduate Certificate -
De Montfort University
09.2023 - 06.2024
Commercial Paralegal (Media, Entertainment and Sports)
Bird & Bird LLP (Secondee to Arsenal Football Club)
09.2023 - 09.2024
Mini-pupillage
4 New Square Chambers
07.2023 - 07.2023
Litigation Paralegal
Leigh Day Solicitors
08.2022 - 09.2023
Legal Intern
Slaughter and May
09.2020 - 09.2020
Legal Advisor
University of Manchester Legal Advice Centre
07.2020 - 06.2022
Law LLB (degree classification: First Class) -
University of Manchester
09.2019 - 06.2022
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