Who We Are

The Centre for Military Justice was set up by lawyer, Emma Norton. She is the former head of the legal team at the human rights organisation Liberty, where she worked for ten years. Prior to that, she worked in the public law and civil liberties team at the law firm, Bindmans.

Emma acted for the families of three of the young trainees who died at Deepcut barracks in Surrey in 1995, cases that revealed a bullying, sexualised and abusive environment for young soldiers; and the family of the late Cpl Anne-Marie Ellement who died after reporting rape and bullying in the Army. Cpl Ellement’s inquest led to a prosecution and significant changes to Army policies on how victims of sexual crime should be treated. Emma represented Joe Ousalice, the LGBT veteran who successfully challenged the MoD’s refusal to restore his Long Service & Good Conduct medal after he was thrown out of the Navy because of his sexuality.

Emma continues to represent many service women who have suffered sexual assaults and sexual harassment; and several Black soldiers that have suffered racism during their service. She supports many bereaved families who are seeking answers following the sudden deaths of their loved ones in the armed forces.

Lucy Baston is a Solicitor at the Centre for Military Justice.

Lucy qualified as a Solicitor in January 2021.  Prior to joining the Centre for Military Justice, Lucy worked in public and private family law. She specialised in sexual abuse and domestic abuse cases. She frequently made applications to the Family Court on behalf of survivors of abuse to secure protective remedies.

Lucy undertook the above work in legal aid setting, as she is passionate about securing and promoting access to justice for those who would otherwise be unrepresented.  Lucy continues to work in voluntary capacity with the charity Rights of Women, providing advice to women who are in need of free, independent legal advice.

Lucy Baston joined the Centre for Military Justice in January 2023 and aims to contribute to the important work which it undertakes on behalf of men and women in the Armed Forces and bereaved military families.

Our finance manager is Stephen Povey. Stephen has worked as a freelance financial consultant and trainer for a number of small charities and projects. He is also an actor and singer.

Sandeep is our Race Equity Policy Advisor. She is leading a scoping project for the CMJ that will research and report on issues affecting racially minoritised communities within the armed forces. Sandeep is a solicitor working in private practice with a particular interest in human rights, inquests and representing people in the armed forces and their families. She joined us in August 2023.

Our Chair of Trustees, as of March 2021, is John Donnelly CBE. John is a former Brigadier in the British Army. He served from 1982 to 2016 in a variety of operational roles, including commanding the Cheshire Regiment in Iraq and Northern Ireland and serving as Director of Personnel Services for the Army. John now works as Head of Integrity at UK Sport.

Majinder Randhawa is our Treasurer. Majinder is a highly experienced finance manager and senior accountant. She joined the CMJ board in March 2021.  

Siân Nicholson is Philanthropy Manager for the national charity, Myeloma UK. She has worked in a variety of senior fundraising roles including at homeless charity FourSquare and digital youth support charity The Mix. 

Rosie Brighouse is a Senior Lawyer at the Human Dignity Trust,  providing support to LGBT individuals and organisations with specialist legal advice and expertise and challenging discriminatory legislation. She formerly worked at Liberty specialising in strategic litigation on issues of poverty and human rights, free speech and discriminatory policing. 

Des James was our founding chair. He worked with our Director through 2018 and 2019 to set up the CMJ and then steered us through our first year before retiring in March 2021. Des continues to be very closely involved with the charity through the advisory board.  Des is the father of Pte Cheryl James who died at Deepcut barracks in Surrey in November 1995 amid allegations of bullying, sexual harassment, and a lack of care by the Army.

Richard was the first Black Guardsman and is published author and experienced Diversity and Inclusion Manager who since 2001, has been active in the field of Equality Diversity and Inclusion (ED&I), working for various organisations including Business in the Community, Environment Agency, University of the West of England, and Avon Fire & Rescue Service.