Past event
Unpacking the Horizon IT Scandal: Ethical Decision‑Making in Conversation with Dr Karen Nokes
Event Details
- When
-
- | –
- Where
- 12th Floor, The Hoxton Southwark, 40 Blackfriars Road, London, SE1 8NY
Join us for our In-House Insights: Unpacking the Horizon IT Scandal event on Tuesday 17 March 2026 on the 12th floor at The Hoxton Southwark.
Our next session will feature a conversation with Dr Karen Nokes, focusing on her research into ethical decision‑making for in‑house solicitors following the Horizon IT Scandal. Dr Nokes was involved in a study examining the role of lawyers in the scandal and the implications for legal ethics and the wider profession.
The public inquiry has revealed how in‑house lawyers at the Post Office became central to decisions that sustained the scandal. Their actions, and in some cases, inaction, exposed systemic issues including isolation, lack of training, pressure to prioritise organisational loyalty over professional duties, and an inability to escalate concerns or challenge flawed processes. Many were left feeling complicit in a culture that ignored mounting evidence of IT failures.
As part of her research, Dr Nokes spent months working alongside LBC Wise’s Paul Gilbert, workshopping hypothetical examples to explore how solicitors balance client interests with their professional conduct duties.
Dr Nokes will share how empirical research provides insights into the Horizon IT Scandal, and how this can help inform lessons learned in conversation with Megan Paul, Commercial Partner at Charles Russell Speechlys and Lead of our In-House Insights Programme.
We hope that you can join us and ask that you RSVP to secure your place.
If you have any further questions please contact our Events Team.
Unpacking the Horizon IT Scandal: Ethical Decision‑Making in Conversation with Dr Karen Nokes
Our event featured a conversation with Dr Karen Nokes, focusing on her research into ethical decision‑making for in‑house solicitors following the Horizon IT Scandal. Dr Nokes was involved in a study examining the role of lawyers in the scandal and the implications for legal ethics and the wider profession.
The public inquiry has revealed how in‑house lawyers at the Post Office became central to decisions that sustained the scandal. Their actions, and in some cases, inaction, exposed systemic issues including isolation, lack of training, pressure to prioritise organisational loyalty over professional duties, and an inability to escalate concerns or challenge flawed processes. Many were left feeling complicit in a culture that ignored mounting evidence of IT failures.
As part of her research, Dr Nokes spent months working alongside LBC Wise’s Paul Gilbert, workshopping hypothetical examples to explore how solicitors balance client interests with their professional conduct duties.
Dr Nokes shared how empirical research provides insights into the Horizon IT Scandal, and how this can help inform lessons learned in conversation with Megan Paul, Commercial Partner at Charles Russell Speechlys and Lead of our In-House Insights Programme.
