Dan Hedley

Partner
I try to get under the skin of a client’s business. That means understanding what their products or services are all about, how they make money, what causes them problems, how they like to operate, and what their risk tolerances are.

I’m an IT and tech lawyer…and a self-confessed nerd. I retrained as a lawyer after a career in the IT industry, which gives me an appreciation of the practicalities behind the legal work. I’m well-placed to give sensible, holistic advice to businesses of all sizes - from large multinationals to three person start-ups - on things like software licensing, cloud services contracts, software development projects, digital media and adtech, data protection and open source compliance.

My recent work highlights include:

  • advising a software and professional services vendor on a mainframe re-hosting project for a major telco;
  • advising a global law firm on its procurement of a new cloud-based document management system;
  • advising a global media brand on the data protection aspects of an acquisition; and
  • advising an MSP on a financial services outsourcing.

 I like to understand the commercial and operational drivers behind each project. That takes time. But I believe it’s worth the effort. As well as satisfying my endless curiosity about how different kinds of businesses work, this approach means I can be much more useful to a client. And ultimately much more efficient.

 Taking an effective, efficient approach is the ethos that lies at the heart of Tacit Legal. By being responsive and offering actual advice on what our clients should do - rather than sitting on the fence - we’re able to get our clients’ deals done in a sensible and proportionate way.

 Ultimately I believe our way of working will enable us to develop into a top tier tech and media boutique, with a strong blend of managed services and traditional lawyering.

Articles

Data (Use and Access) Bill: innovation or more of the same?

This new parliamentary bill attempts to unlock the value of data in a rapidly digitising world, but does it deliver the transformative change it hoped to?

Maeve MacGlinchey
27/11/2024

AI – the UK’s current and future regulatory regime

A number of regulators have independently published guidance, reviews and consultations. However, when might we see a more uniform approach, and what might it look like?

Stuart Padgham
10/10/2024

SOWs and technical schedules – part 3: use of language

Statements of work and technical schedules are often long-lived documents. Given you or someone else will likely need to look at them in months or years time, how do you go about making them clear?

Dan Hedley
18/07/2024

Making sure “legal” and “commercial” contract as a team

Often lawyers will assume in the agreement that the schedules or statement of work "do" certain things, but it gets lost in communication.

Dan Hedley
18/06/2024

Statements of work and technical schedules - part 1: terminology

Statements of work and schedules are often some of the most important parts of a contract, but defined terms are often used inconsistently. How do defined terms work, and what should you look out for?

Dan Hedley
14/05/2024

Influencer marketing: what should brands consider?

Influencer marketing is still one of the most powerful tools to boost trust and engagement in your brand – but what are the key legal issues to consider?

Aurelia Butler-Ball
24/04/2024

Building a firm from scratch – the blueprint

Given the opportunity to start with a blank piece of paper, we've thought very carefully about what we need to run the firm efficiently.

Chris Bridges
24/01/2023

Building a firm from scratch – why go on our own & our vision

Why we started your own firm rather than join one, and our aspirations for what Tacit Legal will feel like for our clients and our colleagues.

Chris Bridges
10/01/2023