Legal Guidance and Research / Experts / Nicholas Ostrowski
Nicholas Ostrowski#3386
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Nicholas Ostrowski

Six Pump Court

Nicholas is a member of Six Pump Court chambers and has a specialist environmental, planning, public and regulatory law practice.

Nicholas has been appointed to the C Panel of the Attorney General’s List of Counsel and regularly appears for or against central government departments in high profile judicial review challenges to government decisions in the High Court.

Nicholas has also been appointed to the Attorney General’s List of Specialist Regulatory Advocates and appears and advises central and local government regulators including the Environment Agency in a range of public, criminal and private law matters. He has particular experience of waste and water offences and has written articles and given lectures on a number of issues in this area.

Nicholas's planning law expertise is focussed on representing Local Planning Authorities and developers in Planning Inquiries although he also appears in a range of other courts and tribunals as well as giving advice across a broad range of planning matters.

Practice Areas

Panel

  • Contributing Author

Qualified Year

  • 2009

Membership

  • PEBA
  • UKELA
  • ALBA

Education

  • University of York (BA), University College London (MA)

2 Contributions by Nicholas Ostrowski

Appealing health and safety sentences: magistrates’ to Crown Court and CACD routes, procedure and leading authorities on fines, costs and guidelines (England and Wales)
PRACTICE NOTES
Appealing health and safety sentences: magistrates’ to Crown Court and CACD routes, procedure and leading authorities on fines, costs and guidelines (England and Wales)
Practitioners need to be mindful of the procedural steps when contesting sentences in health and safety prosecutions, whether before the Crown Court or the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division). The Court of Appeal has reviewed a range of health and safety sentences and has provided guidance to practitioners on several points, notably the correct approach to sentencing very large companies, public organisations, companies with small operating profits, and the treatment of prosecution costs incurred. Appeal from the magistrates’ court to the Crown Court Section 108 of the Magistrates Courts Act 1980 (MCA 1980) grants a defendant the right to appeal against conviction, against sentence, or against both the conviction and the sentence imposed by the magistrates’ court. The process for lodging an appeal is set out in the Criminal Procedure Rules 2025 (CrimPR 2025), SI 2025/909, Part 34. See Practice Notes: Appealing a conviction in the Crown Court, Appeal against sentence in the Crown Court, and Starting an appeal in the Court of Appeal Criminal Division (CACD)...
Corporate Crime
Sentencing organisations for health and safety offences: using the Sentencing Council nine-step guideline, turnover-based fines, very large organisations and public body reductions (England and Wales)
PRACTICE NOTES
Sentencing organisations for health and safety offences: using the Sentencing Council nine-step guideline, turnover-based fines, very large organisations and public body reductions (England and Wales)
The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA 1974) HSWA 1974 applies to employers and to those who are self‑employed. The Sentencing Council (SC) issues guidance for courts in England and Wales, setting out offence‑specific sentencing guidelines for use in the magistrates’ court and the Crown Court which, under section 59 of the Sentencing Act 2020 (SA 2020), must be followed when sentencing organisations for health and safety offences unless doing so would be contrary to the interests of justice. These sentencing guidelines do not extend to Scotland or Northern Ireland, although courts there may have regard to them to assist their sentencing function. For information on sentencing these offences in Scotland, see Practice Note: Sentencing health and safety cases in Scotland. The SC has issued offence‑specific guidelines for courts sentencing organisations for breaches of HSWA 1974 and for contraventions of health and safety regulations. The SC also publishes overarching guidelines to be considered in all sentencing exercises; see Practice Note: Sentences imposed following conviction. Among these, the General guideline—overarching principles (the General guideline) is specifically intended to be...
Corporate Crime
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