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Mike Cain

Partner

England & Wales

020 3319 3700

mike.cain@keystonelaw.co.uk

Mike is a highly experienced employment partner and litigator with over 16 years of practice in senior exits and complex claims arising from termination of employment and workplace discrimination.

Mike has developed a strong reputation for advising and representing senior executives, particularly those in FCA-regulated roles within the financial sector, as well as professionals in the tech, legal, academic, advertising, and media industries. He also has very extensive experience in advising and representing individual police officers, NHS staff, and those working in local and national government roles.

Beyond individual representation, Mike has had significant experience of collective employment disputes and matters involving the role of trade unions, having acted in key collective redundancy litigation in the Court of Appeal and CJEU. He has also acted in a respondent capacity defending claims in the Employment Tribunal for certain trade unions and other organisations.

He has latterly overseen complex group actions involving holiday pay enforcement and pension rights, securing substantial outcomes for thousands of affected employees.

Expertise

Mike is an accomplished litigator in whistleblowing, dismissal, and discrimination claims, with extensive experience framing and running complex cases before and after the Equality Act 2010, securing successful outcomes for employees. 

Experience

  • Secured rare findings of direct discrimination in the Employment Tribunal for a disabled trainee police officer resulting in career-changing consequences for the officer involved.   
  • Secured a finding of direct discrimination on the grounds of religious belief against a major metropolitan police force in the context of Islamophobic mistreatment at work.  
  • Represented a senior executive at board level in the travel and leisure industry facing homophobic abuse from other senior board members, resulting in a substantial settlement on exit.  

Mike advises and represents senior executives, particularly in finance, legal, tech, and public sectors, on contract termination, discrimination, and whistleblowing claims, often involving high-profile disputes. 

Experience

  • Represented Foreign Office prosecutor and whistleblower Maria Bamieh in her highly publicised Tribunal claim against the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, securing a high-value financial settlement. 
  • Successfully represented barrister Robin Somerville in respect of his legal challenge clarifying the right to paid annual leave for regulatory panel chairs. 
  • Represented ex-analyst Kwasi Afrifa in his Tribunal claim against Goldman Sachs, widely reported in the national and financial press.
  • Acted for a very senior pharma executive in the context of their contentious exit, securing that individual’s deferred remuneration outcome through negotiation. 
  • Negotiated the exit of a senior advertising industry executive, including the early removal of post-termination restrictions in the preceding contract. 

Please note: The experience list above may include examples of work completed prior to joining Keystone Law.

Recognition

 Recognised by Chambers UK for Employment 2022–2026

Recognised by The Legal 500 as a Next Generation Partner for Employment 2021–2026

Recognised by The Legal 500 for Employment: Senior Executives 2026

 Recognised by The Legal 500 as a Next Generation Partner for Employment: Senior Executives 2021–2025

Member of the Employment Lawyers Association 

Member of the Industrial Law Society 

Member of the ILS Executive Committee 2013–2017   

“He was excellent. He has very high ability, and he offers good client service. Communication was first class. He was very supportive throughout. He was good at cutting to the crux of the case.”

Chambers UK 2026

Mike qualified as a solicitor in 2009. Prior to joining Keystone Law in 2025, he worked at the following firms: 

  • Cole Khan  
  • Leigh Day  
  • Slater & Gordon (formerly Russell Jones & Walker)