Margaret Bourke is an International Trade Adviser with the Department for International Trade (DIT) in the North West. Margaret has over 25 years international business experience. She worked in Japan for 3 years and has extensive experience in Europe, USA and South East Asia. She speaks Japanese, French, German and Irish along with intermediate Spanish and some Portuguese.

Laura is an experienced employment and immigration lawyer who leads Brabners’ Business Immigration Team.

Laura advises on all aspects of immigration compliance from right to work considerations to sponsor license applications, sponsor compliance and Skilled Worker visas. Post-Brexit she has been advising a number of clients on the implications of the end of free movement for their business, and, in particular, the implications for their business travellers. She advises on the immigration implications of mergers and acquisitions.

She also deals with all kinds of employment issues for businesses including discrimination claims, restrictive covenant disputes, redundancies and reorganisations and senior executive terminations. She is often asked to advise on complicated overlapping employment and immigration law issues for example where sponsored employees are being dismissed.

Laura is regularly invited to speak at conferences and events relating to business immigration issues. She is a member of the Employment Lawyers Association and the Immigration Lawyers and Practitioners Association, and is ranked as a “Next Generation Partner” in Legal 500.

Sophia-Clara Schulte is a Senior Associate in our Düsseldorf office and a member of Noerr’s Employment & Pensions practice group. She advises national and international clients on all employment-related matters. Her practice areas also include in particular cross-border employment relationships, international secondments and related employment, social security as well as tax, residence and work permit law issues. As a result of her day-do-day client work for a large number of international companies and institutions, she has direct contact with the authorities and continuously up-to-date experience in the practical handling of foreign postings.