Outdoor activity and adventure travel

Our services

We have a thriving outdoor activity legal team, providing a wide range of services to the expedition and adventure travel sector including:

• Specialist training in safety issues
• Booking terms and conditions
• Service provider/indemnity contracts
• Crisis and media response training
• Property issues
• Coroners inquests
• Litigation (including deaths, serious sexual assaults overseas and breach of contract claims)

We also offer off site safety management courses and health and safety services, delivered by our highly qualified team of health and safety professionals. With both UK and overseas experience, the team is able to deliver a wide range of high quality services including health and safety audits, auditing against sector specific safety standards, and conducting thorough reviews of company procedures and vehicle safety policies. Clients have used these services in relation to issues as wide ranging as asbestos related advice, auditing for compliance, safety standards, and vehicular safety policies in the UK and overseas.

Our team

Team head, Matthew Davies FRGS, sits on various industry related committees including the Travel and Tourism Lawyers Association, as well as the committee that drafted the new British Standard BS 8848 for safety on overseas visits and expeditions. Matthew is also ‘Technical Advisor - Legal’ to the Expedition Providers Association. Matthew’s expertise is highlighted in the Chambers and Partners Legal Directory 2009 quoting client feedback that he’s an “exceptional lawyer… immensely thoughtful and commercially astute - he always gives practical and effective solutions to legal issues”.

Team members have lectured to many industry bodies including:

• ABTA
• British Activity Holidays Association
• Mountain Leader Training (at the National Mountain Centre, Snowdonia)
• The Royal Geographical Society (at the launch of BS: 8848)
• Academic establishments such as Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine

They have also provided specialist training to numerous mountaineering and expedition companies. The team includes a number of active expeditioners, experienced in operating in desert, jungle, Arctic Circle, bush and mountainous environments as well as expedition medical instructors and safety trainers.

Our clients

The team acts (and provides training) for a variety of clients including well known expedition trusts and charities, organisations working with young people, market leading expedition companies, adventure race organisers, independent expeditions and various industry bodies.

Training

We run a two day legal seminar on an annual basis, specifically targeted to the outdoor activity and adventure travel sector. It is attended by operators, leaders, industry bodies, insurers and brokers alike. To view all our forthcoming training courses, seminars and events, please see our events calendar.

Fielding a significant travel team, this firm is praised for its "exceptional experience of crisis and disaster response". With a particular reputation in the expedition, marine and aviation sectors, the team is "tremendously thorough, whilst also being friendly and approachable - you’d definitely want it on your side if you were facing a crisis." The group advises on regulatory matters, terms and conditions, health and safety issues and casualty response. "Exceptional lawyer" Matthew Davies…sources describe him as "immensely thoughtful and commercially astute - he always gives practical and effective solutions to legal issues". Partner Maria Pittordis is known as a "direct and straightforward lawyer who produces high-quality work and is always responsive and authoritative."
Chambers and Partners Legal Directory 2009