Our People

North Wales Community Law is built on people with a wide variety of skills and experiences coming together to make a difference.

Staff

We are a small team of specialist solicitors, caseworkers and other staff, who are passionate about improving access to justice for the people of North Wales.

Marie Heym

Interim Centre Director / Head of Legal Practice

Marie is a qualified solicitor specialising in housing law in Wales. Marie has overall responsibility for our legal services and operations.

Jayne Butler

Governance and Sustainability Advisor

Jayne joined the team in October 2025, as Interim CEO, bringing 15 years of experience of managing social welfare and community law centres. She is now working to support the board and leadership team with our sustainability and governance.

Michael Guina

Housing Solicitor and Team Leader

Michael is a qualified solicitor with extensive experience in Welsh Housing and Homelessness law. He has spent the last 8 years acting for Defendants in a wide variety of matters from actions against local authorities to landlord and tenant disputes relating to private and social occupation contracts. Michael joined the team as the Team Leader for the Housing Team in February 2026.

Melissa Humphreys

Trainee Solicitor

Melissa joined us a caseworker and was particularly drawn to the vision and values of North Wales Community Law. She became our first Trainee Solicitor in April 2026.

Sophie Vaughan

Community Paralegal

Sophie joined us as a 3rd year law student from Bangor University. Having grown up in North Wales, Sophie is passionate about access to justice in the region. Sophie’s ability to communicate in both Welsh and English means we’re able to offer the most suitable and friendly service to clients.

Jabez Oakes

Community Paralegal

Jabez joined us to support our community engagement and triage work. He is passionate about access to justice and informed advice in North Wales and how communities can work together to ensure everyone knows their legal rights.

Sean Price

Volunteer

Sean’s career spans work as a welfare rights adviser then, after qualifying as a solicitor in 1996, practicing principally in housing law (tenant’s rights, homelessness etc). In 2007, he took a post as a lecturer in the Law School at Liverpool John Moores University. Sean’s interest in Welsh housing law and drive to improve the availability of legal services for people in housing need led him to North Wales Community Law.

Trustees

Christopher Lothian-Field

Chair

Christopher is an experienced barrister with a diverse common law practice, regularly appearing in courts of all levels in both civil and criminal matters. He currently chairs the board, bringing a wealth of experience and expertise with him.

Deborah Wilkins

Treasurer

Debbie has spent 20 years working in the financial services sector, 10 years working for Careers Wales in both an advisory and research capacity. She has been a director and founder of a community interest company and has been involved in various community associations. She currently works in the third sector for WCVA, the national membership body for voluntary organisations in Wales and specifically works in European funding.

Ron Davison

Ron is the Managing Director of North Wales’ largest law firm, Gamlins Law. He is a passionate advocate in the realms of social justice. Ron qualified as a Solicitor in 2003. His legal practice covers the common law, with a particular emphasis on employment matters. Ron also has an extensive Commercial Litigation practice and has represented numerous companies in the High Court. Outside of the office Ron is an avid follower of rugby, having been forced to hang-up his boots many years ago. Ron was President of the Cheshire and North Wales Law Society in 2017 and also holds a number of non-executive Director roles.

Daniel Scrase

Daniel grew up in Bangor and worked for 12 years in the third-sector in North Wales, specialising in mental health and wellbeing. He brings experience of managing large volunteer teams for both the Royal Voluntary Service and Cruse Bereavement Support. He believes wholeheartedly in the value of volunteers in services to support people facing difficulty. He is currently studying for a Masters in Law and Legal Practice at BPP University and volunteers for the Vauxhall Law Centre in their debt advice team. Outside of work he enjoys meditation and weight lifting, but not always at the same time.

Acton Afonso

Acton is a solicitor who completed his training at JW Hughes and Co, based in their Llandudno office. His usual work involves divorce proceedings, applications under the Children Act 1989 and domestic abuse matters. He does advice and work on legal aid as well. In his spare time, he enjoys playing football, watching TV and going for walks along the beach.

Dr Daniel Newman

Dan is a Senior Lecturer at Cardiff University and has been at the School of Law and Politics since 2015. His research focuses on access to justice. His projects have included looking at the impact of austerity on the advice sector, exploring how criminal legal aid cuts effect the lawyer-client relationship under criminal legal aid and considering how rural areas are damaged by reduced spending on justice. He is the author of Legal Aid Lawyers and the Quest for Justice.

Sue James

Sue is Chief Executive of Legal Action Group (LAG). Prior to joining LAG she was director and solicitor of Hammersmith & Fulham Law Centre and a founding trustee of Ealing Law Centre. She has been a housing lawyer for 30 years. In 2017 she won the outstanding achievement award at the Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards. She is a respected legal author and co-editor of Housing Possession Duty Desk, and co-editor of Justice Matters and the Legal Aid Handbook. She also writes and campaigns on access to justice issues.

Advisers

Annie Bannister

Annie has already had a successful career in marketing and has now retrained as a Solicitor. She has a civil litigation background and currently works for the Police securing risk and protection orders in court to help vulnerable people and neighbourhoods, this includes slavery and trafficking risk and protection orders. She has a particular interest in justice against modern slavery, having worked with a European anti trafficking network (RENATE) since 2012 and now sits on their Legal Task Group and also in the past at Hope for Justice supporting their advocacy and policy team.

Warren Palmer

Warren is director of the Speakeasy Law Centre in Cardiff (Wales’ only Law Centre). He has been a solicitor specialising in welfare benefits work for 20 years and, in the 2003 Welsh Law Awards, he was named Pro Bono Lawyer of the Year.