Katie Sage

Inquests & Public Inquiries

Katie is ranked as a leading junior by Legal 500 and as an upper coming junior in Chambers & Partners in this area. She has significant experience of public inquiries having represented the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea throughout the ongoing Grenfell Tower Inquiry as lead junior (led by James Maxwell-Scott KC).

During the Inquiry, she has been closely involved in advising on strategy and approach, including advising on the impact of the Charter for Families Bereaved through Public Tragedy (also known as the Hillsborough Charter) and how that affects a Core Participant in such proceedings. Katie has advised on matters relating to Building Control and to the fire safety management of high-rise residential buildings, including the application of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 in circumstances where a building is managed for the freeholder by a management organisation. She was closely involved in drafting written and oral opening and closing submissions, submissions relating to post-incident changes at RBKC and questions for witnesses. She also devised and managed significant parts of the disclosure and review strategy, including in respect of LPP documents.

She is now instructed in the COVID-19 Inquiry by a corporate client and for a public body in the high-profile inquest arising out of the Forbury Gardens Terror Attack in June 2020.

Katie has also represented companies in inquests across a variety of sectors and her recent experience includes:

• Instructed for the CDM Client, AM Ltd, in a 5-day jury inquest relating to the death of a scaffolder who fell from height through a fragile roof.
• Instructed for KCH Ltd in an inquest involving the death of a resident of their care home after an unobserved fall.
• Represented S Ltd in a 3-day jury inquest where their employee had died when he fell from a tail lift during a loading operation and suffered crush injuries.
• Represented EM Ltd in relation to a jury inquest arising out of the death of one of their workers as a result of a fall from height.
• Represented HG Ltd, a Registered Social Provider in a 5-day inquest arising out of the death of one of their residents where the conclusion of “unlawful killing” was considered in respect of one of HG Ltd’s former employee.
• Represented V Ltd during the preparatory stages of an inquest relating to the death of their employee who had been crushed at a recycling plant.
• Representing SU Ltd during the preparatory stages of an inquest relating to the death of an individual who had been crushed during construction of a steel structure.
• Representing V Ltd during the preparatory stages of an inquest relating to the death of their employee who had been crushed by a skip.

During the course of these inquests, Katie has gained experience advising on and making submissions in relation to whether an inquest should be an Article 2 inquest; disclosure obligations; expert evidence and witnesses; and using the inquest as a mechanism to bring out the policies and procedures in place in workplace cases.

Selected Cases

News

• James Maxwell-Scott KC and Katie Sage recently represented Serco Ltd in a prosecution brought by the Health and Safety Executive
• Arcadia/Topshop Trial

Read more

Articles

• The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 – The Road To Life Imprisonment? By Katie Sage and Jack Murphy
• Innocent until probably guilty

Read more

Events

• “Keeping an eye on COVID-19: the morning after the night before” by Harry Vann & Katie Sage

Qualifications

• BPTC, Outstanding
• BCL
• BA (Hons) Oxon, First Class
• Hardwicke Scholarship, Lincoln’s Inn
• Lord Denning Scholarship, Lincoln’s Inn
• Buchanan Prize, Lincoln’s Inn
• Sir Roger Bannister Scholarship, Pembroke College
• Pembroke College Exhibition

Memberships

• HSLA
• PNBA
• PIBA