Helen Lyne Senior Consultant Dispute Resolution Lawyer

Helen is a senior commercial disputes lawyer specialising in contentious matters. Throughout her career, she has held senior positions, including partner at a top 50 law firm, as well as roles within independent regional practices.

With extensive experience advising private equity-backed businesses and founder-led enterprises, Helen brings a modern approach to litigation, incorporating preventative strategies to help clients manage risk, scale effectively and attract investment.

Areas of expertise

• Contract and business disputes
• Corporate and shareholder litigation
• Data theft, restrictive covenant litigation and High Court enforcement
• Intellectual property litigation
• Insolvency litigation
• Investor conflicts
• Technology and commercial IT disputes
• Risk avoidance and pre-dispute support, including contract risk management, governance and structuring advice
• Crisis management
• Exit and transaction disputes, including M&A-related litigation
• Alternative dispute resolution

Approach to work and clients 

Helen takes a commercial, pragmatic and solutions-driven approach to her work, focusing not only on legal accuracy, but also achieving outcomes that align with her clients' strategic and financial objectives. She works both proactively and reactively, helping clients avoid disputes through clear advice, strong structuring and effective risk management, while acting decisively when conflicts arise. She particularly enjoys turning complex, high-pressure situations into clear, structured strategies, cutting through complexity to focus on the best possible outcome in a practical, efficient and cost-effective way.

Helen is especially passionate about supporting SMEs at every stage of growth, from start-up through to scaling, providing practical, stage-appropriate guidance. She aims to become a trusted adviser to her clients, supporting them through key business milestones and adding value beyond their immediate legal issue.

Notable cases

Notable experience includes:

• Defending proceedings in a multi-million-pound claim for data theft and breach of confidential information in the utilities sector
• Negotiating and recovering substantial damages in a complex contractual dispute involving a local authority and care provider
• Settling a shareholder dispute involving complex intellectual property rights following the exit of a founding director
• Securing a significant settlement for a food manufacturer forced to recall products due to a supplier’s breach of food safety regulations

Outside of her legal practice, Helen is a proud trustee of the Teesside Charity, supporting initiatives to address socio-economic challenges across the North East and contributing to a range of community-focused causes.