Stuart Neely is a disputes lawyer based in London. He has extensive experience in business and human rights (BHR) and ESG-related issues, as well as bribery and corruption, fraud and money-laundering.

Stuart co-leads our global BHR practice and counsels clients on the development of human rights and ESG due diligence programs, public disclosures, transaction due diligence and grievance processes. He also advises on contentious ESG matters including investigations, disputes, complaints before OECD National Contact Points, crisis management, and risk mitigation strategies.

Stuart’s experience extends to investigations conducted by authorities including the UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO) and US Department of Justice, statutory public inquiries and sports regulatory proceedings, and compliance reviews conducted by multi-lateral financial institutions including the World Bank. Stuart completed a year-long secondment to the SFO where he worked on a mix of bribery and fraud cases, and SFO policy work.

Stuart has been ranked in Chambers Global for Business & Human Rights Law since 2018 and is described as “an outstanding lawyer and a pleasure to deal with” (2025). He is also ranked in the 2024 Chambers Global Crisis & Risk Management Guide for ESG Risk, described as an “excellent lawyer with an impressive depth of experience and a pragmatic mindset”. He is recognised as a “Next Generation Partner” in Legal 500 UK for ESG.

He was a core part of the team that advised the Equator Principles Association on the development of Equator Principles 4, the financial industry benchmark for managing environmental and social risks in projects. He was the author of a UK country report comprising part of a recent European Commission study on supply chain due diligence.