Ros Foster

Experience 

Ros specialises in professional discipline, administrative law, governance and information law. Ros acts for a range of public bodies, statutory regulators and third sector bodies. Her clients include the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (“PSA”), NHS England, the Royal Institute of British Architects (“RIBA”) and the Chartered Institute of Building (“CIOB”), as well as a range of NHS bodies, arms-length bodies, charities and local authorities. Ros regularly speaks at conferences and other events about disciplinary, regulatory and information law and governance issues.

Expertise

Ros advises clients on a wide range of contentious and non-contentious administrative law matters and has acted for clients in a number of leading cases in public and disciplinary law. Ros has acted for the PSA for many years. As the meta-regulator of all the health and social care regulators, cases brought by the PSA are responsible for bringing about key changes in disciplinary law and practice. Ros has recently acted for the Care Quality Commission in relation to appeals against enforcement decisions and has acted for providers in challenging decisions of other regulators such as Ofsted.

Ros has advised a range of NHS and private providers of assisted conception services on regulatory matters including responses to Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (“HFEA”) investigations and enforcement decisions. Ros has significant experience of conducting investigations in the regulatory, charity, local government and other public sector contexts, including in relation to statutory officers and in contexts where statutory reports have been issued. Ros advises a number of large NHS Trust on governance matters including those arising from the reconfiguration of services and legislative change. Ros has developed a specialism in supporting clients with the management of difficult and vexatious individuals and in safeguarding. Ros regularly advises a wide range of clients in the public, private and third sectors on all aspects of data protection and freedom of information law and practice, and on the law of confidentiality, privilege and disclosure.

Notable projects/cases 

• General Medical Council v Jagjivan [2017] EWHC 1247 (Admin), Dr Bawa-Garba v General Medical Council [2018] EWCA Civ 1879. 
• Advising key stakeholders on the Physicians Associates and Anesthesia Associates Order at draft stage and on associated guidance. 
• Advising key stakeholders on proposals for the reform of healthcare regulation.
• Reviewing and advising clients on the draft terms of reference of a number of statutory and non-statutory inquiries including the Covid Inquiry and the Ockenden review into maternity services. 
• Conducting a sensitive and high profile investigation into disclosures made by the former President of a Royal Charter body and advising on leaks of confidential information that occurred during the course of the investigation. 
• Drafting a new complaints policy and protocol for a Royal Charter body so as to amalgamate three existing Codes of Conduct and associated procedures. 
• Advising a range of public bodies on policies and procedures relating to the management of vexatious and unreasonable individuals so as to allow effective action to be taken while minimising the risk of challenge.

Admitted as a Solicitor

January 2004

 Qualifications

• De Montfort University: Legal Practice Course Distinction plus Award for Outstanding Performance 
• University of Birmingham LLB Law (Hons): 2:1