Natalie Bird

Natalie regularly defends in the Crown Court, Youth Court, and Magistrates’ Court, including trial advocacy, sentences, and confiscation proceedings.

A few months after successfully completing her pupillage with 2 Bedford Row, Natalie was led by former Head of Chambers Bill Clegg QC in a two-week trial regarding domestic violence and controlling and coercive behaviour, resulting in the client being acquitted of all charges. Since then, Natalie has represented many Defendants at trial in the Crown Court in her own right – please see the list below for some examples. She has a particular interest in fraud and economic crime, and is building a practice within the field of health & safety.

Natalie welcomes all manner of instructions through solicitors as well as directly from lay clients. For example, Natalie has provided a lay client with direct access advice regarding potential bribery whistleblowing, and she has secured an acquittal for a working mother accused of keying her neighbours’ cars.

Notable Cases

• R v J (2022): Client acquitted of assaulting an emergency worker (a plain-clothes police officer).
• R v J (2022): Persuaded the Judge to sentence by way of the time the client had already served in prison, following Guilty pleas to supplying Class A drugs – he was released later that day.
• R v M (2022): Youth Court acquittal for a 17-year-old boy with severe learning disabilities who had been accused of sexual assault of a child under 13 and inciting a child under 13 to engage in sexual activity. For more information, please click here: https://www.2bedfordrow.co.uk/youth-court-sexual-offences-acquittal/
• R v H (2021: Secured a suspended sentence for a man who had pleaded Guilty to perverting the course of justice having falsely accused another man of robbery.
• R v M (2021): Represented a lady accused of ABH and criminal damage against her ex-partner – the jury acquitted her of the more serious charge of ABH and she was given a conditional discharge for the damage.
• R v D (2021): Secured a suspended sentence following a Goodyear indication for a man accused of supplying Class A drugs.
• R v T (2020): Client avoided prison having pleaded Guilty to stealing nearly £9,000 worth of goods from his employer.
• R v C (2020): Sexual assault charges against a driving instructor dropped following successful representations to the CPS.
• R v N (2020): Client charged with wounding with intent released on bail after successfully opposing the Crown’s application to extend the Custody Time Limits.
• R v F (2020): Persuaded Judge to impose a Community Order rather than prison for a lady who had pleaded Guilty to possessing an identity document with a dishonest intention.
• R v M (2019): Secured an acquittal for a direct access client who had been caught on CCTV allegedly keying her neighbours’ cars.
• R v L (2019): High-profile client sentenced to a suspended sentence for dangerous driving involving the flipping of a car.
• R v W (2019): Military veteran client given a conditional discharge having admitted purchasing a disguised firearm.
• R v R (2019): Client was acquitted by the jury of robbery despite the complainant claiming to have recognised her, and despite the stolen bag containing fingerprints belonging to R and R’s partner.
• R v R (2019): Client was acquitted by the jury of the most serious of three counts of theft despite the jury seeing text messages purportedly from the client explicitly contradicting his defence.
• R v S (2018): Led by Bill Clegg QC in a two-week trial regarding domestic violence and controlling and coercive behaviour, resulting in the client being acquitted of all charges.
• R v T (2018): Acquittal of a man accused of domestic violence following a successful application to adduce the complainant’s bad character (not relating to a conviction). The client’s c.£4,000 worth of outstanding Court fines were then written off due to the time he had spent in custody.
• R v J (2017): Persuaded the Magistrates to find exceptional hardship, saving J from a 6-month totting ban which would have terminated his employment as a Class 1 HGV driver and forced him to sell his family’s home.
• R v H (2017): Following legal argument about disclosure failings, the Prosecution were compelled to drop an allegation of assault against a 50-year-old man with no previous convictions.
• R v B (2017): Acquittal of an ex-police officer accused of a public order offence involving threats of violence against a ticket operator at a train station, despite CCTV footage and the independent eye-witness account of a university professor.
• N v H (2017): Claimant was persuaded to drop their County Court application to commit H to prison for breaching an Anti-Social Behaviour Injunction, on the basis of a written skeleton argument applying to strike out their case.